Replacing Adobe Acrobat Pro: 6 cheaper alternatives for PDF editing

Perhaps you, like me so far, are using UPDF. The software does many things right: it offers modern features and makes rapid progress through regular updates. In addition, UPDF is available for Windows, macOS, and iOS. Nevertheless, UPDF has given me a few glitches in everyday use that I had to sidestep with cumbersome workarounds.

There are two strategic reasons to switch as well: first, UPDF's price is slowly but surely creeping upward. Second, the software originates from Hong Kong/China. In an era when data security is of utmost priority, the goal is to reduce the use of software from the Far East and instead rely on solutions with European or German roots.

We initially created this comparison for our clients and operated several solutions for weeks. Our evaluation criteria were pragmatically chosen: efficient viewing, printing and editing of PDF files in a Windows environment.

The industry-standard Adobe Acrobat Pro remains strongly represented among our client base, but it comes with a hefty price tag: €35 per month or €285 per year. This investment is increasingly met with growing dissatisfaction: recurring crashes and a sluggish response time that even slows down good hardware have harmed the software's reputation over the years.

In the direct comparison of alternatives, the wheat is quickly separated from the chaff. We looked at solutions such as PDFElement, Foxit, Nitro, UPDF, XChange Editor and FlexiPDF, but many were disappointing. You can find the comparison table further below.

Biggest disappointment: Nitro is not only the most expensive solution at almost €300, but it also disappointed me with long loading times and poor interface scaling. PDFElement performed poorly in the test due to an extremely long startup time of over 8 seconds and a cluttered interface filled with advertising.

In general, all programs managed to open and display the files without errors. However, when it comes to editing, the first programs start to fall behind: the font changes when editing text, even though the font was embedded. Additionally, selecting text fields is very cumbersome in some tools such as Nitro or UPDF. In some cases, multiple layers overlap, preventing selection.

For me, a PDF program does not need to offer cloud features either; Foxit and Nitro stood out negatively here with mandatory account requirements. Both providers also send various emails trying to persuade you to make a purchase. How annoying!

A very likeable German alternative comes from SoftMaker in Nuremberg: FlexiPDF. If you have ever used Microsoft Office, you will immediately feel at home. The user interface is excellently organized (5 out of 5 points) and editing works well. 

Why didn’t it win overall? Curiously, FlexiPDF lacks basic printing options, which unfortunately often makes the software unusable in everyday office work. I would also wish for the program to start faster (currently 3.6 seconds) or to be efficiently available in the background with low resource usage.

At the end of this comparison, a clear winner emerges: the PDF XChange Editor.

This software meets all the requirements we expect from a modern Acrobat alternative:

• Unbeatable performance: With a startup time of just 1.08 seconds, it is the fastest tool in the test.
• No account required: You can test and use the software without registration.
• Excellent value for money: With a one-time purchase price between €59 and €75 (with form functionality), it is the most affordable solution in the field.
• Trustworthy origin: Distribution is handled through a German GmbH, while development takes place in Canada, the UK, and Ukraine.

Although the interface initially appears a bit colorful and overloaded, the range of features is tremendous. Purchasing is absolutely straightforward via the webshop. For anyone who wants to work efficiently and securely, this is the best choice for Windows.