Lumin vs Soda PDF (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Lumin if

• Fits if a small team edits and signs PDFs together in a browser
• Works for people who need a few signed documents a month at no cost

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if you handle many files, as Free allows 3 documents a month and Starter 10
• Watch out: a document counts as completed when you share, download, print or sync it
• Watch out: extra document blocks are added automatically unless an admin switches it off
• Pricey if you need redaction or Slack and Drive connectors, which need Business at $99 a month per team
• Not for you if you want a desktop program, as there is none

Pick Soda PDF if

• Fits if IT needs to deploy a PDF editor across a Windows office
• Works for teams of 3 to 19, at 10% off each license

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want to know the price before checkout, as only changing promotions are shown
• Not for you if you'd rather pay once, as it's subscription only
• Too light for Mac users who want a desktop app, as it's Windows only
• Tight if you try it free: quick tools stop at 2 files a day or 3MB, and edits can't be saved or downloaded
• Watch out: AI chat is capped at 10 questions on Standard, 50 on Pro and 200 on Business

Lumin

• Plans are capped by completed documents a month: 3 on Free, 10 on Starter and 200 on Pro and Business.
• A document counts as completed when you share, download, print or sync it, and extra blocks are added automatically unless an admin turns that off.
• Redaction, domain control and connectors such as Slack and Drive sit on Business, at $99 a month per team.
• The pricing page shows monthly figures only and does not say whether yearly billing is cheaper.

Soda PDF

• Prices appear only at checkout, which could not be read; marketing pages show changing promotional prices, such as $49.95 for Pro against $110.
• The desktop app is for Windows only; Mac, Linux and phone users work in the browser.
• Soda PDF is sold only by subscription; there is no perpetual license.
• AI chat is capped by plan, at 10 questions on Standard, 50 on Pro and 200 on Business.

Lumin

PDF text and page editing

Edit text directly, add shapes and images, and merge, split, extract and rearrange pages.

Real-time collaboration

Teammates can edit the same file at once, with comments, tagging and view or edit sharing links. Collaboration is a paid feature.

E-signatures and fillable fields

Sign documents, add fillable fields and check boxes, and send or share forms with customers.

Google Drive sync

Changes can sync back to the original file in Google Drive, and storage can be restricted to one platform on higher plans.

Redaction and scanned-text search

Conceal sensitive content and make scanned PDFs searchable. Redaction is listed on Business and above.

AI tools

Includes a PDF summarizer, chat with a PDF and an AI agreement generator, available through Lumin AI.

Soda PDF

Edit and convert

Edit text and pages, insert and extract pages, and export PDFs to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, HTML, PDF/A or images.

OCR

Recognizes text in scans and images so it can be searched, and edited on the Business plan.

Forms and e-signatures

Build forms with formatted fields and combo boxes, fill and sign them, and send and track signature requests.

AI tools and translation

Online chat with a PDF and an AI summarizer, plus translation of up to 1,200 pages a year on Pro and 1,800 on Business.

Batch processing

Create, convert, crop, watermark, add headers and footers and apply passwords to many documents at once.

Business deployment

The Business plan installs through MSI, Group Policy, SCCM, Terminal Server or Citrix, with self-serve license management and phone support.

Lumin

• Free$0

  Basic PDF editing and e-signatures, 3 completed docs a month, mobile and desktop apps.

• Starter$9

  per month, starting price; billing basis not shown

  Student plan: 10 docs a month, retained document access, Google integration and signing.

• Pro$19

  per month per team, starting price; billing basis not shown

  200 docs a month team-wide, advanced PDF editing, document collaboration and 5 agreements a month.

• Business$99

  per month per team, starting price; billing basis not shown

  Adds member access control, domain control, sign-in enforcement, connectors, redaction and priority support.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Sold through sales: storage controls, enterprise SSO, Microsoft integration, onboarding and a customer success manager.

Soda PDF

Pricing could not be confirmed. See sodapdf.com.

Lumin

• Nonprofit

  Discounts for not-for-profits

  Lumin states that it offers discounts to non-profit organizations; the amount is not published.

• Education

  Free for K-12 teachers and students

  Lumin says it is committed to keeping the product free for K-12 teachers and students.

Soda PDF

• Other savings

  10% off per license for teams

  Soda PDF Team, for 3 to 19 licenses, has the same features as Pro with a 10% discount on each license.