A Complete Guide to Editing PDFs 

 
 
 

jotform.com/edit-pdf/ 

 
  

 
 

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How to Edit a PDF 3 

How to edit a PDF in Adobe Acrobat 3 
How to Edit a PDF on Mac 4 
How to Edit a PDF on Windows 5 
Best PDF Editors 6 
Best PDF Editors for Windows 7 
Best PDF Editors for Mac 7 
Can I edit a PDF in Google Drive? 8 
How do I compress PDF? 10 
Here’s how to reduce your PDF size on a Mac 11 
How do I remove pages from a PDF file? 12 
Combine multiple PDF files into one single PDF file 12 
Divide a PDF file into pieces 12 

Problems with creating and editing PDFs manually 13 

When you need to collect a lot of information 15 
When you need to turn that information into documents 16 
When you need a custom design for your PDFs 17 

Automate PDF Creation Using Online Forms 19 

Do More with JotForm PDF Editor 19 
Field Assessments 20 
Performance Evaluation 20 
Certificates 21 
Work Orders and Incident Reports 21 
Event RSVPs 22 
Offer Letters 22 
Invoices 22 
Consent and Medical Records 23 
Two Time-Saving Automations 23 

How can I create a Fillable PDF 25 

Creating Documentation From Information 25 
Education 26 
Suppliers 26 
Hiring 26 
Healthcare 26 
How can I create a Fillable PDF? 27 
How to share a PDF 27 
Scribd 28 
Docdroid 28 
Slides 28 
 

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Convert a fillable PDF to a standard, flat document 29 

How it’s done in Adobe Acrobat Reader: 29 
How it’s done in Preview: 29 

How can I add a signature to a PDF file? 30 

GDPR Implications 30 
How to sign a PDF file electronically? 31 
Mac 31 
Windows 32 
Best PDF Signing Tools 32 
Free Software 32 
Paid Software 32 

How can I remove a password from a PDF? 34 

Best Free PDF Password Remover Tools 35 

 
 

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How to Edit a PDF 

There are several software tools available that make editing a PDF a straightforward process. If you’re 
using your computer or want to edit PDFs with cloud-based software, there are also a few different 
methods to do so. ​JotForm's PDF Editor​ is also one of the best options you can use for that purpose. 

How to edit a PDF in Adobe Acrobat 

 
Acrobat is available for both Mac and Windows, with a subscription to Adobe ​Creative Cloud​. 

Follow these steps:  

1. Open Adobe Acrobat. 

2. Go to "File," and click "Open." 
3. Choose the PDF file you want to edit. 
4. Once your file opens, select "Edit PDF" from the toolbar on the right. 
5. If you want to edit text, place your cursor on the text you want to edit. 
6. Using the "Format" option at the top of the toolbar, select "Format." 
7. To edit an image, place the cursor on the image you want to edit. 
8. Modify it by using the "Objects" option. 

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How to Edit a PDF on Mac 

 
Apple provides every Mac with Preview, a free program that allows you to view and edit a PDF and 
other file types. With Preview, you can highlight text, include a signature, or add text and comments.  

Add Text: 

1. Place your cursor where you want to insert text. 

2. Go to "Tools," click on "Annotate," select "Text," and start typing. 
3. To change the font, size, or color, go to "View," click on "Show Markup Toolbar," and press A. 
4. You also can move the text box anywhere on the document. 

Highlight Text: 

1. Select the text you want to highlight. 

2. Switch the highlight mode on or off by selecting ( ). 

3. If you want to change the color of the highlight, or strikethrough or underline it, click (

) and select an option. 

4. Anytime you select text, it will highlight as long as the highlight mode is selected. 
5. To review a highlight, control-click the text and chose "Remove Highlight." 

 
 

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How to Edit a PDF on Windows 

 
You probably have a copy of Microsoft Word already. Since Word 2013, you can open a PDF file directly 
and convert it to an editable Word document. You can then edit the document as needed. When 
finished, save the document as a PDF. 

There are dozens of tools that allow you to edit a PDF on Windows; however, most of these come with 
a price. In additional to Acrobat Reader, Foxit Reader is a free and popular PDF editing tool. 

Add Text: 

1. Go to the "Edit" menu. 

2. From the toolbar, select the "Edit Text" icon. 
3. To edit text, place the cursor where you want new text and start typing, or paste in your text. 
4. If you want to change the font, size, color, or alignment, you can pick those options. 

Highlight: 

Go to the Comment menu and choose from the following buttons: 

● Highlight — Drag your cursor over the text you want to highlight. You can also select 
the color. 
● Strikethrough — Select the text you want to strikethrough, and click on the 
"Strikethrough" button. 
● Leave a note — If you want to leave detailed note, highlight the text and pick the 
"Note" option. You can type your comments in the area provided. 

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Best PDF Editors 

 
The term PDF reader doesn’t just refer to a program with the ability to let you view a PDF. A dedicated 
PDF reader usually comes with more functionality, such as converting PDFs, adding signatures, 
annotating, and combining pages.  

We combed the internet, tried a bunch of editors, and found the best free ones for you to try. 

Best PDF Editors for Windows 

● Acrobat Reader 
● Microsoft Edge 
● Foxit Reader --- Foxit Reader allows the user to create, edit, manage and share their 
documents with a user-friendly and easy to use interface. 
● Nitro PDF Reader --- Nitro Pro convert PDF software has useful tools when it comes to 
creating, editing and distributing PDFs for all sizes of businesses. 
● Xodo ---Xodo is an easy to use software with the powerful support for editing and 
collaborating PDFs that is suitable from phones to web-based apps. 
● PDF Viewer Plus 
● PDF-XChange Editor --- PDF-XChange Editor is a software to preview documents, conversion, 
printing with menus that are easy to customize and highly functional. 
● SlimPDF Reader 
● Sejda --- Sejda is an online PDF management service that allows users to edit, convert, merge 
and split documents with ease. 
● Inkscape --- Inkspace software provides users to easily import and export PDF files with its 
simple interface. 
● FormSwift --- Using FormSwift online tool, the users can upload the PDF document to the 
editor and then start editing, digitally signing and sharing the document without any hassle. 
● ApowerPDF --- ApowerPDF is an online/desktop software that has a very easy to use interface 
that allows users to edit their PDF documents without any hassle. 

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Best PDF Editors for Mac 

● Acrobat Reader 
● Apple Preview 
● PDFelement for Mac --- PDFelement lets users edit text, read, and annotate their PDF 
documents with a free account for Android, iOS, and Desktop. 
● PDF Expert --- PDF Expert is a robust tool with powerful features like editing, annotating and 
managing pages, which works across iPhones, iPads, and Macs. 
● Skim --- Skim is a PDF Reader and Note-taker that is a perfect fit for the academic community 
since it helps the user to read and annotate scientific papers, it also allows the user to view 
any PDF File. 
● PDF Nomad 
● PDF Buddy 

Can I edit a PDF in Google Drive? 

If you have offices in different parts of the country or world and need to collaborate on documents, it 
can be very difficult to exchange documents constantly through email and work on the most updated 
draft. Even people who work on the same floor, or in the same building, can run into this same issue. 

Google Docs and Sheets allows you to collaborate in real time, provides you with a 
document-authoring tool, and stores your files online. This makes it easy for multiple users to edit a 
document at the same time, and see any changes instantaneously. 

Google's answer to word processing and online file storage is now widely used, and you can store and 
edit PDFs within this framework. 

If the PDF document was created from a text document, such as Microsoft Word or Notepad, the PDF 
file can be opened as a text file in Google Docs. 

 
 

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Open Google Docs 

1. Select the "File upload" icon.  

2. Click "Upload," or drag and drop the PDF file to the indicated area.

 
3. Once you’ve uploaded the PDF file, follow these steps: 
4. Select the PDF to open it. 
5. At the top of the window, you’ll see a drop-down menu. Click on "Open With," and select 
"Google Docs." 
6. Edit the text as needed. 

To export the document to a PDF file, follow these steps: 

1. Go to the File menu and select "Download As." 

2. Select "PDF Document (.pdf)." 
3. Your document will be converted into a PDF and downloaded to your computer. 

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How do I compress PDF? 

It’s no secret that a PDF can often become bulky and hard to send or upload to the internet. 
Depending on how you saved the file, there's a lot of data being stored and the file size can grow 
quickly. For instance, if you're sending a PDF to a commercial printer and need 5,000 copies for a trade 
show, saving the file as "high quality print" is the way to go. However, if you’re sending it to a client to 
proofread, you don’t need a file size this large.  

Reducing the size is not a problem with a robust PDF editing tool. Macs come with Apple's free 
Preview app, which can do basically everything you’d want when it comes to PDF editing.  

 
 

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Here’s how to reduce your PDF size on a Mac 

1. Open the PDF in the Preview app. 

2. Go to "Export as PDF" in the "File" menu. 

3. Click "Show Details," and from the "Quartz Filter" dropdown menu, select "Reduce File Size." 

4. Save the new, smaller version of the PDF. 

 

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How to reduce the size of a PDF using Acrobat DC (Mac and Windows) 

1. Open your file in Adobe Acrobat. 

2. Go to "File," and click on "Save as Other." 

3. Select "Reduce Size PDF…" from the drop-down menu. 

4. Determine your compatibility; leaving it as "Retain Existing" is fine. If you need it really small, you 
can set it to a later version of Adobe Acrobat. 

5. Select "OK." 

6. Rename the file, if you want to create a new, smaller version of your original file. This will keep your 
original, large file. If you keep the name and file location the same, you’ll have the option to overwrite 
the original file.  

7. Select "Save." 

8. Acrobat will ask if you really want to overwrite your original file. Click "Replace," if that’s what you 
want to do. 

Tip: If you need to shrink multiple PDFs, you can click "Apply to Multiple Files" and a box will appear. Drop 
all the files you want to reduce into that box and a batch of smaller PDFs will appear. 

How do I remove pages from a PDF file? 

Having trouble with deleting pages from your PDF? We've got you covered with a guide that can teach 
you​ ​how to delete pages in a PDF​ using Adobe Acrobat and third-party software on the internet. In 
most cases, the entire process can be done in just a few quick steps — and we have plenty of pictures 
that you can reference along the way. 

Combine multiple PDF files into one single PDF file 

Need to​ ​merge several PDF files​ together to create a cohesive document? We'll show you how to do it 
using Adobe DC, free online software tools, and Google Chrome extensions — and include a lot of 
helpful graphics so you can follow along. 

Divide a PDF file into pieces 

Have a large document that you want to split into smaller sections? Or, do you just need a few pages 
and want to extract them from a larger document? Check out our blog post about​ s​ plitting PDF files​, 
where we'll walk you through the various software tools and programs out there that can streamline 
your workflow. 

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Problems with creating and editing 

PDFs manually 
When it comes to​ ​PDFs​, there’s a lot to love. They make the process of sharing important, print-ready 
files a breeze. But, like many things in life, PDFs aren’t perfect. 

On the PDF creator’s side, it can be tricky to construct a PDF manually when dealing with a lot of 
information. Oftentimes, companies are faced with lengthy Microsoft Excel sheets that contain troves 
of data to sift through and organize. They’re burdened with the challenge of taking their collected 
data and placing it into a PDF document manually – something that’s time-consuming and tedious. To 
put it lightly, it’s not a project for the faint of heart. 

Collecting data is just the first step, though. Once you have the information, you need to figure out 
how to present it to your audience in a way that makes sense. Formatting can be even more painful 
than dealing with the data itself because it’s tricky to make all the PDF elements look right. You need 
to be cognizant of where to insert text, images, and graphics so the end product is easy to understand 
and looks professional. 

Be careful when putting a PDF together because there are many ways for things to go wrong. There 
are a few issues that plague even the most seasoned PDF professionals. One big problem is getting an 
image in a PDF to look just right. 
 

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If a photo’s resolution is low, it will look fuzzy in the PDF, so you must ensure the image is clear and 
the resolution is high. Another major flub is not setting up the bleed, or margin, correctly. If the bleed 
isn’t set up right or is missing, then it will look weird when a PDF recipient tries to print it. Lastly, it’s 
imperative that your PDF dimensions are set up correctly – if you want your PDF to be a particular size, 
make sure to adjust it so PDF recipients won't run into printing issues. 

Now, let’s shift gears for a moment and talk about the people who receive these finicky PDF files. A 
2017 survey conducted by Ghent Workgroup, an international graphic arts think tank, found that 
errors in PDF files are, perhaps, more common than we may think, even among experts. According to 
Prepressure.com​, close to 17 percent of the survey's 1,100 respondents — or 187 people — reported 
finding errors in 50 and 90 percent of the PDF files that they encountered. Another 25 percent of 
survey respondents — or 275 people — reported finding errors in 10 to 50 percent of the PDF files that 
came across their desk.  

That may sound like a lot of PDF errors floating around, but close to 52 percent of those professionals 
who were surveyed — or 572 people — reported finding errors in less than 10 percent of PDF files, if 
any at all.  

The fact is that a wide range of things can go wrong at any given time. Even if someone receives a PDF 
that’s completely free of errors, there may be some information that must be updated, which means 
that the PDF needs to be edited manually. 

Editing a PDF isn’t rocket science, but it isn’t always easy. When edits must be made, people need to 
use software, which can be either robust and pricey, or basic and free. Regardless of which software 
you choose to use, it will take time to edit any errors or information. 

Problems with editing PDF files manually tend to vary with each case, although there are a few 
commonalities. There always seems to be a problem with matching font type and size when editing a 
PDF manually, so be careful when injecting new fonts into your PDF. You can use free tools, such as 
WhatTheFont​, to see what type of font was used in the original PDF and then match it accordingly 
while editing. There's also a risk of ruining a document's format when you want to move elements 
around. Some software will allow you to shift PDF content around with ease, while some software will 
require more of a design eye to make everything look just right. 

It may seem like there are a lot of problems when creating and editing PDFs manually, but don’t fret. 
We have the rundown on what to do in the subsections below. 

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When you need to collect a lot of information 

It’s safe to assume that most organizations need to collect a lot of information. Whether a company is 
gathering data on customer insights, sales leads, or event registrations, there’s seldom a time when 
we’re not looking for some information to understand our business components better. 

But the problem with gathering a lot of information is figuring out ways to organize and manage it. 
Since we’re bombarded with data every day, using a strong data collection tool is imperative to help 
sift through the white noise and get to the important points. 

Here are a few steps that will help you collect information the right way: 

1. Choose a robust tool 

There are many tools out there that range from free to pricey, depending on your needs. Choosing a 
strong tool is the first order of business before embarking on your information collection journey 
because it will help you gather information efficiently and effectively. Many information collection 
tools come with free starter plans, so you'll have plenty of options to figure out which tool will work 
best for you. 

2. Ask pointed questions 

After you decide on a tool to use, ask yourself a few questions, such as, "Why are you collecting 
information," "What is its purpose," and, "What do you want to do with the information?" Asking 
pointed questions will help you get to the crux of why you need data and how you're using it. Just like 
anything else in life, there's no point in doing something unless there's a purpose behind it. 

 
 

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3. Define your goals 

Make sure to clarify your goals once you're clear about why you want to collect information. Defining 
your information collection goals will make organizing and managing the task much easier, especially 
when you’re gathering and managing large amounts of data. A big information collection issue is not 
having a big-picture mindset about what information to collect and what should be understood from 
the data. 

4. Determine a plan of action 

Next, it's time to develop a plan around organizing your data. This will vary depending on the tool you 
choose, answers to your questions, and your goals. Having a plan is important because it will help you 
achieve your goals and stay on the path to success. 

5. Start collecting 

Once you have everything in place, you can start collecting information. Collecting your information is 
exciting because you'll be able to cross-reference data with your goals and plan to determine if you're 
going in the right direction. After you've collected your information, make sure it’s orderly and 
presented in a way that makes sense to you and anyone else who will be using it. There’s nothing 
worse than trying to decipher data that has no structure to it. 

When you need to turn that information into documents 

Once you’ve gathered your information, it’s time to turn it into a presentable document that can be 
shared with the world. 

Before taking on the task of turning your data into a document, revisit your answers to the key 
questions outlined at the start of your project: Why are you collecting information? What is its 
purpose? What do you want to do with the information? What's more, you should keep your goals and 
plan at the forefront of your mind so you understand what type of data must be included in a PDF.  

When you’re completely clear about what you want from your data, you’ll be ready to turn it into a 
document. Though this seems easy in theory, there's actually a lot of manual labor involved in the 
process. It can take extra time, energy, and attention to detail to get your data into a document and 
have it look just right. 

Since many organizations collect a lot of data through Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, it’s not 
always easy to turn that information into documents. Healthcare companies are a great example of 
this. 

They receive mass amounts of patient data every single day, including general information, current 
state of health, health records, medication usage, and family health history. 

But healthcare organizations must find a way to consolidate this data into one document so they can 
share it easily with medical staff, referral doctors, and patients. When healthcare professionals make 

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PDFs, they oftentimes need to copy and paste the information by hand, which isn’t very efficient. It’s a 
problem and a huge strain on limited resources. 

It's not just healthcare, though. Small and large businesses; nonprofits; and educational institutions 
struggle with turning valuable information into documents. You also can face similar hardships while 
creating a custom design for your PDF. 

When you need a custom design for your PDFs 

PDF files come in all shapes and sizes. Whether you’re using it for contracts, tickets, coupons, or 
certificates, a well-designed PDF document plays a crucial role in making the right impression. 

Most organizations are plagued with the need for a well-designed PDF. Nonprofits, for instance, need 
custom PDFs designed for event invitations. Let’s say that a nonprofit has a big gala coming up and 
needs to collect names, addresses, and phone numbers of interested people. They funnel this data 
into a Microsoft Excel sheet, which is great, but how will that information be used to create 
invitations? 

The nonprofit needs to transfer the data into a professional-looking document so they can mail out 
formal invitations. Usually, the easiest way to do this is to extract information manually from an Excel 
spreadsheet, place it into a PDF, and figure out a way to design it. Designing a PDF this way is 
unproductive, especially when there are automated ways to streamline the process. 

There are many other examples in which organizations or individuals must turn information into 
documents. This is a common situation for contractual agreements, including instances when a real 
estate agent, financial professional, or advertising agent must turn information about a deal into a 
document. For example, if a financial planner wants to close a deal on an investment opportunity and 
must transfer client information into a PDF, he or she will want a seamless way to get it done. Simply 
 

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turning information into documents will save time and increase productivity. Turning information into 
documents also allows for easy sharing, which can be implemented by companies – large and small. 

Now, let's talk about a PDF's aesthetics. Though a good-looking PDF design is important, the process 
of getting there isn’t always easy. PDF files, by nature, don't come to mind immediately when it comes 
to aesthetically pleasing design. But that doesn't mean PDFs should be boring and drab! 

You don’t need to be a designer to create a PDF, but you should have an action plan in mind. 
Oftentimes, design software has a lot of bells and whistles that can feel overwhelming to people with 
non-design backgrounds. Moreover, the surplus of features can have an adverse effect and encourage 
people to add more colors, fonts, and images unnecessarily. 

Before getting started, think about what you want your PDF to achieve. What is its purpose? What 
point are you trying to make? What do you want people to glean from it? 

For example, if you’re a real estate agent, your goal is to collect leads and send them a weekly, email 
newsletter that displays homes you've listed for sale. In this case, your PDF's purpose might be to 
generate attention and encourage leads to call you about the advertised homes for sale. The design of 
your PDF would be personalized to display a lead's first and last name, as well as share pictures of the 
homes that you've listed for sale. The PDF's design would be customized with branding, images, and 
content that is relevant for your leads. Luckily, there are ways to automate this process. Read on to 
learn more! 

 
 

 
 

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Automate PDF Creation Using Online 

Forms 
You’ve heard about the problems with creating a PDF manually. It sucks your valuable time and adds 
tedious work to your day. So the question remains: how do you automate this process 

Believe it or not, by using online forms. 

Online forms are still the easiest way to input information, and new form technology has made the 
process easier and easier for the responder -- whether it’s your customers, students, or colleagues. 
More importantly, a lot of forms you encounter today are easy to fill out from mobile and tablet 
devices, meaning higher completion rates and more accurate information.  

Using online forms, you can collect signatures, dates, long text fields, images, and just about anything 
else you can imagine. 

Do More with JotForm PDF Editor 

Need a way to design customized documents seamlessly using data from completed forms that you 
make and send out? 

Now, there’s a new way to make it happen with​ ​JotForm PDF Editor​. 

JotForm's tool lets you design a PDF template by dragging and clicking. It connects to any online form 
you have with the platform, and responses that you receive through your form automatically populate 
sections of the PDF with the information you need. So, that one PDF template you create 
automatically turns into dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of unique PDFs as people fill out your 
form and submit it to you. 

Regardless of whether you use PDFs internally or want it sent out to clients as a professional-looking 
document, you need a fast way to automate the process. JotForm forms and this product solves this 
problem by​ ​turning form responses into designed PDFs​. It requires a minimal amount of time up front 
but saves hours of time and allows you to become more productive. 

The features of the tool comes to serve the common problems of everyday PDF users since it came as 
an idea from​ ​listening to our users​ and their problems in many different industries.​ ​Automation, 
design, communication and durability​ were 4 main pillars that came out from all that we have build 
our product on. 

JotForm users across a diverse range of industries — from​ ​a paint distributor in Calgary, Canada​, to​ an 
event management company in Metro Vancouver, Canada​ — have tried PDF Editor and incorporated it 
into their workflows. With JotForm PDF Editor, you can not only turn submission data into polished 
 

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PDF documents that can be shared with clients but also create a plain copy for your records. What's 
more, the layout features in this useful product can help you put your personal touch on documents — 
add a business logo, or change the font color, font type, background color, line spacing, and page 
margins. Many of these new features were directly inspired by our users, who felt there was a better 
way to turn bland, clunky PDFs into professional-looking documents. 

Field Assessments 

Anyone who works in the field needs to have an airtight system for not only collecting information, but 
also for sending it back to the office. There’s naturally a lot of friction in this process. If the final 
assessment of field data is supposed to be shown as a polished, professional PDF, then how on earth 
do you simplify that? 

Automation, of course. 

Start with a simple web form that includes fields asking for the data you’d need inputted from out in 
the field. Then, you can have the assessment PDFs generated automatically whenever you submit all 
the information you need. 

Performance Evaluation 

Students and employees alike benefit from performance evaluations. A great way to standardize your 
evaluations across the board is by using the same online form for each evaluee. But when it comes 
time to share that evaluation information, what then? 

Having the responded form automatically create a well-designed PDF with all of the evaluation 
information eliminates the time-consuming step of copying and pasting the form data into a different 
file. The final PDF is not only great for your records, but it’s a great file type to send to colleagues and 
the evaluee themselves. 

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Certificates 

Say you’ve hosted a conference or a workshop and want to give participants a professional certificate 
for attending. You could email each of your participants, find out how they’d like their name spelled 
on the certificates, and then manually type in each of them on separate Word docs. When you’ve 
finished doing that, you can save each of the files as separate PDFs and then email them back to the 
attendees. You ​could​ do that. Just like you could order sandwiches at Starbucks. It’s a possibility, sure. 
But there are clearly more suitable options. 

Instead, you can send each of your participants the same exact online form asking them to enter how 
they’d like their name on the certificate. On the other end, after they submit the form, is a 
beautifully-designed PDF certificate. You can give it a once over to make sure there aren’t any errors in 
what they entered, but it should be ready to send back their way. 

All of the work is done upfront with designing the certificate; then the rest of the work is done for you 
once they enter information into your form. 

Work Orders and Incident Reports 

Work orders can either be generated from a customer request or internally within your organization. 
They’re designed to get a better idea of the work that’s needed, the cost required, when and how it 
will be completed, and by whom the work will be completed. 

The only problem is, they can be a pain to create manually. Sure, you can create a work order 
template in a word processor and add information whenever a customer sends a request. But the 
time-saving method of generating a work order again requires a simple online form. Your customer or 
colleague can fill out an online form with the information you need, and your work order PDF can 
automatically be populated with the new info. 

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Event RSVPs 

Online forms are the tried and true way to collect event registrations for events, regardless of the size. 
But event organizers often need to create PDFs as electronic records for each attendee. Doing so 
manually would be an absolute headache, especially for larger scale events. Online forms not only 
make this possible, but painless. This is also a handy way to tackle events that require printed tickets. 
Send your branded event ticket PDF to anyone who registers for the event through your form. This can 
even be done automatically. 

Offer Letters 

If you’ve ever hired someone, you know the feeling of sending out the final offer letter and anxiously 
waiting for the signed copy to return. But what you may not be counting on is how inconvenient 
you’ve made the process for the new employee. Traditionally speaking, the new employee needs to 
have access to a printer and scanner. And for many people, their only access to a printer and scanner 
is at their own office. (something about personal printing on the decline). 

Sending an offer letter which includes an e-signature field via online form solves this. The online form 
is simple for your new employee to fill from any device, and you automatically get a signed PDF copy 
of the offer letter. 

Invoices 

Invoices -- the handy PDFs that summarize what’s included in an order and the amount due -- are a 
necessity to millions of businesses. Unfortunately, creating them is still cumbersome. 

Sure, there are loads of invoice templates out there. But any one of them still requires you to manually 
input customer and order information. If your businesses receives steady volume then that’s a lot of 
typing. 

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However, when the processes begins with a customer filling out an online request or order form, the 
work is already done for you. Take the time to make your invoice PDF template professional by adding 
your logo and columns. Then the work to populate it is done for you when the customer submits the 
form. 

Consent and Medical Records 

Healthcare providers not only need to be careful with how they collect information, but also how they 
organize it. 

HIPAA-compliant online forms​ remove a lot of the nuisance for patients to give their consent or 
update their medical history. No more filling out forms by hand in the waiting room. No more printing 
forms ahead of time and bringing them into the clinic. A simple online form -- provided either on a 
website before a visit or on a tablet in the office -- significantly reduce the time spent filling the form 
while giving your clinic more accurate, legible information. 

But you’ll still need a final PDF for your records. And luckily, you won’t have to create it manually. Any 
of the submitted medical information will automatically populate a PDF that you can keep on file, 
print, or share with your patient or other doctor’s offices. 

Signatures are a crucial part of consent and medical records as well. As electronic signatures started 
to become more popular and convenient, the need of it in the forms created increased directly 
proportional. You can easily collect the e-signatures online and use them in PDFs afterwards. 

Two Time-Saving Automations 

You’ve created your online form. You’ve designed your PDF. Now you just need an easy way to get the 
finalized PDF in your customers’ hands after they’ve submitted your form. 

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There are two simple ways to automate this as well; 

1) Enable Form Respondents to Download PDFs Automatically 

Bake the final PDF right into the form respondent’s experience. When someone finishes filling out the 
form, they’ll be prompted with a button to download the newly-generated PDF with their answers 
included. 

For teachers, this is a handy way to have your students download results for exams instantly. The form 
itself can be used as an exam tool, which can include open-ended or multiple choice answer fields. 
The final PDF gives your students something they can (hopefully) take home and show their parents 
right away. 

2) Automatically Send PDF Attachments in Auto Response Emails 

Leveraging auto response emails is a proven way to communicate with your customers who respond 
to your form without you ever touching the keyboard. The way it works is simple: you design the email 
ahead of time, and when the customer fills out your form, they get a friendly, pre-written email. 

For more complex inquiries, you can send a PDF with your email. This is a perfect way to generate a 
PDF invoice, for example. Have your customers fill out an online order request form, and have the 
invoice automatically generated based on the information they provide. It saves a major step, 
allowing for a more timely way to get paid and for the customer to receive what they need. It shouldn’t 
be difficult to create and send an invoice. Starting the automation with an online form makes it much 
easier.  

 
 

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How can I create a Fillable PDF 

(and why do I need it in the first place)? 
It has happened to everyone. A vendor or partner sends you a document that includes a series of 
questions about your business. The only problem is that the document doesn’t have fillable fields. You 
have to print out the document, write in the answers, scan it, and send it back. Under these 
circumstances, it's tempting to procrastinate and fill out the form later because you know it’s going to 
eat up time. 

Businesses that don’t use fillable PDFs are not only inconveniencing the file recipients but also hurting 
their own bottom lines. In this day and age, waiting on a document to return means missing 
deadlines, delaying production, or turning potential customers away altogether. 

It's 2018, but this happens every day. 

The solution, of course, is sending that same document as a fillable PDF. Fillable PDFs are online 
documents that have editable fields but do not require recipients to use PDF editing software. On the 
whole, fillable PDFs have enormous benefits. 

Creating Documentation From Information 

Fillable PDFs allow your company to create documentation easily from collected information. Web 
forms solve the problem of collecting the information you need, but having a fillable PDF gives you the 
full document so that you have something tangible to file away or share with colleagues. 

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Say for example that you you’re an HR manager and you’d like your company’s employees to sign off 
on new policies. You’ll need a copy of everyone’s signed agreements, but they’ll need one, too. Since 
you’re in the same office, you could very well print out copies yourself, walk to their offices 
individually, get them to sign the agreement, and then b-line for the copy room to make duplicates for 
their own records. Or, you could go the editable PDF route and send them all the same email with the 
same document. They take care of it online and automatically have their own file for documentation, 
and so you do. It saves time, and everyone gets a copy of an important piece of documentation. 

Even if your office uses printed records, fillable PDFs still are a nice way to work within that workflow. 

Education 

All schools – big and small – handle a lot of student data. Oftentimes, schools require students to 
apply for their programs, especially universities, colleges, and private schools. The only way to 
manage this much data in an efficient way is to use a fillable PDF so students can enter their 
information easily and send it directly to their desired schools. A fillable PDF is ideal for applications 
because students can complete them on their own time – if they don't finish them in one sitting, then 
they can easily return when time frees up and edit them again. 

Suppliers 

Suppliers collect mass amounts of nitty-gritty information from their customers, such as personal 
information, the quantity of an item, payment details, shipping address, etc. A fillable PDF makes this 
process easy for a supplier because once a customer enters in all of their details, then the supplier will 
receive the information in their inbox. On the supplier's end, they can also use fillable PDFs to create 
invoices and include information, such as purchase number, purchase order date, and other purchase 
details. 

Hiring 

HR (Human Resources) professionals manage the "behind the scenes" of hiring qualified candidates 
for organizations. They create forms for applicants to fill out and handle any follow-up. They have 
large sums of information coming in everyday and they need an easy way to manage it all. A great way 
to do this is with a fillable PDF. Fillable PDFs allow HR professionals to collect application information 
easily and effectively. Applicants can use a fillable PDF to enter information and once finished, the 
data will be sent directly back to HR. Using a fillable PDF eliminates paper forms, which are 
time-consuming to fill out and require data entry to move information from the form into a computer. 

Healthcare 

When it comes to the healthcare industry, there's an endless amount of data that needs to be 
collected from patients so that they can be given the best care possible. Providers strive to gather 
patient data, such as personal health history, family health history, medication usage, etc., which 
winds up being a lot of information to collect, organize, and manage. When healthcare providers use 
fillable PDFs for data collection, they save hours of manual data entry and can use their extra time for 
more pressing matters. 
 

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The Importance of Sharing Documentation With People 

The ability to share documentation is critical to company communication, culture, hiring and 
onboarding, and even driving revenue. That is to say, it’s incredibly difficult to share this information if 
it’s not digital. That’s the beauty of fillable PDFs. They store neatly in your file drawer or your cloud 
storage service alike. They can be emailed or even Slacked. 

Without having the ability to readily share your documentation, organizational information gets lost, 
ultimately impacting your company’s bottom line. 

How can I create a Fillable PDF? 

Forms are a common use of PDFs. These might be forms you print out from the DMV website, fill in 
with pen and take up to the counter in person. Or, more commonly these days, they are forms you fill 
out right in your PDF editor. Fillable PDFs come in handy for many organizations and industries when 
collecting valuable information. 

JotForm’s​ ​Fillable PDF Form Creator​ walks you through each step of the way. 

1. Select a template from thousands of JotForm’s user-generated forms. 

2. Open your chosen template in JotForm’s form editor. 

3. Select the Publish option, on over on the side there’s a PDF tab. 

4. Click Download and you’ll have a fillable PDF version of your form. 

How to share a PDF 

The beauty of PDFs is that they’re incredibly easy to share. They open on any browser. They’re free of 
viruses. You can open them instantly, even from your phone. And you can even password protect 
them if you want. 

Now compare that to a Microsoft Word file. Not everyone uses Word, so the file is lost on them if they 
open it. If they want to download the file on their computer, it immediately creates an issue. Ditto for 
Google Docs. Luckily enough, both Word and Google Docs make it simple to download the file you’re 
working on as a PDF. However, there’s still an additional step required to make it a fillable PDF (see 
below). 

It makes sense that email is still the easy way to send a PDF since it sends opens anywhere. But that’s 
not the only option you have. 

Cloud storage services offer a great alternative way to share PDFs. The three biggest around are Box, 
Dropbox, and Google Drive. All of them support PDF file storage, making them all great ways to not 
only securely store PDFs, but have them available to everyone on your team. With Google Drive, for 
instance, you not only have the ability to store the PDF, but select who to share it with, download it, 
rename it, comment on it, or print it in just a click or two. 
 

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You can also embed PDFs on a website with the right tool. This is terrific if you have a portfolio site, a 
terms of use document, or PDF medical forms to show. 

Here’s a quick rundown of a few more great tools for sharing your PDFs. 

Scribd 

You probably know Scribd as a way to access books, magazines, and audio online. But it also doubles 
as a great way to embed and share PDFs. Scribd is effectively a vast online library filled with 
user-generated content. You can embed a PDF directly onto your site using Scribd so that when you 
get a site visitor they can not only read the document content, but download it for themselves. What’s 
great, is that anyone can then search and find your PDF using Scribd’s own search. 

Docdroid 

Docdroid works simply. You upload your favorite PDF to their platform, and you get an embed code to 
paste into your own website that will show your document on your site in an iframe. That means you 
can even include a fillable PDF embedded directly onto your site! It also converts documents, so you 
could upload a DOCX file and download it as a new PDF. What’s great is that you can also use Docdroid 
for presentation and slide PDF files. 

Slides 

Speaking of presentations, Slides is an industry leader at helping you share your presentation decks to 
audiences around the world. It enables anyone with a web browser to easily create, present and share 
beautiful presentations for free. But did you know you can upload PDFs directly to the platform? When 
you do that, you make it considerably easier to share your PDF with a larger audience. 

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The great thing about PDFs is that they were designed to be shareable. And when your document is 
shareable, your team is better informed and processes are more efficient. So whether you’re looking 
to share your PDF by email or upload it to the web, it’s very easy. 

Convert a fillable PDF to a standard, flat document 

Fillable PDF files can save time by allowing people to fill in blank fields on their digital devices or 
computers, but what happens if they want to save a completed copy or lock in their responses so no 
one can make changes? The answer is quite simple. Instead of printing a paper form, document reader 
programs, such as Adobe Acrobat or Preview on Mac, allow you to save fillable PDF documents as 
standard, flat files that cannot be edited (non-editable PDF). Here’s the best part: The conversion 
process is just as easy. 

How it’s done in Adobe Acrobat Reader: 

1. After opening a fillable PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Reader and completing the blank fields, click 
on the Print icon on the left-hand side of your screen.  
2. Select the “Printer…” option on the bottom left-hand side of the Print popup window that 
appears.  
3. In the next Print popup window, press the PDF button, and select “Save as PDF” from the 
dropdown menu options.  
4. After changing the file name or title of the document that you want to save, click “Save” in the 
bottom right-hand corner of the popup window that appears.   

How it’s done in Preview: 

1. After opening a fillable PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Reader and completing the blank fields, go to 
“File” on the top left-hand side of your screen and click “Print…”  
2. In the Print popup window, press the PDF button, and choose the “Save as PDF” option in the 
dropdown menu. 
3. After changing the file name or title of the document that you want to save, click “Save” in the 
bottom right-hand corner of the popup window that appears. 

   

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How can I add a signature to a PDF file? 

Sometimes you have a contract, agreement, or proposal that only requires a signature. Instead of 
printing the document and faxing or mailing it, you can email a PDF and have a customer sign it 
digitally. 

For instance, if your company provides customers with design and cost estimate proposals, you 
probably need a signature on the proposal to begin production. Rather than send a large document 
through the mail, and wait several days for it to be signed and returned, you can email it, ask your 
customer sign it electronically, and have a signed copy emailed to you. If you find yourself working 
against a tight deadline, this can be the difference in winning or losing the project. 

GDPR Implications 

If your organization is impacted by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you must get 
consent before you can process your customers' personal data, and data controllers have strict 
requirements for capturing that consent. 

For example, if you’re handling high-risk data, such as medical records or a person’s financial 
information, an electronic signature provides you with an easy-to-use system that's not only secure 
but also produces an auditable environment and meets GDPR consent requirements, such as: 

● Compliance with opt-in requirements 

● Receive written consent 
● Provide details on how the consent was obtained, including what the customer approved 
specifically, as well as the date, time, and name of the person. 

Electronic signatures are legally acceptable and are practically as good as ink on paper. 

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How to sign a PDF file electronically? 

Adding a signature to PDFs can be effortless with the right tool. Mac users don’t think twice about 
finding the digital signature tool in Preview and adding their John Hancock. 

Mac 

Apple provides every Mac with “Preview,” a free program that allows you to view and edit a PDF file, 
among other types of files. With Preview, a signature can be added to a PDF easily. 

1. Select the signature icon ( ) 

2. If you’ve created your signature already, select it and insert it into the PDF. Otherwise, select 
“Create Signature” and pick from the following options: 
- If you’re using a trackpad, you can sign your name with your finger. When finished, press any 
key on the keyboard. 
- If you have a built-in camera, sign your name on a white sheet of paper using black ink and 
hold it up to the camera. 
3. Once you’ve inserted your signature, select "Done." 
4. You can move and resize the signature to suit your needs. 

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You can also check our walkthrough on ​how to add a signature to a PDF on Mac​ if you need a more 
detailed tutorial. 

Windows 

While there are dozens of Windows tools that allow you to include a signature, here’s how you do it 
using Foxit Reader, a free and popular PDF viewing and editing tool. 

1. Go to the "Protect" menu and select “Signature” 

2. To create your new signature, using black ink, sign a white piece of paper. Then scan your 
signature into your computer. 
3. Crop your signature as needed 
4. Click on the PDF sign button to import your signature 
5. Position it to the desired location 
6. Once you’ve followed these steps, you can use your signature to sign additional documents. 

Best PDF Signing Tools 

Adding a signature is one of the main things that average users are looking to do with PDFs. For 
instance, if you receive a purchase agreement from a new vendor or a W2 from an employer, all you 
need to do is sign it.  

Without the right tools, getting your signature onto that electronic document can be a hassle. In the 
past, people would print out the form, fill it in, scan it, and send it back. That's so much work. Now 
there are many options to place signatures into PDFs. 

Free Software 

HelloSign: This simple tool is free for up to three documents a month. It works for IOS, Android, and 
Windows. 

PDF Buddy: Edit and add your signature to PDFs for free with this pretty robust, web-based tool. You 
also can merge or split PDFs. 

Foxit Reader: A free and popular PDF tool that's available on Mac and Windows 

We did a little digging and found five of the best, free software tools out there to place digital 
signatures on your PDF files. 

Paid Software 

DocuSign: This is a popular option for larger businesses that need a lot of mobile, secure, and legally 
binding signatures. There's no free option, but plans start around $10 a month. 

Easy Sign: Collect electronic signatures on the go, at $5 for 10 documents. It’s sleek, looks 
professional, and is a great option for complicated documents requiring lots of signatures. Easy Sign 
guides the signer through the document and tracks the progress. 
 

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Rightsignature: This is an easy-to-use, secure e-signature program for IOS, Web, Android, and 
Blackberry. The first five documents are free, and plans start around $12 a month. 

As you can see, it’s very easy. But, if you don’t have a proper PDF reader on your computer, the task 
can be extremely frustrating. 

Most PDF software packages have digital signature capabilities at this point, unless you’re using a 
reader designed primarily to view ebooks, for example. 

 
 
 
 

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How can I remove a password from a 

PDF? 
If you’ve received an encrypted document and every time you open it you need to enter the password, 
it can get annoying. Well you can use this handy little trick to remove the encryption, just save it again 
by printing to a new PDF. 

1. File > print 

2. Set the destination to PDF 

This will create a copy of the file without encryption. 

You can also remove encryption from your documents in Adobe Acrobat under the properties section, 
in security settings. 

Breaking an encryption is a different story. There are a number of programs which will help you 
remove an encryption from a PDF if you don’t have the password. 

 
 

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Best Free PDF Password Remover Tools 

PDFs are secured in two ways: 

Document open (or user) password - when a password is requested on opening the document. 

Permissions (master or owner) password - the file opens normally but actions, like printing or editing, 
are restricted. Adobe Acrobat uses different algorithms to secure PDFs, some are easier to crack than 
others. 

WARNING: In most countries, it’s illegal to remove the password on a PDF you don’t have permission 
to alter. These tools should just be used to recover passwords for your own documents. Anyway, for 
that kind of decryption, you’ll need some tech skills or splurge on a paid solution. 

While most PDF password remover tools cost money, there are free options, mostly for PC. 

● PDF Crack: Upload your PDF to a web interface and enter your password, PDF Crack will make 
a copy of your PDF without encryption, this is similar to the print to PDF option. So if your 
computer settings don’t allow Print to PDF, this is a good tool. 
● Guaranteed PDF Decrypter Demo: the free version of this can do basic password recovery and 
removal for small files. 
● PDF Password Remover: It removes the user’s password, pretty simple. You have to know 
your password, much like the print to PDF trick. 

More method and tools are in our ​Password Remove - Unlock PDF guide​ and​ ​PDF Password Remover 
Tools​ list. 

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