iLovePDF vs LightPDF
We give iLovePDF and LightPDF the same GPA: 2.8 out of 4.0. iLovePDF grades higher on ease of use and platforms. LightPDF grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
iLovePDF
Online PDF tools with desktop and mobile apps, free for light use
LightPDF
Online PDF editor and converter with AI tools paid for in credits
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAiLovePDFGood | 2.8GPALightPDFGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPremium is $5 a user a month on a yearly plan, $60 a year, or $9 month to month. That's the cheap side of normal for PDF editors, and it covers every tool on web, desktop and phone. Students and teachers can get a year free. | A$15.99 a year, or $39.99 once, for web, desktop and phone with 1,000 AI credits a month. That's the cheapest paid plan among PDF editors by a distance, and the lifetime deal spread over three years is cheaper still. Monthly is $5.99. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe Basic plan is free and does the essentials, with ads. But it caps how many documents you process and how big they are, and the desktop and phone apps need Premium. There's no trial. | CThere's a free plan, but it's web only, with limited access to selected features and files up to 10MB. The 3-day trial covers the yearly plan. |
| Features | CMerges, splits, compresses, converts with OCR, redacts, compares, signs and summarizes with AI, plus saved workflows and an API. Loads of tools. But the edit tool isn't described as changing existing text, and there's no form builder on record. | CEdits PDFs, even the text in scans, converts, OCRs and signs, and the AI translates whole files, chats with them and pulls invoice data into Excel. Clever stuff. But no form builder or redaction is on record. |
| Ease of use | A4.76 from 52,031 App Store ratings. Pick a tool, drop in a file, done. There's nothing to learn. | BNo store rating on record. It's a web app plus apps you install and open, with nothing to set up first. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWeb, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android, with Google Drive, Zapier, Make and WordPress, and the iLoveAPI for developers. It's on everything. | BWeb, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android, which covers everything. But no integrations or API are on record, and one account works on one device at a time. |
| Best for | cheap, no-fuss PDF tools on every device | AI translation and data extraction on a budget |
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: iLovePDF and LightPDF. How we grade
Price against what you get
iLovePDF starts at $5 a month for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. LightPDF starts at $5.99 a month and scores 2.7.
iLovePDF scores higher and starts $0.99 a month lower. Of the other PDF editors on the chart, none scores higher than iLovePDF for less, and 4 score higher than LightPDF 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
- iLovePDF starts at $5 per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly). LightPDF starts at $5.99 per month.
- LightPDF can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- iLovePDF also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| iLovePDF | LightPDF | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $5 per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly) | $5.99 per month |
| Free plan | Basic plan: the essential tools with a limited number of documents and smaller file size limits per task, with ads; the desktop app works as a free PDF reader. | Free plan on the web only: limited access to selected features, files up to 10MB and cloud storage for 5 files for a year. |
| Free trial | None listed | 3-day free trial of the yearly plan |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | iLovePDF | Wangxu Technology Co., Ltd. |
| Price read from | ilovepdf.com | lightpdf.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
iLovePDF
- Occasional users who merge or compress a PDF in the browser
- Small teams of up to 25 that want low-cost per-user licenses
- Students and teachers, who can get a year of Premium free
LightPDF
- People who translate or summarize PDFs with AI on a small budget
- Office staff who turn invoices and bank statements into spreadsheets
- Buyers who want a low one-time price across web, desktop and mobile
Worth knowing
iLovePDF
- The free plan limits how many documents you can process and the file size per task, and shows ads.
- The desktop and mobile apps, digital signatures and workflows are Premium features.
- Premium can be bought for up to 25 users; larger teams are quoted through the Business plan.
- There is no free trial of Premium on the pricing page; the free plan is the way to try it.
LightPDF
- AI tools spend credits: 1,000 a month on subscriptions, expiring monthly, or 40,000 in total on Lifetime; more can be bought.
- One Premium account signs in on every platform but works on only one device at a time.
- Cancelling a subscription means filing a support ticket; refunds are offered within 3 days on Monthly, 7 on Yearly and 30 on Lifetime.
- The free plan is web only, with files up to 10MB.
Key features
iLovePDF
- Merge, split and compress
- Browser tools to combine, split, compress, rotate, repair and number PDF pages, with files picked from the computer or Google Drive.
- Convert with OCR
- Converts PDFs to Word, PowerPoint and Excel with OCR on scans, and converts Office files and images to PDF.
- Edit, sign and redact
- Tools to edit, crop and watermark PDFs, fill forms, sign, redact, compare two files and protect or unlock them; Premium adds digital signatures.
- AI summaries and translation
- Summarizes and translates PDFs with standard or advanced AI; Premium includes 2,000 AI credits.
- Workflows
- Premium can save a chain of tools as a workflow, and integrations with Zapier, Make and WordPress and the iLoveAPI connect it to other apps.
- Offline desktop app
- Apps for Windows and Mac process PDFs offline; without a subscription the desktop app is a free PDF reader.
LightPDF
- Edit, sign and organize
- Edit, annotate, sign and organize PDFs, and edit the text in images and scanned PDFs while keeping the font and background.
- Convert and OCR
- Converts PDFs to and from other formats and recognizes text in scans, with batch processing on paid plans.
- Chat and translate
- Chat with documents and trace citations, and translate whole PDFs, images and scans into 20+ languages while keeping the layout.
- Data extraction
- Pulls structured data from invoices, receipts, purchase orders and bank statements into Excel, at 2 credits a page.
- AI generation
- Generates PDFs, slide decks, mind maps and summaries from documents, and removes watermarks, logos and handwriting.
Plans
iLovePDF
Basic$0
Essential tools for light use, with limited document processing and file size caps.
Premium$5
per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly)
For 1 to 25 users: every tool, unlimited processing, web, mobile and desktop, digital signatures, workflows, no ads and 2,000 AI credits.
BusinessCustom
For 25 or more users: Premium plus custom contracts, a dedicated account manager and single sign-on.
LightPDF
Free Plan$0
Web only, files up to 10MB, limited features and cloud storage for 5 files.
Monthly Plan$5.99
per month
Web, mobile and desktop with no file size limit, batch processing, unlimited cloud storage and 1,000 AI credits a month.
Yearly Plan$15.99
per year
The same as Monthly, billed once a year, with 1,000 AI credits a month and a 3-day free trial.
Lifetime Plan$39.99
one-time purchase
Marked as a limited offer: Premium on every platform paid once, with 40,000 AI credits that last until used.
Ways to pay less
iLovePDF
- Annual discount
Save 42% with yearly billing
iLovePDF's pricing page lists Premium at $5 per user a month billed annually ($60 a year) against $9 billed monthly, marked as 42% off.
- Education
A year of Premium free for education
Students, teachers and academic staff who join iLovePDF's education program get a full year of Premium at no charge.
LightPDF
- Annual discount
Yearly plan costs far less than monthly
LightPDF's pricing page lists the Yearly Plan at $15.99 a year against the Monthly Plan at $5.99 a month.
- Lifetime license
Lifetime plan for $39.99
A one-time $39.99 payment buys Premium on web, mobile and desktop with 40,000 AI credits, shown as a limited offer.
