The interface is a little more complex than that of the Smallpdf editing suite but gives you easy access to plenty of helpful features such as a stamp option for marking documents as 'Expired' or 'Approved'.īut for most users, the main reason to use PDF-XChange Editor is the fact that it comes with inbuilt Optical Character Recognition (OCR). PDF-XChange Editor is a free PDF editing program for Windows computers developed by Tracker Software. For more flexibility, take a look at our guide to the best free PDF editors, which make editing a PDF as straightforward as tweaking a Word document. They’ll let you combine PDF files, convert between file formats, and edit and sign documents. It can be hard finding the right app with so much choice out there, so we’ve gathered our top five picks for the best free PDF readers for Mac and Windows. They offer a lot of the same functionality as paid-for apps without requiring you to open your wallet. That’s where the best free PDF readers come in. But, if you plan on doing anything beyond that like altering or converting from one, you’ll need a dedicated PDF reader. In fact, you don’t need a dedicated reader for that particular function – any web browser will do. Thankfully, reading a PDF file is simple and easy. So, whether it’s in the classroom, work, or even when looking for digital documentation like manuals, PDF files are inescapable.

The reason PDF documents are so popular is because they’re easy to open on just about any system without formatting issues, can be shared quickly through a website or email, and are very hard to alter.

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