PDF tools / Compare
PDF Expert vs PDFgear
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
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.comB
PDFgear
Free PDF apps for desktop and mobile plus online tools, by PDF GEAR TECH PTE. LTD. (Singapore).
Signals score: 3.6 / 5 · not a hands-on test
Visit www.pdfgear.comPricing, limits and privacy
- Free tier
- A: 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.
- B: Says it is free to use. The online editor is limited to 50 MB; the desktop app has no file-size limit. No daily caps are stated.
- Paid plan
- A: 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.
- B: No paid plan is listed. It says some advanced features may become paid in future, with no date set.
- Signup
- A: 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.
- B: Not required.
- Watermark
- A: Not stated.
- B: Says it adds no watermark to merged PDFs or exported files.
- Where files go
- A: 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.
- B: Merge runs on your device in the browser. Some advanced conversions may be processed on Amazon cloud servers and deleted immediately afterwards. AI features send content to Microsoft Azure OpenAI only after you consent. The desktop app works offline.
From each tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01 (PDF Expert) and 2026-10-31 (PDFgear). 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 PDFgear: Merge PDF, Split PDF, Compress PDF, Word to PDF, PDF to Word, PDF to JPG
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