PDF tools / Compare
Adobe Acrobat online vs PDF Expert
Both do 2 of the same PDF tools tasks. Below is what each says about its own limits and pricing, and how each ranks on signals we can measure or quote.
Disclosure: agathox makes some of the tools listed here. They are labelled and scored by the same method as every other tool.
A
Adobe Acrobat online
Adobe's free online PDF tools, from Adobe, Inc.
Signals score: 3.9 / 5 · not a hands-on test
Visit www.adobe.com/acrobat/online.htmlB
PDF Expert
Download a free trial of PDF Expert – the best PDF software for your Mac. Enjoy advanced reading layouts, powerful PDF editing and classical annotation tools.
Signals score: 3.8 / 5 · not a hands-on test
Visit pdfexpert.comPricing, limits and privacy
- Free tier
- A: Free tools with limits per tool, for example merge up to 100 files and 1,500 pages, split up to 1 GB and 1,500 pages, Word to PDF up to 100 MB, compress up to 2 GB with limited use. PDF to Word has a daily limit whose number is not stated.
- B: Not stated. The pricing page links to a free download but describes no free features or limits. The terms say that on installation you get a free license with limits on some features.
- Paid plan
- A: Acrobat Standard from US$14.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly, US$179.88 a year prepaid, or US$24.99 month to month.
- B: Yearly plan 7,200 rupees billed annually (iPhone, iPad, Mac). Lifetime plan 14,900 rupees one-time, Mac only. 30-day money-back guarantee. Prices are in Indian rupees; the page does not name a country. The education discount is shown as 30% off in the form and 50% off in the confirmation message.
- Signup
- A: Depends on the tool. Merge and compress say no signup; split, OCR and edit ask you to sign in to download; Fill & Sign requires it.
- B: Partly. The terms say you may need to register a personal cross-platform account, by email or Google or Apple sign-in. Not stated for the listed tasks.
- Watermark
- A: Merge and PDF to JPG say no watermark. Not stated for the other tools.
- B: Not stated.
- Where files go
- A: Files are uploaded to Adobe's cloud servers and deleted unless you sign in and save them. No retention time is stated.
- B: Not stated. The terms say user content is processed securely and give no location or retention period. Users are told to keep their own backups.
From each tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31 (Adobe Acrobat online) and 2026-11-01 (PDF Expert). Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them. Sources are listed on each tool's page.
Compare on a task
Neither tool has been hands-on tested on these tasks yet, and we do not guess. Open a task to see both ranked with every other tool.
- Only Adobe Acrobat online: Merge PDF, Split PDF, Compress PDF, Word to PDF, PDF to Word, PDF to JPG, Protect PDF, OCR PDF
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