# Free alternatives to Adobe Acrobat Pro

> Adobe Acrobat Pro (Acrobat Pro) costs $239.88 a year. Free alternatives: Stirling-PDF and Okular. Data checked 2026-10-17.

- Page: https://stoprenting.dev/apps/adobe-acrobat/
- Category: Documents (https://stoprenting.dev/categories/documents/)
- Vendor: Adobe
- Plan: Acrobat Pro
- Price: $19.99/month, $239.88/year
- Billing: annual plan, billed monthly
- Price quote from the vendor's page: "Acrobat Pro Advanced PDF toolset US$ 19.99/mo ... Annual, billed monthly"
- Price source: https://www.adobe.com/acrobat/pricing.html (checked 2026-10-17)

## Alternatives

### Stirling-PDF

- Website: https://www.stirlingpdf.com
- Repository: https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF (94,284 stars, last push 2026-10-15)
- License: MIT core (proprietary dirs)
- Open source: yes, OSI-approved license
- Type: server app
- Linux: self-hosted server; web UI
- Self-hostable: yes
- More: https://stoprenting.dev/alternatives/stirling-pdf/
- Checked: 2026-10-17

### Okular

- Website: https://okular.kde.org
- Repository: https://github.com/KDE/okular (1,528 stars, last push 2026-10-06)
- License: GPL-2.0-or-later (KDE LICENSES dir; not machine-verified)
- Open source: not verified
- Type: desktop app
- Linux: Arch extra: okular; Flathub: org.kde.okular
- Self-hostable: no
- Install: `sudo pacman -S okular`, `flatpak install flathub org.kde.okular`
- More: https://stoprenting.dev/alternatives/okular/
- Checked: 2026-10-17

## FAQ

### Is there a free alternative to Adobe Acrobat Pro?

Yes. The 2 free alternatives are Stirling-PDF (open source, MIT core) and Okular (GPL-2.0-or-later, license not verified).

### How much does Adobe Acrobat Pro cost?

Adobe Acrobat Pro's Acrobat Pro plan costs $19.99 a month, which is $239.88 a year (annual plan, billed monthly). Source: the official pricing page at adobe.com, checked Oct 17, 2026.

### Which Adobe Acrobat Pro alternatives run on Linux?

Stirling-PDF (self-hosted server; web UI) and Okular (Arch extra: okular; Flathub: org.kde.okular).

### Can you self-host a Adobe Acrobat Pro alternative?

Yes. Stirling-PDF runs on your own server. Okular is a desktop app.

### Are these Adobe Acrobat Pro alternatives open source?

Okular's license couldn't be verified automatically. Stirling-PDF (MIT core) is open source.

---
Source: Stop Renting (https://stoprenting.dev). Methodology: https://stoprenting.dev/methodology/