What kind of PDF Editor is best for you?

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When it comes to editing PDF documents then there are various kinds of PDF editors available, both offline and online. Whether it is an online PDF editor or offline PDF editor, both cater to our needs and get the job done, however, each kind of PDF editor has its own pros and cons. Choosing the best kind of PDF editor is important, so what type of PDF editor is the best? Here we will be weighing out the pros and cons of both online PDF Editors and offline PDF Editors to help you choose what type of PDF Editor is best for you.

Editing Features

For most users, the important factor in choosing a PDF Editor is its editing performance and the diversity in editing features available. When comparing online and offline PDF editors, side-by-side then offline PDF editors come out at the top because they will help you edit PDF completely, from changing the texts and imaging, to adding new pages to the PDF, offline PDF editor will let you do all while an online PDF editor does let you edit but they don’t have a vast collection of editing tools that you would find on offline editors.

Other Editing Features

Apart from PDF Editing, a good PDF editor should have other editing features too such as PDF Compressor, PDF Merger, PDF Converter that can convert various file formats to PDF e.g JPG to PDF or from PDF to various file formats e.g PDF to JPG, etc. These all are very important editing features that a PDF editor should have and when comparing online and offline PDF editors, then Online PDF Editors come out on top.

You have online PDF editors like Lua, SmallPDF, iLovePDF, and various others that have a huge collection of PDF editing tools apart from the regular editors. So, here online PDF editors come out on top.

System Compatibility

PDFs are universal and accessible on all devices & platforms. A good PDF editor should be the one that can be accessed on any device and platform and here, online PDF editors take the lead. An online PDF editor will let you edit PDFs on any device and operating system you would like. 

All you would need is a working internet connection and you’re good to go while offline PDF editor would be system and platform-specific, for example, you would be required to first download and install the PDF editor on your device and after that, you won’t be able to use the same program on a different platform, a Windows editor won’t work on Android or iOS, but for online PDF editors, platform and device isn’t a problem.

System Resources and Internet Availability

For offline PDF editors, having an internet connection does not matter as the editing and processing are done on your PC without the need for an active Internet connection, however, for online PDF editors having a working internet connection is a must and without the internet, you won’t be able to perform editing and conversion using online PDF editors.

While offline PDF editors don’t require an active internet connection, they take your system resources and during the processing of a PDF document, the editor will use a certain amount of your memory and CPU resources, however, for online PDF editors internet connectivity is required but they don’t take your system or CPU resources.

Security & Privacy

Let’s talk about one of the most important things, the privacy, and security of the edited PDF documents. The privacy and security of a PDF document is a big concern when people are using a PDF editor, these PDF files can include sensitive and confidential information and if gone into the wrong hands can cause huge problems. So, privacy and security are very much essential when taking into consideration a good PDF editor.

With an offline PDF editor, privacy and security isn’t a concern as all of editing and processing takes place on your device and not on an online server, however, with online PDF editors, security and privacy is a big concern. The online PDF editors make their promises to delete the PDFs once the conversion process is done but still, there are concerns over their promises. 

Pricing

Most offline PDF editors come with a price tag, usually in the form of an annual or monthly subscription. Let’s take Adobe Acrobat Pro as an example which is the world’s leading PDF editor for PCs but comes with a price of $14.99/mo after a seven-day free trial but for online PDF editors, that is not the case. Although some online PDF editors might have some limitations, they are usually free and require no annual or monthly fee.

Conclusion

Both kinds of PDF editors have their own pros and cons but choosing which PDF editor is best for you depends on your choice. Offline PDF Editors are powerful, don’t require internet connection, guarantee high security and privacy, but occupy system resources and are usually paid. Online PDF editors are free for everyone, compatible with all devices and systems, use no or little system resources, and convenient to use, but they require an active internet connection and there are concerns over the security and privacy of uploaded PDFs. So, it all comes down to your choice, what kind of PDF editor is best for your needs.