Foxit PDF Editor vs Nutrient (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Foxit PDF Editor grades higher than Nutrient: 2.8 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Foxit PDF Editor grades higher on ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Foxit PDF Editor
PDF editor for Windows, Mac and web, yearly or as a one-time license
Nutrient
PDF SDKs and cloud APIs for developers to build document features
Which one is for you
Pick Foxit PDF Editor if
- Fits if you're leaving Acrobat and want the same jobs done for $129.99 a year
- Makes sense if you'd rather pay once, as a $209.99 perpetual license is still sold
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to edit on your phone on the base plan, as mobile needs PDF Editor+ at $159.99 a year
- Watch out: the $10.99 and $13.99 monthly prices are annual plans billed monthly; there's no month-to-month plan
- Tight if you lean on the AI, as 300 credits a month is it before a $49.99-a-year add-on
- Pricey if you send lots of documents to sign: PDF Editor+ has 150 envelopes a year, and unlimited is Foxit eSign, sold separately
- Not for you if you only fix a typo now and then, since free editors here do that
Pick Nutrient if
- Fits if you are building PDF features into a product
- Works for developers who want a hosted API billed by credits
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want an editor to install and use, as it is aimed at software teams
- Watch out: the free API output carries a For Evaluation Purposes Only watermark
- Skip it if you want SDK prices up front, since they come from sales after scoping
- Pricey if you need over 10,000 credits a month, as those plans are custom
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAFoxit PDF EditorGood | 2.2GPANutrientFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$129.99 a year for PDF Editor, the plan that edits text on Windows, Mac and web. That's the dear end of normal for PDF editors. Spread over three years, the $209.99 perpetual license costs less, but still sits in the middle. | CThe Processor API starts at $67 a month for 1,000 credits, and the SDKs are a quote. That is above the PDF category's $36 dearest tenth, but this is a developer product, and Apryse starts at $1,500. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial of PDF Editor+ with no card needed. After that you pay or stop. | CThe Processor API free plan gives 50 credits a month with a watermark, and SDKs have a 30-day evaluation with no payment details. |
| Features | BEdits text and images, converts to and from Office, OCRs scans, builds forms with JavaScript, redacts, compares versions and adds Bates numbers. It covers the whole job. Smart Redact and the phone apps wait for PDF Editor+, and heavy AI use costs extra. | BClient and server SDKs, a Processor API, data extraction, viewer and accessibility APIs, and workflow tools. The listing shows no gap for what it is built for. |
| Ease of use | B4.5 from 4,763 App Store ratings for the Foxit PDF Editor app. On a computer it's an editor you install and start using, with nothing to set up first. | DNo store rating is on record, and using it means writing code against an API or SDK. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWindows, Mac, web, iPhone and Android, with Microsoft 365, SharePoint, Google Drive, Dropbox, Box and Salesforce. Just note the phone apps come with PDF Editor+, not the base plan. | BWeb, iPhone and Android SDKs, with Microsoft 365, Salesforce, HubSpot and ServiceNow listed. No desktop app. |
| Best for | an Acrobat-style editor you can still buy outright | adding PDF viewing and editing to your own app |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Foxit PDF Editor and Nutrient. How we grade
Price against what you get
Foxit PDF Editor starts at $10.83 a month when paid by the year for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Nutrient starts at $67 a month and scores 2.3.
Foxit PDF Editor scores higher and starts $56.17 a month lower. Of the other PDF editors on the chart, none scores higher than Foxit PDF Editor for less, and 16 score higher than Nutrient for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Foxit PDF Editor can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Foxit PDF Editor also covers documents and forms.
- Nutrient also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| Foxit PDF Editor | Nutrient | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $129.99 per user / year | $67 per month, billed yearly (Processor API Starter, 1,000 credits) |
| Free plan | None | Processor API Free: 50 credits a month, with output watermarked "For Evaluation Purposes Only"; each cloud API also has a free plan. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of PDF Editor+, no credit card required | SDKs: 30-day evaluation, no payment information needed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Foxit Software Incorporated | Nutrient |
| Price read from | foxit.com | nutrient.io |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Foxit PDF Editor
- The iOS and Android apps, AI Smart Redact and the 150 eSign envelopes a year come only with PDF Editor+; PDF Editor covers Windows, macOS and web.
- Both subscriptions are annual; the $10.99 and $13.99 monthly figures are an annual plan billed monthly, not a monthly plan.
- More AI use costs extra: the AI Assistant add-on is $49.99 a year for 2,000 credits a month and access to Foxit Workspace.
- Unlimited e-signature sending needs Foxit eSign, a separate product sold per user by the year.
Nutrient
- Aimed at software teams; it is not a consumer PDF editor you install and use directly.
- SDK prices are not published; a quote comes from the sales team after scoping.
- The Processor API free plan watermarks its output, and plans above 10,000 credits a month are custom.
Key features
Foxit PDF Editor
- Editing and page tools
- Edit text and images, add, delete and reorder pages, merge and split files, compare two versions, add Bates numbering and reduce file size.
- Conversion and OCR
- Converts PDFs to and from Word, Excel and PowerPoint, exports images, turns scans into searchable text and checks PDF/A and accessibility.
- Forms and signing
- Create fillable forms with JavaScript, fill and sign, and add certificate signatures; PDF Editor+ can also send for e-signature through Foxit eSign.
- Redaction and protection
- Password protection, copy and edit restrictions and manual redaction on both plans, with AI Smart Redact to find personal data on PDF Editor+.
- AI Assistant
- Summarizes, translates, rewrites and answers questions about documents, with 300 credits a month included in every subscription.
- Foxit DMS
- Every subscription includes Foxit's document management system with unlimited cloud storage, shared workspaces, check-in and check-out and version history.
Nutrient
- Client SDKs
- Embed viewing and annotation in web, iOS, Android, Flutter, React Native and MAUI apps, with forms, signatures and redaction as add-ons.
- Server SDKs
- Convert, render and manipulate documents from .NET, Java, Python or Node.js back ends.
- Processor API
- Hosted API to convert, merge, OCR, redact and watermark documents, priced in credits per operation.
- Data Extraction API
- Parses PDFs, scans, images and Office files into structured output and extracts fields to a schema.
- Viewer and Accessibility APIs
- A browser viewer priced per session, and auto-tagging with PDF/UA validation for accessible documents.
- Workflow and integrations
- Workflow automation editions plus plans for Microsoft 365, Salesforce, HubSpot and ServiceNow.
Plans
Foxit PDF Editor
PDF Editor$129.99
per user / year ($10.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly)
Windows, macOS and web apps: editing, conversion, OCR, forms, compare and security, with Foxit DMS and 300 AI credits a month.
PDF Editor+$159.99
per user / year ($13.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly)
Everything in PDF Editor plus the iOS and Android apps, AI Smart Redact and Foxit eSign Essentials with 150 envelopes a year.
Foxit PDF Editor 14 (Perpetual)$209.99
one-time purchase per user
A perpetual license for version 14 of the editor, paid once instead of a subscription.
Volume LicensingCustom
Quoted for 30 or more licenses, subscription or perpetual, with discounts of up to 30% and one renewal date.
Nutrient
Processor API Free$0
per month for 50 credits
Output carries an evaluation watermark unless pay-as-you-go is enabled; no card needed.
Processor API Starter$67
per month for 1,000 credits, billed yearly ($75 billed monthly)
Pay-as-you-go credits after the allowance run $0.09 each. Yearly total $804.
Processor API Growth$247
per month for 5,000 credits, billed yearly ($275 billed monthly)
Extra credits at $0.066 each. Yearly total $2,964.
Processor API Pro$399
per month for 10,000 credits, billed yearly ($445 billed monthly)
Extra credits at $0.0534 each. Yearly total $4,788.
SDKsCustom
Annual or multiyear licences quoted by sales, based on components, platforms and deployment.
Ways to pay less
Foxit PDF Editor
- Other savings
Volume discounts from 30 licenses
Foxit's pricing page gives discounts of up to 30% on orders of 30 or more licenses, for subscriptions or perpetual licenses, quoted by its sales team.
Nutrient
- Annual discount
Save 10% with yearly billing on the Processor API
The Processor API pricing page marks yearly billing as a 10% saving over monthly billing.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Foxit PDF Editor or Nutrient?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Foxit PDF Editor starts at $129.99 per user / year, and Nutrient starts at $67 per month, billed yearly (Processor API Starter, 1,000 credits). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Foxit PDF Editor or Nutrient?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Nutrient has a free plan. Foxit PDF Editor does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Foxit PDF Editor and Nutrient run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Foxit PDF Editor lists macOS and Windows apps. Both list a web app and iOS and Android apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.