PDFgear vs Stirling PDF (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick PDFgear: it is first in our ranking of PDF editors (Stirling PDF is third), and it grades higher too, 3.4 against 3.2.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
PDFgear grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Stirling PDF
Open-source PDF editor you can run on your own machine or server
Which one is for you
Pick PDFgear if
- Fits if you want an editor that changes existing text without paying or signing up
- Works for Windows and Mac users dropping a paid editor for everyday edits
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need Linux, as there's no version for it
- Not for you if files must never leave your computer, as some conversions upload to its Amazon cloud servers
- Tight if you're building your work around it, as some advanced features may become paid
- Watch out: it's a young product, first out in 2022, and paid for by investment rather than sales
- Too light for sending documents to sign inside the app, as that's on eSignGear, a separate site
Pick Stirling PDF if
- Fits if you want PDF tools that keep files on your own machine
- Works for developers who want an API for PDF jobs
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you run a team, as SSO and the team workspace are not on the free plan
- Pricey if you need Team, at $99 a month for up to 100 users
- Watch out: air-gapped use, SCIM, data residency and audit logs need the sales-only Enterprise plan
- Watch out: automation credits cost 1 cent each after the first 1,000 a month
- Skip it if you want a phone app, as none is listed
How we grade them
| 3.4GPAPDFgearVery good | 3.2GPAStirling PDFVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | ANothing to pay, and it edits existing text, converts, OCRs and has AI. The maker says investment pays for it, not ads or selling data. Some advanced features may become paid later. | AFree for individuals, with 60+ tools on web, desktop or self-hosted and 1,000 automation credits a month. |
| Free plan and trial | AEvery feature on every platform, with no signup, no ads and no caps on record. The maker says some advanced options may become paid. | AThe free plan has no cap on the PDF tools a normal person uses; automation credits are 1,000 a month, then 1 cent each. |
| Features | BEdits text, images and form fields like a word processor, batch-converts to Office, OCRs in 30-plus languages, annotates and has an AI copilot. It covers the whole job. Sending for signature is on eSignGear, its separate site. | B60+ tools, an API, an MCP server, pipelines and an in-editor assistant. Gaps named are in team features, not the core tools. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. No account to make and nothing to set up: install it and start editing. | CWeb and desktop apps exist, but the Linux desktop download is a .jar file run by hand, and self-hosting is a setup job. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, the web and a browser extension. That's everywhere bar Linux, but integrations stop at ChatGPT and its own eSignGear, so no top grade. | BWeb, Mac, Windows and Linux, plus an API and MCP. No phone apps. |
| Best for | a PDF editor that costs nothing | free PDF tools you can run on your own machine |
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: PDFgear and Stirling PDF. How we grade
Price against what you get
PDFgear has no paid plan and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Stirling PDF starts at $99 a month and scores 2.7.
PDFgear scores higher and starts $99 a month lower. Of the other PDF editors on the chart, none scores higher than PDFgear for less, and 8 score higher than Stirling 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
- Stirling PDF is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- PDFgear also covers forms.
- Stirling PDF also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| PDFgear | Stirling PDF | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free plan |
| Starts at | Free | $99 per month for 100 users (Team) |
| Free plan | Every feature is free on every platform with no signup; the maker says it shows no ads, does not sell data and covers its costs with investment. | Free for individuals: 60+ PDF tools on web, desktop or self-hosted, plus 1,000 monthly credits for automation. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | PDF Gear Tech Pte. Ltd. | Stirling PDF Inc. |
| Price read from | pdfgear.com | stirling.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
PDFgear
- PDFgear says most features will stay free but some advanced options, such as cloud AI tools and special conversions, may become paid.
- Some advanced conversions upload files to its Amazon cloud servers; the maker says they are deleted straight after processing.
- There is no Linux version; the apps cover Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android.
- It is a young product: the first version came out in 2022.
Stirling PDF
- The Team plan is $99 a month for 100 users; SSO and the team workspace are not on the free plan.
- Air-gapped deployment, SCIM, data residency and audit logs need the sales-only Enterprise plan.
- Automation through the PDF Processor uses credits: 1,000 free each month, then 1 cent per credit, prepaid or as used.
- The Linux desktop download is a .jar file that you run manually.
Key features
PDFgear
- Text and image editing
- Edits existing text, images, shapes, links, signatures and fillable form fields in a PDF, much like a word processor.
- Batch conversion
- Converts between PDF and Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text and images, with a batch mode for many files at once.
- OCR
- Pulls text out of scanned pages and turns scans into editable Word or text files, in more than 30 languages.
- AI copilot
- Answers questions about a document and summarizes it; the maker says it pays for the ChatGPT API behind it from its own funding.
- Annotation
- Highlight, underline and strike through text, and add notes, comments, stamps, shapes and text boxes.
- Online tools and eSignGear
- Browser tools for editing, merging, splitting, compressing and signing, plus eSignGear, a separate site for sending documents for e-signature.
Stirling PDF
- 60+ PDF tools
- The editor offers 60+ tools, including redaction, OCR, compression and conversion, on the web, desktop or your own server.
- Private by design
- Stirling says the editor runs on your machine and the source is public, so files do not have to go to a third-party site.
- Self-hosting
- Run it with the official Docker image, on Kubernetes with Helm, or from a .jar file on a server.
- API and MCP
- Every PDF operation can be called from your own systems, with webhooks when a job finishes.
- Pipelines and policies
- The PDF Processor chains operations and applies rules to files as they arrive, with each action logged.
- In-editor assistant
- An assistant can redact, translate, summarize or convert the file you have open when you ask.
Plans
PDFgear
PDFgear$0
Editing, conversion, OCR, signing and the AI copilot on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android and the web, with no account needed.
Stirling PDF
Free$0
60+ PDF tools on web, desktop and self-hosted, open source, with 1,000 monthly credits; no card required.
Team$99
per month for up to 100 users
Adds single sign-on, a team workspace and invites, and central control of the tool catalog; more capacity in blocks of 100 users.
EnterpriseCustom
Sold through sales: air-gapped deployment, SCIM provisioning, data residency, audit logs, uptime SLAs and custom terms.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, PDFgear or Stirling PDF?
As of Nov 12, 2026, PDFgear is cheaper to start with: it is free, against $99 a month for Stirling PDF. PDFgear is free, and Stirling PDF starts at $99 per month for 100 users (Team).
Which has a free plan, PDFgear or Stirling PDF?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both PDFgear and Stirling PDF have a free plan.
Which platforms do PDFgear and Stirling PDF run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only PDFgear lists iOS and Android apps and a browser extension and only Stirling PDF lists a Linux app. Both list a web app and macOS and Windows 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.