Smallpdf
The polished Swiss PDF toolkit: compress, convert, edit, and e-sign from any device.
About
Smallpdf started in Zurich in 2013 and grew into one of the best-known names in browser-based PDF work. The pitch is simplicity: compress, convert, edit, sign, protect, and unlock PDFs in a few steps, with the same tools available as desktop apps for Windows and Mac and mobile apps for iOS and Android. Dropbox and Google Drive integrations are built in, and uploaded files are processed over HTTPS with deletion after processing per the site's privacy terms.
The free version handles a couple of documents a day; beyond that it is about $7 to $10 a month depending on billing. Review aggregators put it near the top of the category on ease of use, with compression singled out. The usual caveats apply: it is closed source, documents pass through their servers, and no independent benchmarks back the speed or compression claims. For routine office PDFs it is one of the least fiddly options around.
What it can do
- Compress PDFs to shrink file size for sharing and email
- Convert PDF to and from Word, PowerPoint, Excel, JPG, and PNG
- Edit PDFs: add text, images, shapes, and annotations
- E-sign documents and request signatures
- Protect with passwords and unlock PDFs you own
- Merge, split, rotate, and delete pages
- Desktop apps for Windows and Mac, mobile apps for iOS and Android
- Dropbox and Google Drive integrations
Setup
Open smallpdf.com in a browser and use the tools immediately; desktop and mobile apps available for offline-heavy workflows.
Prerequisites
A modern browser. Free tier is limited to a few tasks per day; Pro subscription removes the caps.
Use cases
Works with
Trust score — 8/10
Scored 8/10 (verified tier, metrics-v1). Evidence: founded 2013 in Zurich per third-party vendor data; SoftwareAdvice shows 4.7/5 from 1,018 reviews with PDF editing as the top use case; Slashdot confirms ~$7/user/mo pricing and the Dropbox/Google Drive integrations. Strengths: the slickest UX in the online category, strong review record, apps on every major platform. Docked for: (1) free tier is capped at a few tasks per day; (2) closed source with documents processed on their servers; (3) no independent benchmarks for compression or conversion quality. License: proprietary freemium.
How the trust score is built
Full methodology →- Adoption · stars/downloads, log-scaled vs peers
- 9.0/10
- Maintenance · recency, releases, issue load
- 9.0/10
- Openness · license + docs
- 2.0/10
- Manual review · sanity read + red-flag check
- 8.0/10
- · Smallpdf; founded 2013, Zurich, Switzerland
- · Compress, convert, edit, sign, protect, unlock PDFs
- · Web app plus desktop apps for Windows and Mac, mobile apps for iOS and Android
- · Dropbox and Google Drive integrations
- · SoftwareAdvice 4.7/5 from 1,018 reviews; PDF editing top use case
- · Free tier capped at a few tasks per day
- · Closed source; documents processed on Smallpdf servers
- · No independent benchmarks
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these sources. Where a claim comes from the provider and couldn't be independently verified, the text says so.