Dev tools · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to Stirling PDF
Open source PDF Editor locally hosted
Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Stirling PDF launched in 2024; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
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BreezePDF lets you edit, sign, merge, compress, redact, OCR, fill forms, extract tables, and use 30+ more PDF tools — all in the browser, no sign-up. Files never leave your computer. I built it because when people search Google for common PDF tasks, many of the tools they find upload documents to a server. I wanted an option that keeps files local instead. I posted an earlier version on HN last spring: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43880962 At the time it only supported a small set of features. Over the last 10 months I rebuilt large parts of it and expanded it to…
2025 · breezepdf.com · its alternatives →
- 2
Most PDF web tools make millions by uploading documents that never needed to leave your computer. pdfwithlove does the opposite: 1. 100% local processing 2. No uploads, no backend, no tracking Features include merge/split/edit/compress PDFs, watermarks & signatures, and image/HTML/Office → PDF conversion.
Jan 2026 · pdfwithlove.netlify.app · its alternatives →
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PDFpen▲110Full-featured PDF editor for Mac, with OCR and Word export.
2016 · textexpander.com · its alternatives →
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Hi HN, creator of EmbedPDF here. I recently posted my open-source PDF viewer here, and one thing I really value is that it runs completely offline. I started wondering if we could push that further: could we do full ML layout analysis (detecting tables, headers, columns) directly in the browser? To my surprise, it actually works. The catch: It is far from production-ready. It crashes on most phones, and on older computers, it can be incredibly slow. The why: I believe the future of document processing is local. Many users work with sensitive documents (bank statements, legal contracts) and…
2025 · embedpdf.com · its alternatives →
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PDF Toolbox▲13Free PDF tools work in your browser.Files never uploaded
2025 · pdftoolbox-three.vercel.app · its alternatives →
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PDFLance▲7Free, 100% offline PDF suite. Edit, merge, split, and more.
2025 · pdflance.com · its alternatives →
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PDForge▲3Secure offline PDF editor for Windows & Mac (No subscription
Jul 2026 · pdforge.nexforgelabs.co.in · its alternatives →
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A free, 100% PDF editor — your files never leave your device
Mar 2026 · my-pdf-online.vercel.app · its alternatives →
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30+ online pdf tools | professional pdf editor
Nov 2025 · editcore.net · its alternatives →
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I created this tool to make it quick and easy to sign PDF contracts, without having to deal with installing additional software and without worrying that my PDFs will get uploaded to a third party. It supports the bare minimum for my most common usecases. It is not intended to be a full-featured PDF editor. Features include filling PDF forms, inserting images and text, and rotating PDFs. Check it out by either picking a PDF of your own - https://photown.github.io/private-pdf/, or with a preloaded sample PDF -…
2023 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Free PDF Converter & Editor – Simple, Fast, and Powerful
2025 · its alternatives →
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Edit PDFs online only within your browser without any limit.
2025 · pdfgear.com · its alternatives →
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PDFTools▲10Free, private PDF editor — no server uploads, no signup
Jun 2026 · allaboutpdfediting.xyz · its alternatives →
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The private PDF editor — no upload, no login, no watermark
Jul 2026 · onlypdfeditor.com · its alternatives →
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Free and professional PDF editor to improve productivity
2019 · apowersoft.com · its alternatives →
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PDFCraft▲6Open-source, privacy-first PDF toolkit. Runs 100% locally.
Jan 2026 · pdfcraft.devtoolcafe.com · its alternatives →
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Free PDF tools that run in your browser; no uploads & server
Jun 2026 · mywebpdf.com · its alternatives →
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PDF Tools▲14Free browser-based PDF toolkit — no uploads, no sign-up
2025 · pdf-vert.com · its alternatives →
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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →