Instead of printing out documents and scribbling notes by hand, you can do this digitally with the best PDF annotation software on your Mac within seconds. These products streamline your workflow and make it easy for you to highlight the text and add comments, along with other annotations.
However, choosing the right annotation software for this purpose can be a bit tricky because you won’t know which one provides the best features.
That's why we'll share below a list of 8 best PDF annotation software Mac users can try to quickly review content.
Part 1. 8 Best PDF Annotation Software for Mac
You might not want to spend a lot of time searching for software to add annotations to your PDF documents using your Mac computer. Let’s dig out the 8 best tools to help you choose one that is most suitable for your needs.
1. Afirstsoft PDF
Afirstsoft PDF is a one-stop solution for all your needs, from editing to managing and annotating PDFs.
Its use is simple!
Open this best Mac PDF annotator and import the document to annotate. Then, click Comment from the top toolbar, select any part of the text, and click Highlight to point it out. Next, right-click the highlighted text, click Open Pop-up Note, type in your comment, and hit Enter.
Alternatively, use Underline, Strikethrough, or Tilde to cut unnecessary phrases and point out grammatical mistakes. Then, use the Open Pop-up Note option from the right-click menu to add explanations or important points.
Afirstsoft PDF also has the Sticker option to annotate the files with different shapes and characters. You can even add comments/notes to them from the right-click menu.
These stickers are divided into multiple categories like holiday, pin, number, note, label, mode, and more.
Cost:
- Monthly Plan: $7.99
- Yearly Plan: $44.99
- 3-Year Plan: $55.99
Features:
- Add comments and textboxes anywhere in the document for quick collaboration.
- Edit text boxes and images directly within your PDFs.
- Annotate with text boxes, comments, notes, and highlighters with multiple colors.
- 10+ sticker categories featuring 100+ stickers.
- Add detailed explanations with font and style customization.
Pros
- Costs a lot less than other PDF annotators out there.
- One license for all systems.
- Accurately recognizes text of scanned PDFs with OCR.
Cons
- Not reported by users.
2. Adobe Acrobat Reader
With Adobe Acrobat Reader, you get a powerful yet easy-to-use set of tools for viewing, editing, and annotating PDF files on different devices, including Mac.
Simply open your desired PDF file in Acrobat Reader and click Edit PDF on the right menu. Next, click the Comment option, highlight the text, and start adding annotations.
After saving the document, you can bookmark the PDF for quick reference and then use the search feature to go directly to your desired text.
Cost:
- Acrobat Standard: $12.99/month.
- Acrobat Pro: $19.99/month.
- Acrobat Pro: $23.99/month.
Features:
- Mark the text with different colors or cross it out.
- Add annotations to the specific section of the PDF in the form of sticky notes or text.
- Freehand drawing, lines, shapes, and arrows.
- Insert text boxes for additional notes directly on the page.
- Predefined stamps like Approved, Draft, etc.
Pros
- Friendly UI that makes it easy for beginners to navigate to annotation tools.
- Open and add annotations on multiple PDFs in different tabs at the same time.
- Access your annotated PDFs from any device using Adobe Document Cloud.
- Share annotated documents for others to comment on and track changes in real time.
- Compatibility with most PDF files.
Cons
- High system resource usage can slow down older Macs.
- Lags when handling large or complex PDFs.
3. PDF Expert
PDF Expert provides a handy suite of tools for handling Mac PDF annotation tasks. To get started, open your PDF file in the software and click the Annotate tab in the toolbar.
Now, click the three-dotted comment icon and highlight your text using a set of predetermined colors. Then, right-click the highlighted part, click Note, and type in your suggestions as sticky notes.
You can see all of your annotations on the left sidebar. This makes it simpler for you to skim through them and find the annotated content faster.
Cost:
- Best Value: $6.67/month billed yearly at $79.99.
- Lifetime: One-time payment of $139.99 (fewer features than Best Value)
Features:
- Underline or strike out text to emphasize important points.
- Merge or split PDFs.
- Draw with the pen tool on your PDF.
- Insert shapes like arrows, circles, and rectangles to create diagrams and insert arrows.
- Night mode for low-light environments.
Pros
- Clean UI with fast performance even with large PDF files.
- Cloud integration for easy access to files from anywhere.
- Frequent updates for new features and improvements.
Cons
- Priced higher compared to other Mac PDF markup
- Slight learning curve for beginners.
4. PDF Nomad
PDF Nomad, with a UI specially designed for macOS, offers a simple annotation tool for quickly adding notes to your PDFs.
Open the PDF file on this best Mac PDF annotator, click the Markup option, and highlight, underline, and strikethrough text to add Note annotation to the specific parts of the file.
Cost:
- $39.99 one-time fee.
Features:
- Add shapes like rectangles, ovals, arrows, lines, and drawings to the annotated text sections.
- Add watermarks to pages of your choice.
- Reorder, resize, and rotate pages with drag-and-drop functionality.
Pros
- User-friendly interface built specifically for Mac users.
- Strong encryption and permission settings
- Multiple options for splitting, merging, and rearranging PDFs.
Cons
- Lacks advanced annotation tools found in other software.
- No option of sharing files for collaboration.
5. Preview
Are you not a fan of using third-party software? Preview is the best free PDF annotation software for Mac users, with all the basic tools explicitly needed for reviewing files.
To do this, open the PDF somebody sent you for review in Preview. Click the Show Markup Toolbar button and use the tools in the toolbar to select the type of annotations you want to make.
For comments, click Highlight Text from the dropdown menu, highlight the part, right-click on it, and click Add Note.
Cost:
Free built-in macOS app.
Features:
- Add different shapes, such as arrows, circles, rectangles, and text boxes, to describe what you want to change.
- A blue handle to resize shapes and signatures.
- Draw a shape with a single stroke.
- Zoom in or out of the PDF pages.
- View PDFs in single-page, two-page, or continuous scroll modes.
Pros
- Built-in app, so free to use.
- Share annotated PDFs via email, AirDrop, or other sharing options.
- Seamless integration with macOS features like Finder and Quick Look.
- Support for iCloud Drive for document storage and synchronization.
- Reliable for basic annotation tasks
Cons
- Limited annotation features compared to other free and paid PDF editing software for Mac.
6. Nitro PDF Pro
Nitro PDF Pro, formally PDF Pen, is an all-purpose PDF markup software Mac users can utilize for different types of annotations.
After downloading the software on your computer, open a PDF file and select the Review tab. Click Select on the top toolbar to select a part of the text on the page, right-click, and click Add Note To text. Now, you can comment on the highlighted section.
You can also use different shapes or do custom drawings with a pen to express your reviews clearly.
Cost:
- Free trial for 14 days.
- Nitro Pro: $14.99 per user per month.
- Nitro PDF Pro: $179.99 per license (billed once).
Features:
- Add or delete annotations with a single click.
- Cross out, underline, or replace the text.
- 7 different shapes to choose from.
- 1-Click Add Note.
- Convert annotated PDFs to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other image formats.
Pros
- Modify text and images directly in the PDF document.
- Export PDFs to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint formats.
- Create, store, and insert digital signatures.
Cons
- Advanced features may require beginners some time to learn.
- The 14-day free trial has limited features, which is a marketing gimmick to force the user to buy the software.
7. Able2Extract Pro
If you are looking to annotate PDFs for easy collaboration, Able2Extract Professional PDF software for Mac users might just be the answer. While not solely focused on annotation, it offers a few tools for marking up and commenting on documents.
Doing this is easy: open the PDF file with Able2Extract Pro software, click Edit on top, select the text, right-click, and add comments. You can also highlight or underline the text without modifying it for added emphasis.
Image name: best-pdf-annotation-software-mac-7.webp
Image name: best-pdf-annotation-software-mac-7.jpg
Image alt: pdf annotation with able2extract pro on mac
Cost:
- Full license at $199.95.
- 30 day license at $99.95.
Features:
- Add comments and explanations through sticky notes and text boxes.
- Split, merge, resize, or reorder text while annotating.
- Change colors, opacity, font styles, and other properties of your annotations for clarity.
- Annotate alongside other editing features like redacting or form-filling.
- Quickly delete annotations with a single click.
Pros
- Very easy-to-use interface to annotate PDFs on Mac.
- Quickly moves PDF data to Excel with accurate format.
- Control the appearance of your annotations for better readability.
- Comes with added features like batch processing, access permissions, alerts, and more.
Cons
- Guesses the wrong words quite often.
- Priced way more than other annotation software for Mac.
8. PDF Reader Pro
PDF Reader Pro is a flexible markup tool for Mac that can greatly improve document handling efficiency and streamline workflow.
You just need to highlight the text with the different tools in the toolbar, click the T icon, and add a sticky note as a comment. You can also cross out the lines for a clearer review.
Image name: best-pdf-annotation-software-mac-8.webp
Image name: best-pdf-annotation-software-mac-8.jpg
Image alt: pdf annotation using pdf reader pro on mac
Cost:
- Premium license: $59.99.
- Permanent license: $79.99.
Features:
- Variety of predesigned stamps like “Approved” or “Sign here” or create custom stamps with images or text.
- Draw anything in PDF documents without any limits.
- Use arrows, circles, lines, and rectangles.
- Compress, merge, and split big PDFs with ease.
Pros
- Easy to learn and navigate through the annotation features.
- Group, edit, or delete individual annotations.
- Competitive price.
Cons
- Editing annotations might require deleting and redoing them entirely instead of specific undo/redo steps.
Part 2. FAQs Related to Best PDF Annotation Software for Mac
Can I annotate a PDF on Mac?
You can use Afirstsoft PDF, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Preview, and PDF Reader Pro on your Mac to highlight your text, underline sentences or paragraphs, and add comments to your PDF files. These software makes it easy to pinpoint key sentences or paragraphs and add notes directly to your PDFs.
What is the best PDF annotation app for Mac?
Afirstsoft PDF has a user-friendly interface and gives you access to a set of advanced annotation tools. You can easily highlight parts of your text in different colors or underline or tilde misspellings and typos to add pop-up notes to them.
How do I annotate a PDF file on my Mac?
Sign up for a new account on Afirstsoft PDF, download and install the software, and import your PDF file. Next, go to Comment > Highlight to highlight the text you want to annotate.
Now, right-click the selected text, select Open Pop-up Note, and type in your comment. Alternatively, click Stickers to label your file with different shapes or characters and right-click it to add a note or comment. Otherwise, choose Underline, Strikethrough, or Tilde to mark key points.
Part 3. Conclusion
As we conclude this guide, you’ve learned the top 8 apps to annotate PDFs on Mac, their features, pros & cons, how to use them, and prices.
Out of these choices, Afirstsoft PDF comes with top annotation features at a price anyone can afford. So, don’t wait; download this software on your Mac today and kick it up a notch when reviewing your PDFs.
