Often treated as the industry standard, Acrobat Pro offers a comprehensive set of PDF editing and annotation features. Its markup tools cover detailed comments, highlighting, drawing and shapes. It suits professional environments, with shared reviews and integration with Adobe Creative Cloud. It is a premium product, but its depth of functionality is hard to match.
GoProof is an online proofing platform for creative teams and marketing workflows, where PDF annotation is one part of a broader review and approval process. It is about proofing as a whole, not just PDF markup, and handles a range of creative file types. Its strength lies in centralised, collaborative review, with multiple stakeholders able to comment and mark up the same document.
If your PDF annotation is part of a larger creative approval cycle that needs version control, a clear feedback trail and formal sign-off, GoProof offers more than standalone annotation software.
A popular alternative to Acrobat, Foxit PDF Editor Pro provides a rich set of annotation tools, including typewriter comments, notes, drawing markups and measurement tools. It is relatively lightweight yet powerful, and it offers collaborative review options for individuals and larger organisations.
PDFelement combines a friendly interface with a wide range of annotation options, including sticky notes, text boxes, highlighting, strikethrough, underlining and shapes. It also supports forms, and its OCR capability is useful for scanned documents.
Xodo is a versatile PDF annotator available on the web, Android, iOS and Windows. You can write directly on PDFs, highlight and underline text, add sticky notes and fill in forms. A free version is available, though some features depend on the plan, so check what is included before relying on it for team work.
Best known as an education tool, Kami is a web-based document annotation app suited to collaborative work. It offers text commenting, drawing, shapes and voice and video comments, and it connects with Google Drive and common learning platforms.
Drawboard PDF is a strong option for Windows users with touch screens and styluses. It is designed for pen-based markup, with a natural feel for highlighting, writing notes and drawing. Its radial menu gives quick access to commonly used tools.
A long-standing choice for Mac and iOS users, PDF Expert is known for its speed and clean interface. Annotation tools include highlighting, underlining, strikethrough, shapes, text notes and pen tools that work with Apple Pencil.
Smallpdf is a suite of online PDF tools, and its editor includes useful annotation features: highlighting, text boxes, drawing and adding images. It runs in the browser with nothing to install, which makes it a quick fix for basic annotation.
Notability is primarily a note-taking app, popular on Apple devices, with solid PDF annotation. You can import a PDF and mark it up with handwriting, highlighting, typed text and audio notes, which suits students and professionals who combine note-taking with document review.
The right choice depends on your needs. For extensive professional features, Adobe Acrobat Pro remains a strong option. For creative proofing that includes PDF annotation and team approvals, GoProof is built for that workflow.
If you want free or cross-platform options, Xodo and Smallpdf are worth a look, and Apple users have good choices in PDF Expert and Notability. Decide which features matter most to your team, from basic markup to collaborative review, and test a shortlist on real documents.
Smarter Proofing. Faster Approvals. GoProof.
What makes the best PDF annotation software?
The best PDF annotation software pairs an easy interface with a good set of markup tools. Look for commenting options (text, drawing, highlighting), easy collaboration, version control, support for the devices you use, and, for creative teams, integration with proofing or project management tools. The right choice depends on whether you need it for individual use or team projects.
Can I find good software to annotate PDFs for free?
Yes. Xodo and Smallpdf both offer free options for basic annotation, though free versions can limit features or usage. They are a good starting point, and may be enough if your needs are simple.
How is GoProof different from dedicated PDF annotation tools?
GoProof is an online proofing platform where PDF annotation is one part of a wider review and approval system covering many file types. Dedicated PDF tools focus on markup for PDF documents. GoProof also manages the feedback loop, with version tracking, automated workflows and formal sign-off, which suits creative approval cycles.
