Can PDF editing software streamline collaboration?
With PDFs becoming commonplace in hybrid businesses and the adoption of asynchronous work cultures, the need for document collaboration tools has become stronger.
The lack of an efficient solution is a massive block to efficiency and slows down your content review process with back-and-forth emails. Â
In fact, according to a survey by Nitro, 92% of employees review and collaborate on documents via email, which creates room for issues like sharing the wrong version and working on an outdated draft.
A great PDF editing software will enable you to modify and make additions to a PDF file, great for making suggestions during a document review and approval process. You can annotate files, change their format, and sign PDF documents with ease.
In this article, we will discuss the best PDF editing and annotation software to streamline your document management process and create a collaborative workspace.
Let’s get into it.
Quick Summary
- Icecream PDF Editor – Best comprehensive PDF editor
- Adobe Acrobat – Best PDF editor for Windows users
- Canva – Best free PDF editing software for collaboration
- Foxit – Best AI-powered PDF editing tool
- PDF Candy – Best online PDF editor for small businesses
1. Icecream PDF EditorÂ
Icecream Apps offers a suite of products.
It provides a wide range of PDF editing apps compatible with Windows and other operating systems.
Its PDF editor is user intuitive providing a versatile set of tools to enable you to view, annotate, and edit your documents. These tools are categorized effectively into 4 editing modes: Edit PDF, Annotate, Fill in forms, and Manage pages.
Besides that, you can quickly and easily search through a PDF before editing and Icecream editor will highlight the text for you.
Additionally, you can convert your files to images, crop PDFs to remove unwanted content, and extract text without having to manually copy and paste.
Key features:
- The ‘Manage pages’ mode gives you complete control over your PDFs allowing you to rotate, rearrange, and even delete pages. It also enables you to extract selected pages to a separate PDF file.
- You can protect your documents from unauthorized editing by adding passwords to documents containing sensitive information. Password-protected PDFs also allow you to decide who can access and modify your PDFs.
- Its ‘Annotate’ mode enables you and your employees to annotate PDFs using arrows, notes, and shapes. This enables you to provide contextual feedback that facilitates an easy content approval process.
Pricing:
- No free trial
- Starting plan: $59.95 per year
Verdict:
Icecream PDF editor is not only affordable, it provides a free plan with all essential features to help you edit and annotate your work documents. It also has four editing modes that streamline the content review process and facilitate document collaboration, which will make your team more productive.
2. Adobe AcrobatÂ
Want to uncover the power of PDF productivity?
Adobe Acrobat has been in existence for a long time offering a complete set of tools to help you manage and work on your PDFs.
It is a familiar and easy-to-use software, making it one of the best PDF editing software in the market. It allows you to edit and annotate PDFs, sign them, and access them from anywhere.
You can fix text and add images to a document without jumping to another application, making it efficient for collaboration.
Additionally, it streamlines the entire content review process and eliminates the back and forth by allowing you to easily e-sign and request signatures. Your recipients don’t even have to log in.
Key features:
- Adobe Acrobat allows you to access your PDFs from anywhere on your desktop, mobile device, or web as long as you have an account. This increases productivity and allows you to work from anywhere.
- It has an AI assistant that helps you get the most out of your PDFs. You can ask the AI assistant for quick answers and summaries that simplify your work and level up your productivity.
- This software provides document collaboration features such as the ability to share a PDF with multiple people using a link. It also has comprehensive commenting features that allow team members to annotate and comment.
Pricing:
- Offers a 7-day free trial
- Starting plan: $12.99 per month
Verdict:
Adobe Acrobat is undeniably a comprehensive software with a plethora of PDF editing and annotating features such as comments and markups to simplify collaboration. You can also access your PDF files from anywhere. Its free plan has limited features and only allows you to view and share PDFs.
3. Canva
Canva is an asset designing software.
Among its suites of products, it provides a free PDF editor that enables you to break down your PDF into editable files.
Among its notable features making it a great PDF editing software are its collaboration abilities that allow you to edit your documents from any device provided they are uploaded to Canva.
If you are working with a team, you can send them a link to a PDF or grant them editing access to facilitate efficient collaboration.
Additionally, you can easily revise your files by allowing your team members to comment and give suggestions directly on your PDF in Canva.
Key features:
- It allows real-time collaboration by enabling you to create and get everyone on the same page, at the same time and from anywhere. Collaborators can work on your PDF and add feedback to help revise the file.
- The software provides access to thousands of premium images, graphics, and icons to help you edit and annotate your PDF. you can also upload and add your own images to your files.
- You can easily convert a variety of files to and from PDF. Canva also allows you to send and share your PDFs externally or internally without leaving the software, ensuring efficiency and data security.
Pricing:
- Offers a 30-day free trial
- Starting plan: $6.49 per user/month
Verdict:
Canva offers essential PDF editing features but it strives more in its collaboration features like editing access and secure links that allow your guests to work on your PDFs. You can access these features for free, but because it’s not a fully featured PDF editor, it may fail in some cases
4. Foxit
Foxit is an AI-powered PDF reader.
Like other PDF editing software, Foxit is designed to help organizations view, edit, and annotate PDF files.
It stands out, however, with advanced features including volume automation capabilities that enable large organizations to convert and compress large volumes of PDFs simultaneously.
Additionally, you can easily share PDFs with business stakeholders and colleagues for signing. You can also monitor the entire process to ensure timely completion.
With AI capabilities, Foxit can perform tasks such as content translation, explain content, and provide summaries, which simplifies your work allowing you to focus on what matters to you.
Key features:
- Its Action Wizards enables you to save a set of defined commands, run them on your PDF files, and automate your workflows, saving time and effort to focus on revenue-driven tasks.
- You can easily edit any PDF elements without worrying about the layout. Your text will automatically reflow as you edit. You can also manipulate text by changing the font and font size.
- It provides numerous collaboration features such as commenting capabilities that allow you to provide feedback through annotations. It also integrates with Dropbox and OneDrive to allow you to open all your saved PDFs on Foxit.
Pricing:
- Offers a 14-day free trial
- Starting plan: $59.99 per year
Verdict:
Foxit offers great collaboration tools including integration with OneDrive, Google Drive, and DropBox to allow you to open your PDFs quickly. It has a free trial you can take advantage of to learn about its PDF editing tools. However, because it charges per year, it may be expensive for some businesses and individuals.
5. PDF Candy
PDF Candy is a free web-based editor.
It secures a place in our list of the best PDF editing software because it provides what most free PDF editors do not—OCR.
This feature allows you to scan and extract text from your PDF files and create a text document. However, it is worth noting that you cannot edit OCR text on this editor.
PDF Candy is translated to over 15 languages so you can use it in your native language to elevate productivity.
Besides basic PDF editing abilities such as merging, annotating, and splitting PDF files, this software allows you to use tools you frequently use to your favorites making them easily accessible.
Key features:
- It has more than 40 PDF tools that enable you to convert a wide range of files from and to PDF. It also allows you to sign PDFs, merge, and split them ensuring increased productivity and efficiency.
- You can easily and quickly share a link to your files with colleagues to facilitate collaborations. Registered users can find recently processed files in the ‘my files’ tab of a user’s profile.
- This software provides a PDF Candy Chrome extension for Google users for faster access. This ensures that you can access all the software’s tools with just a few clicks, improving productivity.
Pricing:
- No free trial
- Starting plan: $6/month
Verdict:
PDF Candy is great for small businesses as it has a free plan and provides over 40 PDF tools that allow you to convert, merge, and split PDFs. It also has an OCR feature that enables you to extract text. However, it has a file size limitation of 500 MB for the basic plans.
Conclusion
PDF editing tools can increase your productivity.
Collaborating on PDFs via an effective software saves you the time and effort of sending back-and-forth emails or switching between software.
As collaboration becomes an integral aspect of every business, PDF editing software are becoming more popular.
In fact, according to a report by GlobeNewswire, the global PDF Editor Software Market is expected to grow to USD 3,109.57 Million by the end of 2025, highlighting how businesses are quickly adopting this technology.
When choosing the best PDF editing and annotation software, look for basic editing tools that allow you to convert, view, and edit your files.
If you are still confused about which solution is best for you, consider Icecream Apps for its comprehensive platform that provides 4 editing modes to streamline the content review process and facilitate document collaboration.
Download the free version of the Icecream APP and explore its annotation tools and collaboration capabilities to see how you can make document management easier.
FAQs
What is a PDF editing and annotation software?
PDF editing software provide tools that enable you to open, view, and edit PDF files. Besides that, they provide annotation tools like markups and highlights that allow you to comment and provide contextual feedback on a PDF. This facilitates collaboration and reduces time wastage with back-and-forth emails.
What are the features of a good PDF editing software?
A great PDF editing software should essentially allow you to edit and annotate a document. However, advanced features such as document protection and collaboration tools can enhance your productivity and simplify your content review and approval process. In addition to that, a good PDF editor should also be intuitive and user-friendly. Â
How can I choose the best PDF editing software?
When choosing a PDF editing and annotation tool, it is good to ask yourself what you need it for. If it is just to add graphics and texts on a PDF and to sign documents, you can save yourself some money by going for a free software. There are several of these such as Canva.
What is the best PDF editor for small businesses?
All the software we have listed are great options for most businesses offering essential features that allow you to edit and annotate your PDF documents. However, if you are confused about which one is the best for you, you should certainly consider Icecream Apps for its collaboration capabilities such as passwords to protect documents.
What are the benefits of PDF editing software?
PDFs are secure document formats because they are difficult to alter. However, PDF editing and annotating software enable you to make modifications to your PDF with ease. Additionally, PDF editors facilitate collaboration making it simpler for team members to work on the same documents.
