The 5 Best Apps to Edit PDFs on Mobile in 2026
Editing a PDF on your phone no longer means fighting the format: today you can highlight, annotate, merge two documents, compress one that is too heavy to email, or convert it to Word in a few taps. What changes from app to app is how much of that you are allowed to do without paying. In this guide we compare the 5 best PDF editing apps of 2026.
Apps to modify and organise PDF files on your phone
Apps for working with PDFs on mobile: annotating and highlighting, filling in forms, merging and splitting documents, compressing file size and converting to other formats.
Top pick
Xodo PDF Reader y Editor
Apryse Software Inc. · Free (with purchases) · 10M+
Best free option
4.5
475K reviews
TopApps analysis
Xodo does for free almost everything Acrobat charges for: annotating, signing, filling in forms, plus merging, splitting and reordering pages, with a very fast viewer.
Xodo is the most generous free alternative to Acrobat: read, annotate, highlight, fill in forms, sign, and also merge, split and reorder pages without being asked for a subscription to do the basics. Its viewer stays fast even with documents running to hundreds of pages, and it works offline.
Pros
- Annotate, sign and fill in forms for free
- Merge, split and reorder PDF pages
- Very fast viewer with heavy documents
Cons
- Editing the original text is limited
- Less polished interface than Acrobat
- Some advanced tools are paid
Adobe Acrobat Reader
Free (with purchases) · 500M+
Most compatible
4.6
7.8M reviews
TopApps analysis
Adobe Acrobat Reader is the format's own standard and the best at opening any PDF, however odd it is; annotating and signing are free, editing the text is not.
Adobe Acrobat Reader is the benchmark PDF reader and does for free what most people need: read, comment, highlight and fill in forms, plus sign documents with a signature you draw once and reuse. Editing the PDF text or converting it to Word does require a subscription.
Pros
- The most compatible PDF reader there is
- Free document signing
- Comments and highlights that are easy to use
Cons
- Editing text or converting to Word costs money
- The app is fairly heavy
- Pushes the subscription insistently
iLovePDF: Editor PDF y Escáner
Free (with purchases) · 10M+
Best for converting
4.7
330K reviews
TopApps analysis
iLovePDF is unbeatable at conversions: PDF to Word, compress, merge, split or export to JPG through a very direct workflow, and it is a Spanish company on top of that.
iLovePDF is the app version of the well-known Spanish website, and conversion is where it shines: PDF to Word, Word to PDF, compress, merge, split, export to JPG or add a watermark. It also throws in a camera scanner and document signing, with a straightforward "pick a tool, drop the file" flow.
Pros
- A huge range of conversion tools in one app
- Compresses heavy PDFs without wrecking quality
- Document scanner included
Cons
- Daily usage limits on the free version
- Some conversions are processed on their servers
- Premium tools require a subscription
Adobe Scan: Escáner de PDF
Free (with purchases) · 100M+
Best for creating PDFs with the camera
4.7
3.0M reviews
TopApps analysis
Adobe Scan turns photos of documents into PDFs with text recognition, correcting the perspective and cleaning up the background automatically.
Adobe Scan is the best free document scanner, thanks to Adobe technology that delivers top image quality and excellent OCR (it turns scanned text into editable text). It is free and watermark-free, converts to PDF and plugs into the Acrobat ecosystem. The most dependable way to digitise paperwork.
Pros
- Top image quality (Adobe technology)
- Free and without watermarks
- Excellent OCR (editable, searchable text)
Cons
- Requires an Adobe account (free)
- Advanced Acrobat features cost money
- Needs a connection for OCR
Foxit PDF Editor
Foxit Software · Free (with purchases) · 10M+
Most powerful for editing
4.5
212K reviews
TopApps analysis
Foxit PDF Editor is one of the few that lets you change the document's original text from a phone, not just add annotations on top.
Foxit is the professional alternative to Adobe in the PDF world, with a mobile editor that is light and capable. You can edit text directly in the PDF, reorder pages, password-protect files and export to Office. Popular in corporate settings for balancing professional features against a lower price than Acrobat.
Pros
- Edit text directly in the PDF
- Lighter than Acrobat
- Password protection and permissions
Cons
- Full editing requires a subscription
- Interface is less intuitive at first
- Watermark on some free features
Frequently asked questions
Can you edit the text of a PDF for free on a phone?
Changing the original text of a PDF is the feature almost every app keeps behind a paid plan, Adobe Acrobat included. What you can do for free is annotate, highlight, strike through, add text boxes on top, fill in forms and sign, which covers most real-world needs. Xodo is the most generous here.
How do I reduce the size of a PDF so I can send it?
iLovePDF has the most practical compression tool: you pick the file, choose the compression level and in a few seconds you have a much lighter version. Bear in mind that heavy compression lowers the quality of the images in the document, so if the PDF contains important photos, the medium level is the safer choice.
How do I merge several PDFs into one on my phone?
Both Xodo and iLovePDF let you merge several PDFs for free: you select the files in the order you want and generate a new one. Xodo also lets you reorder, rotate and delete individual pages within the document, which helps when a scan has come out in the wrong order.
Are these PDFs processed on my phone or uploaded to the internet?
It depends on the tool. Annotating, signing or reordering pages happens on the device itself. Heavier conversions, such as turning a PDF into Word, are usually processed on the company's servers, which means uploading the file. If the document is confidential, it is worth checking the app's privacy policy before converting it.
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