Foxit PDF Editor vs SwifDoo PDF (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Foxit PDF Editor and SwifDoo PDF share a 2.8 GPA, neither has a free plan and their prices can't be set side by side, so the choice depends on whether you care more about platforms, where Foxit PDF Editor grades higher, or value for money, where SwifDoo PDF does.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on the free plan, features and ease of use.
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
SwifDoo PDF
PDF editor for Windows, Mac and mobile with term or lifetime licenses
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 SwifDoo PDF if
- Fits if you want a cheap PDF editor on Windows
- Works for people who prefer a lifetime license for one PC at $96.75
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $16.99 for the Windows plan
- Watch out: Mac, iOS and Android have separate price pages, and a cross-platform plan starts at $26.99 a month
- Watch out: the page shows a crossed-out price with no end date, and the source holds a second, lower set
- Watch out: it states a 30-day money-back guarantee but the refund FAQ just says to email support
- Tight if you want 2 devices, since monthly and quarterly plans cover 1
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAFoxit PDF EditorGood | 2.8GPASwifDoo PDFGood | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | BThe 2-year plan is $2.88 a month and the yearly plan $4.50, inside the cheapest quarter ($4.17) or just over it; the monthly plan is $16.99. |
| 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. | C7-day trial of Pro, and the free download is limited afterwards; the listing does not say a card is needed. |
| 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. | BText and image editing, conversion, OCR, fillable forms, annotation, signing and an AI tool. The listing shows no gap in the core work. |
| 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. | BNo rating on record; a program you install and use, with nothing to set up. |
| 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. | BWindows, Mac, iOS and Android. No web editor and no integrations listed. |
| Best for | an Acrobat-style editor you can still buy outright | a low-priced Windows PDF editor with a lifetime option |
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 SwifDoo PDF. 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. SwifDoo PDF starts at $2.88 a month and scores 3.0.
Foxit PDF Editor scores higher, and starts $7.95 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other PDF editors on the chart, none scores higher than Foxit PDF Editor for less, and none scores higher than SwifDoo PDF 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 also covers forms.
At a glance
| Foxit PDF Editor | SwifDoo PDF | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $129.99 per user / year | $2.88 per month, billed every 2 years (Windows) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of PDF Editor+, no credit card required | 7-day free trial of the Pro version; free download after expiry is limited |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Foxit Software Incorporated | SwifDoo Software |
| Price read from | foxit.com | swifdoo.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 12, 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.
SwifDoo PDF
- Prices here are for Windows; Mac, iOS and Android have separate price pages, and a cross-platform plan starts at $26.99 a month or $129.25 perpetual.
- The page shows a discounted price against a crossed-out one with no end date, and a second, lower set of prices appears in the page source.
- Monthly and quarterly plans cover 1 device; yearly and 2-year plans cover 2.
- The page states a 30-day money-back guarantee, but the refund FAQ only tells buyers to email support.
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.
SwifDoo PDF
- Text and image editing
- Insert and edit text, images and links, replace or white-out text, change backgrounds and add headers, footers and page numbers.
- Conversion
- Converts between PDF and Word, Excel, PowerPoint, images, HTML, EPUB, DWG, PDF/A and Markdown, with batch processing.
- OCR and fillable forms
- Turns scans into searchable PDFs, extracts a table of contents and creates fillable forms.
- Annotate and sign
- Highlights, shapes, sticky notes and stamps, plus e-signatures or digital signatures and password protection.
- SwifDoo AI
- Summarizes, translates, rewrites, proofreads and answers questions about a PDF; free users get a small monthly allowance.
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.
SwifDoo PDF
Monthly Plan$16.99
per month, billed monthly (Windows, 1 device)
All Pro features for 1 device on Windows; shown with a crossed-out $20.
Quarterly Plan$16
per month, billed quarterly (Windows, 1 device)
All Pro features for 1 device on Windows; shown with a crossed-out $60.
Yearly Plan$4.50
per month, billed annually (Windows, 2 devices)
All Pro features for 2 devices on Windows; shown with a crossed-out $69.
2-Year Plan$2.88
per month, billed every 2 years (Windows, 2 devices)
All Pro features for 2 devices on Windows; shown with a crossed-out $99.
Perpetual Plan (1 PC)$96.75
one-time, Windows, 1 PC
Lifetime license with free upgrades and support; a 2-PC version costs $119.25.
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.
SwifDoo PDF
- Education
Community, non-profit and education discounts
SwifDoo says it offers discounts to communities, non-profits and education users, on an application basis.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Foxit PDF Editor or SwifDoo PDF?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Foxit PDF Editor starts at $129.99 per user / year, and SwifDoo PDF starts at $2.88 per month, billed every 2 years (Windows). 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 SwifDoo PDF?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Foxit PDF Editor nor SwifDoo PDF has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Foxit PDF Editor and SwifDoo PDF run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Foxit PDF Editor lists a web app. Both list macOS, Windows, 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.