Nitro PDF Pro vs Readiris (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Nitro PDF Pro if

• Fits if your office lives in Microsoft 365 and wants a PDF editor with the same ribbon
• Works for one person managing licenses for a whole team from a console

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you're one person, at $180 a year with no monthly plan
• Skip it if you send documents for signature, as that's Nitro Sign, from $10 a user a month on top
• Not for you if you're on Android or build forms, as there's no Android app and no form builder on record
• Watch out: the $270 Classic license is Windows only, core tools only, and lasts three years, not for good
• Tight if you need SSO or Azure Information Protection, as both need Nitro PDF Plus, priced through sales

Pick Readiris if

• Fits if you scan paper and need searchable PDFs on Windows or Mac
• Works for people who would rather pay once

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a web or phone version, as it is desktop only
• Tight if you need redaction, form design or PDF/A, which are Elite at $149
• Watch out: version 27 is a version-specific license and the cost of upgrading later is not stated
• Watch out: each price is shown beside a crossed-out higher one with no end date
• Watch out: the trial's limits are not stated

Nitro PDF Pro

• The Standard subscription is billed yearly, $180 per user; the pricing page shows no month-to-month option.
• Nitro PDF Classic runs on Windows only and covers a three-year term rather than a permanent license.
• Sending documents for e-signature is Nitro Sign, a separate product from $10 per user a month billed annually.
• There is no Android app; SSO and Azure Information Protection need Nitro PDF Plus, priced through sales.

Readiris

• It is desktop software for Windows 10 or 11 (64 bit) and macOS 11 and later; there is no web or mobile edition.
• Form design, redaction, multiple e-signatures, PDF/A and cloud sharing need the Elite edition.
• The store shows each price beside a crossed-out higher one with no end date.
• Version 27 is a version-specific license; the page does not say what upgrading to a later version costs.

Nitro PDF Pro

Create and convert

Builds PDFs from scratch and converts to and from Word, Excel, PowerPoint and image files, and turns web pages into PDFs with working links.

Edit and organize

Edit text and pages, reorder, delete and rotate pages, and combine and split files, with an Office-style ribbon on Windows.

Nitro AI

Every PDF plan includes a document assistant that searches, summarizes and translates, plus tools that extract form fields and tables into Excel.

Review and share

Share PDFs for viewing and comments from desktop, mobile or a browser, and track activity on documents sent out for review.

Office add-ins

Create, protect and send PDFs from inside Microsoft 365 apps on Windows.

Admin portal and analytics

Every plan includes a web admin console to provision users and reassign licenses, and Nitro Analytics to track usage.

Readiris

Scan and OCR

Scans paper into searchable PDFs, with OCR in 138 languages and driverless network scanning through eSCL and WIA, plus TWAIN.

Edit and organize PDFs

Merge, split, rotate and delete pages, compress files, and add markups, annotations and highlights.

Forms

Fills interactive forms in Essential; Elite adds designing forms with labels, text fields, check boxes and combo boxes.

Batch conversion

Converts files to and from PDF, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint, many at a time, and exports to PNG and JPG.

Elite security and automation

Elite adds protection, multiple e-signatures, redaction, PDF/A archiving, smart page separation and automatic naming.

Cloud sharing

Elite shares documents to Dropbox, OneDrive and SharePoint.

Nitro PDF Pro

• Nitro PDF Standard$15

  per user / month, billed annually

  Billed as $180 a year: create, convert, edit, annotate and share PDFs, Nitro AI tools, the admin portal, integrations and round-the-clock support.

• Nitro PDF Classic$270

  one-time, per license, for 3 years of use

  Core PDF tools for Windows only: create, edit, export, combine and split, and password protection, paid once for a three-year term.

• Nitro PDF PlusCustom

  Sold through sales: Standard plus SSO, domain control, Azure Information Protection, usage analytics and a success manager where eligible.

Readiris

• Readiris PDF 27 Essential$79

  one-time, perpetual license

  Scan and OCR, PDF editing, annotation, forms, Office export, batch conversion; shown as $129 crossed out, no end date.

• Readiris PDF 27 Elite$149

  one-time, perpetual license

  Essential plus form design, multiple e-signatures, redaction, PDF/A, auto-naming, barcode extraction, cloud sharing; $189 crossed out.

Nitro PDF Pro

• Other savings

  Volume discounts through sales

  Nitro's pricing page says volume discounts are available on Nitro PDF Standard and Plus for larger teams, quoted by its sales team.

Readiris

No public discounts listed.