PDF or Portable Document Format lets you share the document to a different device without disrupting the formatting and page layout.
While many may not be aware of this, it is possible to edit the PDF files without converting them into Document format. Plenty of software and apps empower you to edit a PDF to your liking. Using these tools, you can perform all editorial-related tasks like adding, modifying, and deleting the text, images, and links, filling out the forms, and what’s not!
We understand how helpful these PDF editing apps can be in a crisis, so Geekflare has listed the best PDF editing software for Macs. While many of the PDF editing software are compatible with Windows and Android platforms, there are limited alternatives for Mac. Moreover, most Mac-compatible software is paid, and those offering a free version possess limited features. You either need to purchase a one-time license or opt for a monthly subscription to leverage their advanced PDF editing features.
- PDF Expert
- PDF Studio
- UPDF
- Wondershare PDFelement
- pdfFiller
- PDF Editor by Nitro
- Foxit PDF Editor
- Sejda PDF
- Acrobat Reader DC
- Show less
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PDF Expert
PDF Expert is a reliable PDF editing solution for Mac users wanting to read, edit or add annotations to PDF files. Using this utility tool, you can also fill up forms downloaded in PDF format and sign them using electronic signatures.
The software also supports dark mode and allows authorized users to add comments in PDF, facilitating collaboration amongst team members in the workplace. Using PDF Expert, you can easily password-protect sensitive PDF files from unauthorized access and transfer them to any Apple device.
Let’s see what you can do using PDF Expert:
- Merge multiple PDF documents into one.
- Select some pages from a PDF and create a new PDF file.
- Edit or replace images and links in the PDF.
- Convert the PDF file into other file formats like
- Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, and more.
- Change the font, font size, and text transparency in the PDF files.
- Hide sensitive information present in the PDF files.
The lifetime license of this handy tool costs USD 139.99.
PDF Studio
PDF Studio by Qoppa Software is a fully-fledged PDF utility competing neck-to-neck with Adobe Acrobat at a fraction of the price and download size.
This has multi-platform (Windows, Mac, Linux, & Unix) availability and is jam-packed with goodies to do everything PDF.
Some of the features include:
- Create, annotate, edit
- Digitally sign
- Optical character recognition (OCR)
- Fill & save PDF forms
- PDF split & merge
- Convert PDF to and from MS file formats
- Convert to HTML, Images, & SVG
- PDF text extraction
- Insert hyperlinks
- PDF optimizer
- Batch PDF modification
- Measurement tools
- Content redaction
- PDF comparison overlay, etc.
PDF Studio has two variants: Standard and Pro, each working on two devices per subscription, and there is a free trial if you would like to test the features.
Besides these native applications, Qoppa Software maintains freepdfonline, where you can use a few PDF-related tools for free with a daily quota.
UPDF
UPDF for Mac is an all-in-one PDF editor that can help you read, edit, convert, annotate, compress, OCR, and share PDFs on Mac directly. Compared with other PDF editors on MAC here, UPDF is much easier to use and can work on all devices with one account, which is not supported by other tools here.
With UPDFCloud, you can access your documents on any device with one click. Moreover, it provides many interesting stickers that can make your PDF editing and annotating more fun.
UPDF AI can summarize, translate, explain, rewrite, ideate faster and efficiently. Leverage AI to generate accurate summaries of hundreds of pages within seconds.
With UPDF, you can:
- Edit text in PDF, add text, image, and link to PDF.
- Convert scanned PDF or image to editable files.
- Convert PDF files to any format like word, excel, HTML, PowerPoint, etc.
- OCR: convert image into searchable and editable text
- Add annotations to PDF files. It supports sticky notes, highlights, text comments, drawings, shapes, stickers, and more.
- Organize PDF pages. You can insert new pages, replace pages, split pages, and rotate pages if you need.
- Add watermarks, background, header, and footer to PDF files.
- Protect your PDF files with a password/redaction/watermark.
- Compress PDF size to make sharing files easier.
- Batch convert, combine, and insert.
- Share files with links, QR codes, and email.
- Fill and sign documents on the go.
With a host of amazing features, UPDF is worth a try if you’re looking for a Mac PDF editor. For a detailed look at this editor, you can check out our UPDF PDF Editor review!
Wondershare PDFelement is a one-stop PDF solution powered by AI. Fast, affordable, and easy way to edit, convert, sign PDFs, and more – accessible across desktop, mobile, and web platforms.
Wondershare PDFelement’s features include:
- AI tools: AI-powered support for summarizing/proofreading/rewriting/explaining/translating the PDF file content.
- E-sign: Utilize certificate-based legal signatures, send documents to bulk signers effortlessly, and collect and track signatures from anywhere, on any device.
- Edit: Edit PDF text, images, forms, pages, and more.
- Convert: Convert files to and from PDF format in high quality.
- Scan & OCR: Recognize text from scanned PDFs and images.
- Create: Create PDF from images, Word documents, and various formats, including Batch Create.
- Organize: Merge, split, or rotate PDF pages seamlessly to suit your needs.
- Share & Protect: Protect PDFs from copying, editing, printing, and viewing with passwords. Keep sensitive data confidential.
- Build & Fill forms: Recognize and fill in PDF forms for efficient data entry. Batch modify form field properties supported.
PDFelement is smart, easy to use, functional, and comprehensive. It provides a great user experience and is an excellent alternative to Adobe Acrobat, making it perfect for all individuals and business users.
pdfFiller
pdfFiller by airSlate is a full-fledged PDF management solution to create, edit, manage and collaborate on PDF documents using your Mac. Unlike PDF Expert, pdfFiller is a web app, so you can access it directly via a web browser. Moreover, it’s a great document collaboration tool for remote teams, and can be used with other users over the network and go paperless. If you prefer to use the software offline, you can also download the software on your Mac.
pdfFiller offers a wide range of functionalities:
- Supports multiple file formats to convert or compress PDF into Word, PPT, or JPG.
- Merge multiple PDFs or create a new one using a subset of pages.
- eSign the PDF using digital signatures.
- Set security protocols on PDFs to prevent information leakage when sharing it online.
- Access to an inbuilt library of 25 million editable forms.
- Add Banking-grade security and encryption techniques to PDF documents.
Plans start from USD 8 per month, chargeable annually.
PDF Editor by Nitro
Nitro PDF Editor for Mac is a PDF management suite that offers separate tools to create, convert, manage, and edit documents in PDF format. It contains a dedicated PDF Editing tool that enables you to redact, delete, annotate, or write on the PDF files.
Nitro PDF Editor is a cloud-based application that allows you to collaborate on the PDF from anywhere and improve the workflow. It can also integrate within the MS Office, facilitating quick linking and conversion of files.
Using Nitro PDF Editor, you can:
- Create rich and refined PDF documents by adding, deleting, and modifying the text and images.
- Add your company logo, bookmarks, watermarks, page numbers, and more objects into your PDF to deliver a professional experience to your customers.
- Use the robust Optical Character Recognition (OCR) that supports multiple languages to scan the hard copy of documents and convert them into editable PDFs.
- Embed hyperlinks and other files like Word documents, presentations, images, and more
- Add labels, identification or time marks to legal documents and process them in batches.
The lifetime license of the complete PDF management suite costs $129.99.
Foxit PDF Editor
Foxit is a perfect choice tool as a PDF editor for personal and professional use and allows team members from different locations to collaborate on important projects. The interface is user-friendly, and the ribbon-shaped toolbox inspired by MS Office helps locate any tool without much effort.
This PDF tool supports more than 40 languages allowing you to edit PDFs in your native language.
You can use this PDF Editor to look for mistakes in the document and fill the forms online after scanning the documents using the in-built OCR reader and uploading them. Foxit PDF editor also supports integration with Google Docs, OneDrive, and Box, allowing you to save, backup, and share PDFs.
Foxit PDF Editor also has a companion app for iPhone and Android phones through which you can also access the edited PDFs from your smartphones. Its powerful file protection feature assures the security of the PDF files, so you do not have to worry about unauthorized access.
The yearly plans of this powerful PDF editor start from USD 69.
Sejda PDF
Sejda PDF is a complete solution to manage PDF files which can be used to edit PDF files on Mac. A free version of this is also available, but it only allows you to edit a limited number of PDF documents.
For editing PDF files of large sizes for commercial or work-related use, you can go for the Pro version, which removes the restriction imposed on the number of files in the free version.
The features of the Sejda PDF tool are as follows:
- Merge many PDF files into one or split one into many smaller PDFs.
- Password-protect sensitive PDF documents.
- Convert PDF into different file formats.
- Add watermark to PDF documents.
- Edit text and the images into grayscale.
- Redact the text within the PDF files.
- Add annotations in the PDF files using highlight, strikeout, and underline options.
- Add text and format the existing text using formatting options.
- Add images, links, and signatures in the PDF files.
The annual pass for desktop and web-based software costs USD 63.
Acrobat Reader DC
Adobe created the PDF file format and has developed many tools for users to manage PDF files. One such tool is the Acrobat Reader DC, a subset of the full-fledged Acrobat software.
Acrobat Reader DC is a free PDF editing tool that has a decent number of features. You can upgrade to the Acrobat Pro DC tool using its advanced features.
Let’s check out the most notable features:
- View, edit, and comment on the PDF files.
- Add or edit text or image files, change fonts, add watermark, annotations, and more.
- Interact with PDF files, fill out forms, or convert them into multimedia presentations.
- Cloud-based working of the tool allows you to sync the PDF files across all Apple devices.
The Pro version of the Acrobat DC tool costs USD 14.99 per month, chargeable annually.
Wrapping Up
So these are the most reliable PDF editing apps that make editing PDF files on Mac a hassle-free task. Software like PDF Expert and Adobe Acrobat DC are already popular choices for professionals and students. Some of these tools have a free version but offer limited functionality. You can check the complete feature list and purchase the software that has the features to meet your personal and professional needs.