Product Reviews for PDF-XChange Editor

I never do reviews of software, but I am so impressed with this software I feel I owe a review! I purchased the Plus version. It is SOOOO much better than Adobe Acrobat Professional, which my workplace provided for free but which caused me endless frustration. PDF-XChange Plus has everything I want, and works exactly as I would want it to. So nice to use really well produced software!

The software itself is powerful and works reliably once you understand it, especially for creating interactive PDFs.

However, the documentation would benefit from a clearer, step-by-step workflow for interactive workbooks. While individual features are well explained, the correct order of actions (adding form fields, testing, selective flattening, and exporting) is not clearly outlined, which can lead to unnecessary trial and error.

Additionally, during installation it was not immediately clear that there is no separate “Editor Plus” download, as the installer appears simply as “Editor” and the Plus features are unlocked only after license activation. A short clarification at the download stage would greatly improve the user experience.

I have used the free version for a year or so and I liked it so much I paid for the basic version. I like the whole look and feel of this software and prefer it to the the most prominent competitor who seem to pester me endless to buy their products.

Mein absoluter Favorit im PDF-Bereich

Abundant functionality well-designed and implemented. Easily navigable interface. Very fast and responsive. Priced affordably. Great value.

Easy to handle, many options and endless possibilities. It is highly recommended for individuals and businesses.

I love how easy it is to merge pdfs and to make comments all within one program.

I'd been exploring options to get away from Adobe for some time (don't like the subscription model, don't like all the ads and nags in Reader to trade up), had tried PDF-XChange, and had decided that was the one for me. The interface felt comfortable and familiar, the program offered everything I normally needed (and more), and it was quick and responsive. Pre-purchase queries with the company were very quickly and pleasantly responded to (by a real person rather than getting half-answers from a bot!). The program continues to live up to expectations. Criticisms so far? Yes, I'd like the page-counter numbers at the foot of the screen to be a little bigger and much clearer and I'd like the "Find" box to be a bit clearer (I'm using a 4K display). Anything I miss? Just one thing, and only occasionally, and that's Adobe's "Convert web-site/page to pdf complete with links" facility (but then I don't think any of the other pdf programs offers that).

easy to work

### 中文（繁體）

目前整體使用體驗非常好，功能完整且穩定，幾乎沒有什麼可以挑剔的地方。

唯一希望能進一步加強的是 **JavaScript API（JS API）** 的支援。如果能提供更完整、清楚的 API 文件與範例，將能讓進階使用與自動化操作變得更加方便。

以我先前的實際使用經驗為例，我曾需要處理一份掃描後、以騎馬釘方式裝訂的文件，並重新整理成正確且固定的頁面順序，過程中涉及頁面切割與重新排序。雖然最後仍成功自行撰寫程式完成需求，但在開發過程中發現缺乏具體且系統化的 JS API 文件可供參考，學習成本相對較高。

若未來能補齊相關 API 文件或提供更多實務範例，將會對進階使用者與開發者非常有幫助。

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### English

Overall, the user experience has been excellent. The product is powerful, stable, and there is very little to criticize.

The only area I hope can be further improved is the **JavaScript API (JS API)** support. Providing more complete and well-documented API references and examples would greatly enhance usability, especially for advanced workflows and automation.

For example, in one of my previous use cases, I needed to process a scanned document that was saddle-stitched and reorganize it into a correct and fixed page order. This involved page splitting and reordering. Although I was eventually able to achieve this by writing my own script, I found that there was a lack of clear and structured JS API documentation to refer to during development, which increased the learning curve.

If more comprehensive JS API documentation or practical examples could be provided in the future, it would be extremely helpful for advanced users and developers.

A wonderful experience

Probably one of the best decisions I took to move away from the market leader, I thought I would have to wean myself away from Adobe. But this was quick and absolutely good. My machine now does not lag from the earlier bloatware of Acrobat and now all is good and nice.
Although it is now easy, still if somehow the style or rearranging pages by drag and drop could be introduced it will make things fantastic. Currently using numbers to move pages to organize them. Although I am good at that also now. :)

I like all the options. I just needed time, and still, to find where some options are. But, I will get there.

Review: PDF-XChange Editor
PDF-XChange Editor stands out as a genuinely superior tool in the crowded field of PDF editors. It is an exceptionally fast program that combines robust functionality with highly reliable performance.

Key Strengths & Standout Features
Best-in-Class Bookmarking: The application features the best bookmark organizer I have encountered. The reliable bookmarking workflow was a significant factor in my decision to purchase the program after the initial demo.

Comprehensive Toolset: Essential features are intuitively placed and within reach. The Editor efficiently handles key tasks, including converting PDFs to images, creating new PDFs, and combining multiple PDF documents.

Superb Optical Character Recognition (OCR): The OCR engine is highly accurate. Critically, the output quality and results consistently surpass those of other PDF editors I have tested.

Advanced Image Handling: A powerful feature is the ability to read and render iPhone HEIC pictures (converting them to JPEG), which is a compatibility gap my other PDF editors failed to bridge. Furthermore, the program excels at improving document scans by brightening the paper and efficiently cleaning up specks and artifacts.

Speed and Intuition: The program is consistently fast, and the menus are easily accessible and intuitive to navigate.

Areas for Future Improvement
While highly recommended, future updates could focus on enhancing a few key areas:

Image Correction: Improving the tools for straightening pictures of documents taken with a phone camera.

Text Fidelity: Further optimizing the algorithms for even more accurate text quality in processed documents.

UI/UX: A refresh of the User Interface (UI) aesthetic to modernize the look and feel.

Verdict
I highly recommend PDF-XChange Editor. For users who require reliable bookmarking, high-quality OCR, and a comprehensive set of accessible PDF manipulation tools, this program offers unmatched quality and performance.

Smart and well thought out software backed by great customer service!

Hey PDF-XCHANGE Team,
your product is really good! Working with it is very easy, and it has every function I need to create or edit PDFs.

I've been using PDF-XChange Editor now for about 2 weeks, and I must say that I'm very impressed with the plethora of features available! I have to code a lot of PDF documents, and my process has been made much simpler with the "stamps" I can use and easily add text for additional information that's needed. I've also had to extract pages, move pages, insert pages and reorder pages, and all the functions worked very well. The best feature is that this software is not subscription-based, which I really appreciate. For those who need a PDF document editor, I would highly recommend PDF-XChange Editor - it's exceed all my expectations!

PDF-XChange worked prefect for my needs. Customer service was awesome!

Good

The PDF-XChange Editor is easy to use and ranges from simple PDF edits to creating practical forms. The export of form data and text recognition (OCR) could be improved.