PDF tools / Merge PDF14 tools
Best tools to merge PDF files
Combine several PDFs into one document. Facts come from each tool's own pages, and every score says where it comes from. How we rank
- Tools
- 14
- Researched
- 12
- Free option
- 11
- Only listed
- 2
Made by agathox · free, no sign-up, runs in your browser
Need Merge PDF right now? Try ours.
We build this tool, so it is labelled. It is scored with the same tests as the rest, and this box never changes the ranking below.
Quick answer
- No signup needed: agathox PDF tools, PDF24 Tools, PDFsam, Sejda PDF, PDFgear
- Files stay on your device: agathox PDF tools, PDFsam, Stirling PDF
Based on what each tool's own pages say. A tool is left out when its pages say it varies or do not say. Details are listed under each tool.
Want two of these head to head? Compare tools side by side.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Free to use. No paid plan and no limits on how many files you process.
- Paid plan
- There is no paid plan.
- Signup
- No account or sign-up is needed.
- Watermark
- Nothing is added to your files.
- Where files go
- Runs in your browser, so files are not uploaded. HTML to PDF asks our server only to fetch the web page you enter.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-10. Sources: Privacy page. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
5 of 6 criteria tested
- Output correctness5 / 5 (tested)The file opened with the expected 8 pages. Tested 2026-11-01.
- Limits4 / 5 (tested)The largest of our test files it accepted was 26.4 MB. Tested 2026-11-01.
- Ease of use5 / 5 (tested)3 actions from opening the page to downloading. Tested 2026-11-01.
- Privacy and security5 / 5 (tested)We watched the page while it worked: no file data was sent to any server. Tested 2026-11-01.
- Free-tier restrictions4 / 5 (tested)The first use worked with no account, payment or prompt. Daily caps and watermarks were not checked. Tested 2026-11-01.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Limited access to basic features of 21 tools, with up to 2 conversions a day. The same limit applies with or without a free account. File-size and page limits are not stated.
- Paid plan
- Pro adds unlimited use of all tools, OCR, batch conversion, no ads and the desktop and mobile apps. The price is not shown on the official pages we could read.
- Signup
- Not required for most tools. Sign needs a free account.
- Watermark
- Says it adds no watermark, even on the free plan.
- Where files go
- Cloud-based: files are uploaded and deleted automatically after one hour for most tools. Its servers are in Ireland.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31. Sources: Support, Pricing, Merge PDF. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Says all tools are free without restrictions and that there are no artificial limits. File-size limits are not stated.
- Paid plan
- No paid plan found. It says the service is funded by advertising.
- Signup
- No registration required.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Files are uploaded to PDF24's servers in EU data centres and usually deleted within one hour. The free PDF24 Creator desktop app works offline.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31. Sources: Home, FAQ, Privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- 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.
- Paid plan
- 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.
- Signup
- 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.
- Watermark
- Merge and PDF to JPG say no watermark. Not stated for the other tools.
- Where files go
- Files are uploaded to Adobe's cloud servers and deleted unless you sign in and save them. No retention time is stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31. Sources: Online tools, Merge PDF, Pricing, PDF to Word. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- PDFsam Basic is free and open source (AGPL) with no sign-up, no watermarks and no limits, per the home page. It is a desktop app that works without an Internet connection.
- Paid plan
- PDFsam Visual has a 14-day free trial, then needs a license (one-time purchase or subscription). PDFsam Enhanced needs a yearly subscription for the full editor and runs on Windows only. Prices are not shown on the pages read.
- Signup
- PDFsam Basic needs no sign-up. PDFsam Enhanced requires registration even for its free reader and virtual printer.
- Watermark
- Basic has no watermarks. Not stated for the Visual trial or Enhanced free version.
- Where files go
- All apps process PDF files locally; the privacy policy says no PDF content is automatically sent or uploaded to its servers. Basic sends and collects nothing. Visual may contact servers for licensing and, if you opt in, send error reports that can include file paths.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Home page, Privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- PDF Candy offers free online PDF tools, but paid plans remove hourly limits and increase file size limits to 500 MB. The page says: “Access to PDF Candy Web. No hourly limits. Increase file size per task up to 500 MB. High priority processing (No queue).”
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- The site provides options to sign in with Google, Apple, or email. The page says: “Sign in to continue. Sign in with Google Sign in with Apple . or . Sign in using Email . Email Please check your email.”
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Files are processed and stored on the company's servers for a maximum of two hours. The page says: “We are committed to protecting your privacy and keep your files on our servers for no longer than two hours , in full compliance with GDPR regulations.”
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-04. Sources: Home. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Free for documents up to 50 pages or 50 MB, and 3 tasks an hour. Some tools are tighter: one file per task, 20 pages per conversion, 10 pages per OCR task.
- Paid plan
- A 7-day pass for $5 (one-time) and a yearly plan for $63 that includes Sejda Desktop. Paid removes the page and hourly limits and allows files up to 500 MB. We could not verify the monthly price.
- Signup
- No signup required.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Web tools upload files to Sejda's servers and delete them automatically after 2 hours, with encryption in transit and at rest. Sejda Desktop processes files on your computer.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31. Sources: Merge PDF, Pricing, Privacy, Security. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Stirling PDF is free for individual use. The page says: “30M+ downloads, free for individual use.”
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- Not stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Stirling PDF runs on the user's own machine or servers. The page says: “Your PDFs. Your servers.. . Stirling is a private PDF editor that runs anywhere and automates everything.”
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-04. Sources: Home. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- A free plan with limited document processing. The exact free limits are not stated on the pricing page; the terms say it may apply reasonable technical limits on file size and processing.
- Paid plan
- Premium: unlimited document processing, no ads, priority support. Prices vary by country; the page we read showed 242 INR a month billed yearly or 500 INR billed monthly. Check the current price where you live.
- Signup
- Not stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Files are uploaded to iLovePDF's servers and deleted automatically within 2 hours of processing.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-10-31. Sources: Pricing, FAQ, Terms. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- The site describes the service as free. Conversion is capped at 500 pages without OCR and 100 pages with OCR. Other limits (file size, number of files) are not stated on the pages read.
- Paid plan
- Not stated. No pricing page was found; the home page links only to a donation page and a features page.
- Signup
- Not stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Files are uploaded to Online2PDF servers and converted there. The privacy page says uploaded files are deleted right after conversion, and converted files may stay available for download up to 90 seconds. Server location is not stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Home page, Privacy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Answers come from each tool's own pages (“Unclear” means they do not say). Tick “Compare” on two to four tools to read them side by side.
Also listed (2, not yet tested)
Each of these answered when we visited its site. We have not tested them or recorded facts, so they are in alphabetical order, not ranked.
- CamScanner Premium Membership StoreOpen
Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT, or JPG—and back—with CamScanner Premium. Higher monthly conversion limits for everyday document work.
- PDF CombinerOpen
Free online PDF combiner with drag-and-drop support. Quickly combine multiple PDF files without registration, privacy protected.
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