filedone vs Adobe Acrobat
Use Acrobat Pro if you work on PDFs every day and need the full editor: forms, redaction, comparing versions, rewriting whole pages. Use filedone to change a few words on a scan without a subscription, paying per job, or for free browser tools that never upload your file. Acrobat converts a scan into editable text; filedone paints out only the words you change and keeps the rest of the scan.
Updated 4 October 2026Adobe Acrobat facts checked 4 October 2026
What Acrobat does better
Acrobat is a complete PDF application and filedone is not. Adobe lists, for Acrobat Pro, redacting sensitive information, comparing two PDFs, creating web forms and reusable e-sign templates, collecting binding e-signatures, and turning scanned documents into editable, searchable PDFs. If you rewrite documents, build forms or send contracts for signature, that is a real reason to pay for it.
On a scan, Acrobat's desktop editor runs OCR for you when you choose Edit PDF and, in Adobe's words, new text "matches the look of the original fonts in your scanned image", through automatic custom font generation. That converts the whole page into editable text, so you can rewrite paragraphs, which filedone's scanned editor does not do.
Acrobat Reader, for opening and commenting on PDFs, is free.
Where the two differ
Facts about Acrobat are from adobe.com, read on 4 October 2026, and can change: check Adobe's own pages before you rely on them. Facts about filedone can be checked on this site now.
| What differs | filedone | Adobe Acrobat |
|---|---|---|
| Editing words on a scan | Paints out only the words you change and draws new ones in a matching font; the rest of the scan is untouched | Desktop Edit PDF runs OCR and converts the page to editable text; Adobe says new text matches the original fonts |
| Free online editor | The scanned editor is paid; Add text to a PDF is free and runs in your browser | The free online editor does not edit existing body text |
| Free tools | Compress, merge, split, unlock, sign, OCR and more: free, no account, run in your browser | 25+ online tools; some have daily limits, and several need a free sign-in to download |
| How you pay | Credits per job, from packs or a monthly plan; free tools cost nothing | Monthly or annual subscription; Reader is free |
| Where your file goes | Browser tools: nowhere, it stays on your device. AI tools: our servers, deleted after 2 hours | Online tools: Adobe servers, deleted unless you sign in to save it (no period stated) |
Editing text in a scanned PDF
The two take opposite routes. Acrobat's desktop editor recognises the text on the whole page and converts it into an editable copy of your PDF, so any word can then be changed. Adobe's free online OCR tool only makes the scan searchable; editing the recognised text needs Acrobat Pro.
filedone's scanned PDF editor takes one instruction, such as change 12 March 2026 to 14 March 2026, paints out the old words by filling in the paper behind them, and draws the new words in a matching font at the size of the ink. Every pixel outside the changed lines is your original scan. It suits a date, an amount or a name, not rewriting a page. It costs 8 credits a job, covering up to 10 pages, and refuses some documents at any price: identity documents, currency, anything with an official seal or stamp, and the others on the rules page.
Prices
Acrobat is a subscription. On Adobe's US pricing page on 4 October 2026, an annual plan billed monthly was US$14.99 a month for Acrobat Standard, US$19.99 for Acrobat Pro and US$24.99 for Acrobat Studio, with a fee of up to half the remaining annual commitment if you cancel after 14 days; plans with no commitment cost more a month. Adobe's free trial turns into a paid plan when it ends, at the rate shown at sign-up.
filedone has no subscription you need: the browser tools are free, and the AI tools are paid in credits per job. Credit packs are $9 for 100 credits, $19 for 250 credits or $49 for 750 credits (in India ₹449 for 100 credits, ₹999 for 250 credits or ₹2,499 for 750 credits), and bought credits do not expire; monthly plans start at $12 a month for 200 credits. The price of a job is shown before it runs, and a new account gets 20 credits. Details on the pricing page.
Your files and privacy
Adobe's online tool pages say an uploaded file is handled by Adobe servers and deleted unless you sign in to save it; they give no time. Files you save go to Adobe cloud storage in your account. For AI Assistant, Adobe says your content is never used to train Adobe's AI models. The desktop apps keep files on your computer.
filedone's free browser tools never upload the file: it is opened and changed in your browser tab. For the AI tools, which do upload: Deleted from our servers after 2 hours. We do not train AI on your files, and the terms of our AI providers do not allow them to; they may keep request logs for up to 55 days, longer for a request they flag for abuse.
When to use which
| Your job | Better choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Rewrite paragraphs of a scanned contract | Acrobat Pro | It converts the page into editable text |
| Change one date or amount on a scan, keep its look | filedone | Only the changed words are redrawn; paid per job, no subscription |
| Build a fillable form or send for e-signature | Acrobat Pro | filedone does not create forms or collect signatures from others |
| Compress a PDF for an upload portal | filedone | Free, no account, and the file never leaves your device |
| Redact a document for release | Either | Both have redaction; filedone's runs in your browser |
| Work on PDFs all day, every day | Acrobat | A subscription pays off with heavy, varied use |
Sources
Every fact about Adobe Acrobat on this page comes from its own pages, listed here with the day we read them. Products and prices change: check the page before you rely on it, and if something here is out of date, tell us at the address at the foot of the page.
- Adobe, Acrobat pricing (US)Standard, Pro and Studio prices on an annual plan billed monthly; the cancellation fee. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, How to convert scanned PDFs with OCREdit PDF applies OCR automatically; new text matches the look of the original fonts. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat online PDF editorThe free online editor does not edit existing body text; sign-in to download; files deleted unless saved. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat online OCREditing recognised text needs Acrobat Pro. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat online toolsChecked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat online PDF to WordFree with daily conversion limits. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat ProRedaction, comparing PDFs, forms and e-sign templates, editable scans. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat free trialThe trial converts to a paid plan when it ends. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Adobe, Acrobat AI AssistantContent is never used to train Adobe's AI models. Checked 4 October 2026.
Questions
Is filedone a replacement for Adobe Acrobat?
No. Acrobat is a full PDF application for authoring, forms, e-signatures and redaction. filedone is a set of single tools: free ones that run in your browser, and paid AI tools such as the scanned PDF editor. Many people need only one job done, and for that filedone may be enough.
Can Acrobat edit text in a scanned PDF?
Adobe's pages say the desktop Acrobat runs OCR when you choose Edit PDF on a scan and converts it into an editable copy, with new text matching the original fonts. Adobe's free online editor does not edit existing body text, and editing recognised text after online OCR needs Acrobat Pro.
Is there a free way to change a word on a scan?
To cover a word and type over it, filedone's free Add text to a PDF runs in your browser; it is visible on coloured paper. To paint out the old words and match the font, the scanned PDF editor costs 8 credits a job, and a new account gets 20 credits.
Do I need an account?
Not for filedone's free browser tools. The paid AI tools need a free account. Several of Adobe's online tools let you work without an account but ask you to sign in to download the result.
Which is cheaper?
For a few jobs a month, paying per job usually costs less than a subscription; for daily use of many features, a subscription can. Compare Adobe's current prices on its pricing page with filedone's pricing page.
The filedone tools named here
- Edit the text in a scanned PDFChange wording on a scan: the old words are painted out to match the paper and the new ones are typeset in a matching font. Your file is deleted after two hours.
- Edit the text in a PDFSay what should change — a date, a name, a price — and get the same PDF back with those words rewritten in place, matching the font. Removed from our servers after 2 hours.
- Add text, a signature or a picture to a PDF — freeType anywhere on a PDF, white-out, highlight, draw, tick a box, add the date, your signature or a picture, and download it with everything drawn in. Free, in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
- Compress a PDF to a size in KBReduce a PDF's size for free — as small as it goes, or under 100 KB, 200 KB, 500 KB or 1 MB for a portal. Nothing is uploaded; text stays selectable.
- Redact a PDF — remove Aadhaar, PAN and account numbers for goodBlack out Aadhaar, PAN, IFSC, account and card numbers, phones and emails in a PDF, or any word, area or page. Marked text is removed from the file, not covered, and the PDF is never uploaded.