With distance learning and 1:1 technology, teachers and homeschool parents are scrambling to find ways to help children learn with the materials they currently own or use. Most of my resources are in PDF format and my #1 question from my customers is, “How can my students write on the PDF?” Well good news peeps! I conducted research comparing FREE PDF editors for education. There are amazing paid versions, so make sure to double check with your school or school district to see if any of them are available to you! Since many teachers and homeschool parents don’t have this benefit, I hope you find something that works for you!
1. Dochub
This PDF editor was my choice. Why? It is FREE and it was an option on my Google upload tool. If you don’t see it as an option in google drive, go to “Open With” and “Connect more apps” to search for it. I thought, why not? So far, it has met my expectations. Students can write text, highlight, add image, whiteout, and add shapes. Then they can download their finished assignment. Dochub limits the size of the documents is 31.5MB, which is fairly large in my opinion. The FREE VERSION can be used up to 2,000 times and is available online or as an app. They have over 10,000 positive reviews on their app! You decide if it is right for you. I found it to be the best free option for my needs.
If you have a super large PDF assignment, learn how to assign specific pages of a PDF to students HERE.
COMPARE THE FREE AND PAID VERSIONS: DOCHUB VERSIONS
2. PDFescape
This PDF editor is online and always free. They say “PDFescape Online is Always FREE… No Gotchas!” Students can write text, highlight, add images, whiteout, and add shapes. Then they can download their finished assignment. There are limits to the size of the document. Assignments up to 10MB or 100 pages can be uploaded. I love the fact that PDFescape is always free, but I wanted to use it in Google Classroom and I didn’t see it as an option. It is strictly online, not an app. That is why Dochub is still my #1 choice. You decide if it is right for you!
SEE MORE: PDFESCAPE
3. Kami
Kami offers a free version for teachers, families, and students. With the free version, students can write text, highlight, and draw shapes. You cannot add images on the PDFs. I found conflicting information about using it with Google Classroom. In the chart, it says you can’t use it with Google Classroom with the free version, but then this article by Kami says you can. I see Kami as an app option to open it in Google. If you try to open it from Google Drive, there is an option that says “Open With” and you can search for it on the dropdown. The paid version of Kami has automatic download capability to Google Drive, assignment creation, and a built-in turn in button. Kami was created specifically for education and many school districts choose Kami. They have over 5,000 positive reviews on their app. You decide if the free version is right for you!
COMPARE THE FREE AND PAID VERSIONS: KAMI VERSIONS (Scroll down to see the comparison. The FREE is called “Basic”.
4. Seesaw
Seesaw offers a free version for teachers, families and students. With the free version, students can write on PDFs but I’m not sure what tools fall under the free creative tools and the premium creative tools. From the comparison chart, it looks like it isn’t unlimited use. It says, you can create, save, and share up to 100 activities. It also says that you can’t create mult-page posts in the FREE version. Seesaw was created specifically for education. Many school districts choose Seesaw, but I’m not sure it is the best FREE option. As far as I know, you can’t open in Google. You decide if it is right for you!
COMPARE THE FREE AND PAID VERSIONS: SEESAW VERSIONS (Scroll down to the see the comparison chart.)
I hope this helps you in deciding which PDF editor is best for your needs!
OTHER HELPFUL BLOG POSTS FOR PDFS:
HOW TO ASSIGN SPECIFIC PAGES OF A PDF
HOW STUDENTS CAN WRITE ON A PDF
