# Compare PDF-XChange vs PDFsam Basic 2026 | Capterra

> Unsure of what to choose? Check Capterra to compare PDF-XChange and PDFsam Basic based on pricing, features, product details, and verified reviews.

Source: https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-182728/PDF-XChange-vs-PDFsam-Basic

---

# PDF-XChange vs PDFsam Basic Features and Cost Comparison

Last updated March 13th, 2026

Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews  
moderated by our Reviews Verification team.[Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/)

Your comparison:

PDF-XChangePDFsam Basic2/4 selected

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.6 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

[PDFsam Basic](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/)[4.4 (56)](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

[## PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.6 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

Starting Price

$62.00one time

Value-for-Money

4.6

Functionality

4.5

Ease of Use

4.5

Customer Service

4.4

Reviews Sentiment

Based on [262 reviews](#user-reviews)

Positive

252

Neutral

8

Negative

2

[## PDFsam Basic](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/)[4.4 (56)](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

Starting Price

Contact vendor

Value-for-Money

4.5

Functionality

4.4

Ease of Use

4.6

Customer Service

4

Reviews Sentiment

Based on [56 reviews](#user-reviews)

Positive

51

Neutral

2

Negative

3

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## Send this comparison chart to my inbox

### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox.

## Summary

* * *

Key features rated by users

Features selected based on 12,575 reviews from pdf software users.  
about the Fit Score methodology.

Fit Score methodology

Our Fit Score reflects how reviewers rate a product’s performance against a set of features reviewers rate as most important. A higher score indicates the product is rated better in delivering what reviewers most care about.

  

If the Fit Score is not shown for a specific product, that only means there are currently not enough relevant data points to develop a meaningful score. It does not indicate that the product should be excluded from further evaluation. Best for Methodology

63%Fit

Missing features

Feature ratings

PDF Reader

4.7

Convert to PDF

4.6

PDF Conversion

NA

Merge/Append Files

4.6

Text Editing

NA

\--%Fit

Missing features

Feature ratings

PDF Reader

NA

Convert to PDF

4.4

PDF Conversion

NA

Merge/Append Files

4.7

Text Editing

NA

User satisfaction

User satisfaction

4.6

User reviews[262](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

Ease of use

4.5

Functionality

4.5

Value for money

4.6

Customer support

4.4

User satisfaction

4.4

User reviews[56](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

Ease of use

4.6

Functionality

4.4

Value for money

4.5

Customer support

4.0

Price starts from

Price starts from

$62Flat Rate, One Time

-   Free version
-   Free trial

Price starts from

\--

-   Free version
-   Free trial

Best for

Best for

On-premise PDF management solution that helps users create, view, edit, annotate and sign PDF files via document scanning, images, text/markdown files, virtual printer and more.

Best for

Students, researchers, and professionals seeking an open-source PDF solution.

## User reviews

Pros & cons

AH

Andrew H.

Senior Estimator

> "Would be great if it could open protected files and have a count feature."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6865665)

LaL

Léandre L.

Revit Modeller

> "The interface is super dated and looks convoluted."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6765789)

JC

Jeremy C.

Sales and Estimating Manager

> "I still use it to measure 1 pagers but there are better software programs out there for larger, more complex jobs for sure."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6494153)

BS

Baiano S.

Computerised Systems Validation SME

> "this feature is called FormTyper in Kofax PDF Advanced v5).Currently, it's a pain to create a fillable form in a file with 20+ pages..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4741723)

ST

Sophi T.

HR Assistant

> "I am able to create forms for our company."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___7031278)

BR

Brett R.

MD

> "Not to mention the outrageous cost of Adobe products in general. "

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6006182)

DV

Dat V.

IT Manager

> "Great tool if one uses pdf on a daily basis, can modify & design a pdf document very quicky without any third party softwares."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4835334)

KF

Karen F.

RN Nurse

> "I am able to run it on my desktop but it is unfortunate I'm unable to run it on my laptop"

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4134269)

AH

Andrew H.

Senior Estimator

> "PDF-Xchange is a powerful pdf reader and editor. "

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6865665)

KF

Karen F.

RN Nurse

> "Had a very hard time using this on my laptop it continually crashed due to resource issues."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4134269)

AS

Alisha S.

Editor

> "I prefer this program because of the variety of features and the ease of use."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6818800)

VR

Verified Reviewer

GA

> "It is quite expensive."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6073750)

BS

Baiano S.

Computerised Systems Validation SME

> "It's a great software app - superior to even Kofax Power PDF Advanced v5 (as at April 2023). While I use this app 90% of the..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4741723)

SA

Samuel A.

Patent Attorney

> "Printing is also not as good as with Adobe."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4680532)

Victor S.

Farmer

> "It is a good softwarr to read many pdf files without suffering."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6043074)

Jaime F.

REal estate agent

> "My usually editor doesn't have the font). "

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___3823293)

BS

Baiano S.

Computerised Systems Validation SME

> "Seamless Copy/Paste with Ctrl + Drag - a feature commonly available in Microsoft products - this makes like easier."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4741723)

MK

Mayank K.

Assistant Manager - Digital Marketing

> "They add watermarks to documents which is a huge problem when you are using this for official purposes."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___2889272)

Maria D.

Data Analyst

> "It has enhanced transparency and with no forgery chances of any data exchange."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4519987)

TB

Travis B.

Quality Engineer

> "DRM secured documents do not always work in the free version and not sure if they are supported better in the licensed version."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___3416470)

VR

Verified Reviewer

GA

> "I am very comfortable to use the reader due to its functionality."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___6073750)

BM

Ben M.

Applications Engineer

> "The only downside to PDF-XChange, and I'll admit this is where it fails against the "other" PDF software we all know about, is that..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___2818517)

GA

Geraldo A.

Admonistrativo

> "As for the integration with existing business processes, it was easy, from the experience I carry with this software, however, this..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___4687985)

Low J.

Student

> "The tools' icons are packed together closely, and may not be easy to navigate."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#Capterra___2847021)

[View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

BG

Benjamin G.

Private Practice Administrator

> "Completely free, and if you need basic edits to PDF's such as splitting or merging documents it works fine."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___6356480)

BG

Benjamin G.

Private Practice Administrator

> "Not a criticism, but if you're looking for something free to replace more pricey software, you won't find it here."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___6356480)

Jose P.

usiness Change Manager. IPMA. PMP.

> "PDFsam Basic is great for merging all or part of PDF documents and specifying which pages we want to merge for each input file, on the other hand, we can..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___4309305)

Peter S.

Assistant Director

> "It often crashed on my computer when going through the PDF merge process."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___4888145)

Jose P.

usiness Change Manager. IPMA. PMP.

> "It is a tool that we must necessarily have in our laptops, it behaves excellently in operating systems such as Mac OS and Windows, in addition to being..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___4309305)

MB

Michael B.

President

> "I've requested a full refund for my product, but PDFSAM does not respond my requests. "

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___3474837)

Ema N.

Editor

> "For basic use, I don't see any need for other software. If I needed the premium PDF editing features, I'm confident that the PDFsam family of apps will..."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___3544885)

MB

Michael B.

President

> "PDFSam has provided no technical support. "

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___3474837)

MG

Mateusz G.

Architect

> "This is a really great alternative for Adobe Acrobat."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___6024072)

Rebecca (Becca) N.

Designated Broker

> "I don't need it to print to PDF and even using it for that is not simple."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___2455006)

VR

Verified Reviewer

Project Manager

> "Not paying for proprietary tools is a great advantage in using this software."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___4266754)

Rebecca (Becca) N.

Designated Broker

> "The product description is unclear which is why I have upgraded. And I still don't have a function that I would like to have."

[See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#Capterra___2455006)

[View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

## User interface

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)

4.63 (262)

[PDFsam Basic](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/)

4.45 (56)

### Features

Do these products fit your needs?

Prioritize real-user-identified key features according to your needs to find your best fit.

\--% Fit

vs

\--% Fit

Access Controls/Permissions

207

Important

AI Copilot

150

Important

Alerts/Notifications

120

Important

PDF-XChange

Top features

8/46

-   Access Controls/Permissions
-   AI Copilot
-   Alerts/Notifications
-   Annotations
-   API
-   Batch Processing
-   Collaboration Tools
-   Commenting/Notes
-   Communication Management
-   Compression
-   Convert to PDF
-   Customizable Branding
-   Customizable Fields
-   Customizable Forms
-   Data Import/Export
-   Data Synchronization
-   Digital Signature
-   Document Management
-   Document Review
-   Document Storage
-   Document Templates
-   Drag & Drop
-   Encryption
-   File Management
-   File Transfer
-   Forms Management
-   Full Text Search
-   Generative AI
-   HIPAA Compliant
-   Indexing
-   Merge/Append Files
-   Mobile Access
-   Offline Access
-   PDF Conversion
-   PDF Reader
-   Real-Time Notifications
-   Rich Text Editor
-   Search/Filter
-   Secure Data Storage
-   SSL Security
-   Template Management
-   Text Editing
-   Third-Party Integrations
-   User Management
-   Version Control
-   Watermarking

[See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/#features)

PDFsam Basic

4/46

-   Access Controls/Permissions
-   AI Copilot
-   Alerts/Notifications
-   Annotations
-   API
-   Batch Processing
-   Collaboration Tools
-   Commenting/Notes
-   Communication Management
-   Compression
-   Convert to PDF
-   Customizable Branding
-   Customizable Fields
-   Customizable Forms
-   Data Import/Export
-   Data Synchronization
-   Digital Signature
-   Document Management
-   Document Review
-   Document Storage
-   Document Templates
-   Drag & Drop
-   Encryption
-   File Management
-   File Transfer
-   Forms Management
-   Full Text Search
-   Generative AI
-   HIPAA Compliant
-   Indexing
-   Merge/Append Files
-   Mobile Access
-   Offline Access
-   PDF Conversion
-   PDF Reader
-   Real-Time Notifications
-   Rich Text Editor
-   Search/Filter
-   Secure Data Storage
-   SSL Security
-   Template Management
-   Text Editing
-   Third-Party Integrations
-   User Management
-   Version Control
-   Watermarking

[See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/#features)

### Recognition

PDF-XChange is recognized as a top-rated tool in 2 Capterra Shortlist reports

PDFsam Basic is recognized as a top-rated tool in 2 Capterra Shortlist reports

### Deployment & support

PDF-XChange

Deployment

-   Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based
-   Desktop Mac
-   Desktop Windows
-   Desktop Linux
-   On-Premise Windows
-   On-Premise Linux
-   Desktop Chromebook
-   Mobile Android
-   Mobile iPhone
-   Mobile iPad

Support

-   Email/Help Desk
-   FAQs/Forum
-   Knowledge Base
-   Phone Support
-   24/7 (Live rep)
-   Chat

Training

-   In Person
-   Live Online
-   Webinars
-   Documentation
-   Videos

PDFsam Basic

Deployment

-   Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based
-   Desktop Mac
-   Desktop Windows
-   Desktop Linux
-   On-Premise Windows
-   On-Premise Linux
-   Desktop Chromebook
-   Mobile Android
-   Mobile iPhone
-   Mobile iPad

Support

-   Email/Help Desk
-   FAQs/Forum
-   Knowledge Base
-   Phone Support
-   24/7 (Live rep)
-   Chat

Training

-   In Person
-   Live Online
-   Webinars
-   Documentation
-   Videos

### Company Details

PDF-XChange

-   By Tracker Software Products
-   Located in Canada
-   Founded in 1997

PDFsam Basic

-   By Sober Lemur
-   Located in Italy
-   Founded in 2018

## Popular Comparisons

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

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[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-251329/PDF-XChange-vs-Adobe-Acrobat-DC)

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vs

[Adobe Acrobat Reader](https://www.capterra.com/p/170833/Acrobat-Reader-DC/)[4.65 (10,534)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170833/Acrobat-Reader-DC/reviews/)

Contact vendor for pricing

Price

$1.95/month

4.4

Features

4.4

4.6

Ease of Use

4.5

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170833-182728/Acrobat-Reader-DC-vs-PDFsam-Basic)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[iLovePDF](https://www.capterra.com/p/173963/iLovePDF/)[4.74 (1,758)](https://www.capterra.com/p/173963/iLovePDF/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

$9/month

4.5

Features

4.7

4.5

Ease of Use

4.8

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-173963/PDF-XChange-vs-iLovePDF)

[PDFsam Basic](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/)[4.45 (56)](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

vs

[Adobe Acrobat](https://www.capterra.com/p/251329/Adobe-Acrobat-DC/)[4.68 (4,203)](https://www.capterra.com/p/251329/Adobe-Acrobat-DC/reviews/)

Contact vendor for pricing

Price

$19.99/month

4.4

Features

4.6

4.6

Ease of Use

4.6

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/182728-251329/PDFsam-Basic-vs-Adobe-Acrobat-DC)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[Adobe Acrobat Reader](https://www.capterra.com/p/170833/Acrobat-Reader-DC/)[4.65 (10,534)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170833/Acrobat-Reader-DC/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

$1.95/month

4.5

Features

4.4

4.5

Ease of Use

4.5

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170833-170838/Acrobat-Reader-DC-vs-PDF-XChange)

[PDFsam Basic](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/)[4.45 (56)](https://www.capterra.com/p/182728/PDFsam-Basic/reviews/)

vs

[iLovePDF](https://www.capterra.com/p/173963/iLovePDF/)[4.74 (1,758)](https://www.capterra.com/p/173963/iLovePDF/reviews/)

Contact vendor for pricing

Price

$9/month

4.4

Features

4.7

4.6

Ease of Use

4.8

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/173963-182728/iLovePDF-vs-PDFsam-Basic)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[Smallpdf](https://www.capterra.com/p/172606/Smallpdf/)[4.65 (976)](https://www.capterra.com/p/172606/Smallpdf/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

$15/month

4.5

Features

4.6

4.5

Ease of Use

4.7

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-172606/PDF-XChange-vs-Smallpdf)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[Edit Pdfs](https://www.capterra.com/p/10001619/Edit-Pdfs/)[4.74 (558)](https://www.capterra.com/p/10001619/Edit-Pdfs/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

$10/year

4.5

Features

4.7

4.5

Ease of Use

4.6

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-10001619/PDF-XChange-vs-Edit-Pdfs)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[DocHub](https://www.capterra.com/p/209856/DocHub/)[4.78 (263)](https://www.capterra.com/p/209856/DocHub/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

$0/month

4.5

Features

4.6

4.5

Ease of Use

4.8

[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/170838-209856/PDF-XChange-vs-DocHub)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[pdfFiller](https://www.capterra.com/p/162654/PDFfiller/)[4.58 (992)](https://www.capterra.com/p/162654/PDFfiller/reviews/)

$62one time

Price

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4.5

Features

4.5

4.5

Ease of Use

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[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/162654-170838/PDFfiller-vs-PDF-XChange)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

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Features

4.5

4.5

Ease of Use

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[View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/65868-170838/ABBYY-FineReader-vs-PDF-XChange)

[PDF-XChange](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/)[4.63 (262)](https://www.capterra.com/p/170838/PDF-XChange/reviews/)

vs

[Tungsten Power PDF](https://www.capterra.com/p/198843/Kofax-Power-PDF/)[4.54 (243)](https://www.capterra.com/p/198843/Kofax-Power-PDF/reviews/)

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