PDF Loft and Adobe Acrobat compared
Adobe Acrobat is a full desktop, mobile and online suite; PDF Loft is a web app with browser-side tools. Adobe includes e-signing in every plan, OCR in Pro, batch actions, an admin console and desktop and mobile apps. PDF Loft also sends documents for signature, offers an API on its Team plan and above, and is the simpler option if you want to do common jobs in the browser without installing anything.
Competitor facts as published on their websites, checked . Where a page did not say, the table reads Not published.
Where PDF Loft is stronger
- PDF Loft Pro is USD 12 a month billed yearly, or USD 18 a month billed monthly. Adobe lists Acrobat Pro at USD 19.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly, or USD 29.99 on a monthly plan. The plans are not equivalent: Acrobat Pro does more.
- 21 of PDF Loft's 39 tools run in the browser, so the file never leaves your device. The Adobe pages we read do not say where online tools process files.
- PDF Loft states exactly what is kept: nothing for browser tools on the web, and for server runs (which include every tool in the mobile apps and the API) the input is deleted when the run finishes and an unsaved result after 2 hours. The Adobe pages we read do not state a retention period.
Where Adobe Acrobat is stronger or equal
- Adobe includes e-signing in all three of its plans. PDF Loft sends signature requests too, with a monthly allowance that depends on the plan (2 on Free, 50 on Pro).
- Adobe describes batch processing and an Action Wizard in Acrobat Pro.
- Adobe has team licences with an admin console and 24 by 7 support. PDF Loft has team plans with a shared allowance and library, roles for owners, admins and members, and single sign-on on Business.
- Adobe has desktop software, Acrobat Reader and the Acrobat Scan mobile app, which can be installed today. PDF Loft has apps that are built but not yet in the app stores.
- Adobe states more than 25 online tools and PDF Loft lists 39. Counts depend on how each site groups its tools, so neither number settles which does more.
Side by side
| Capability | PDF Loft | Adobe Acrobat |
|---|---|---|
| Main paid plan | Pro: USD 12 a month billed yearly (USD 144 a year), or USD 18 a month billed monthly. Team: USD 48 a month billed yearly. Business: USD 199 a month billed yearly. Prices exclude tax. | Acrobat Pro: USD 19.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly, USD 239.88 a year prepaid, or USD 29.99 on a monthly plan. Acrobat Standard: USD 14.99 a month on the annual plan.Source |
| Free use | Every tool, 3 tasks a day, files up to 25 MB, up to 5 files in one run. No card needed. | Acrobat Reader is free for viewing. Limits of the free online tools are not published on the pages read.Source |
| Where files are processed | On the web, 21 of 39 tools run in your browser, so the file is not uploaded. The other 18 run on PDF Loft servers, and so does every tool in the mobile apps and the API. | Not published |
| Files kept after processing | On the web, browser tools keep nothing on our servers. Server tools, and every tool run from the mobile apps or the API, delete the files you give them when they finish, and delete a result you do not save 2 hours after it is made. | Not published |
| Number of tools | 39 tools | 25+ PDF and e-signing tools onlineSource |
| E-signing | Send a document for signature to people who need no account: signers sign one after the other or all at once, from a template or a one-off document, and each request has a timeline whose entries are chained so that a change shows, and a completion certificate. Signature requests a month: 2 on Free, 50 on Pro, 300 on Team and 1,500 on Business. Sign PDF also adds your own signature, drawn, typed or uploaded. | Included in all three plansSource |
| OCR | OCR PDF makes a scanned PDF searchable in 10 languages, up to 3 in one run. | Pro and Studio include turning scans into editable PDFsSource |
| Several files at once | Up to 5 files in one run on Free, 25 on Pro, 50 on Team and 100 on Business, for the tools that take several files. Each output file counts as one task. | Batch processing and an Action Wizard described for Acrobat ProSource |
| Team plans | Team and Business plans. For a team sharing one library, one set of stamps and one allowance. Business adds SAML and OpenID Connect single sign-on with automatic provisioning (SCIM). | Team licences from USD 16.99 a month per licence, with an admin console and 24 by 7 supportSource |
| Developer API | A public REST API described by an OpenAPI 3.1 document, with API keys, scopes, idempotency keys and signed webhooks, and an MCP server for AI assistants. Included in the Team plan and above. The Zapier and Make apps are built but not yet published to their directories. | Not published |
| Desktop and mobile apps | A web app that runs in the browser. Mobile apps for iOS and Android, a desktop app and a browser extension are built but are not yet in the app stores or published for download, so there is no separate desktop or mobile app to install today. | Desktop software, online access, Acrobat Reader and the Acrobat Scan mobile appSource |
| Interface languages | 10 languages | Not published |
Read the Adobe Acrobat facts at www.adobe.com/acrobat.html. The full table of all products is on the comparison page.
Questions
- Is PDF Loft cheaper than Adobe Acrobat?
- PDF Loft Pro is USD 12 a month billed yearly, or USD 18 a month billed monthly. Adobe lists Acrobat Pro at USD 19.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly. The two plans do not do the same things: Acrobat Pro is a full suite with desktop and mobile apps you can install today, and PDF Loft is a web app whose own apps are not yet published.
- Does PDF Loft include e-signing like Adobe Acrobat?
- Yes, in part. PDF Loft lets you place your own signature on a PDF and send a document for other people to sign, with a timeline and a completion certificate. Adobe includes e-signing in all of its plans. The two services differ in scope, and neither page settles which suits a given legal need.