{"id":46820,"date":"2024-06-28T17:27:40","date_gmt":"2024-06-28T17:27:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/?p=46820"},"modified":"2024-06-28T17:27:40","modified_gmt":"2024-06-28T17:27:40","slug":"apps-edit-pdf-ubuntu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/2024\/06\/apps-edit-pdf-ubuntu\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Free Apps to Edit \/ Annotate PDF Files in Ubuntu Desktop"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-46821\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo-250x250.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"250\" height=\"250\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo-250x250.webp 250w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo-300x300.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo-700x700.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo-768x768.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/pdf-icon-logo.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Looking for an app to sign, annotate, or edit PDF files in Ubuntu Linux? Here I&#8217;m going to introduce some for you!<\/p>\n<p>PDF, stands for Portable Document Format, is a file format that&#8217;s popular for office use. Besides using Adobe Acrobat, Linux has quite a few applications that can edit this file format.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Firefox<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46822\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf-700x438.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"382\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf-700x438.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf-300x188.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf-768x480.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/firefox-edit-pdf.webp 1147w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>If you just want to <b>sign<\/b>, <b>highlight<\/b>, <b>add text<\/b>, and <b>insert image<\/b> to a PDF file, then the popular free open source Firefox web browser, that default in many Linux, can do the job.<\/p>\n<p>Simply drag&#8217;n&#8217;drop the PDF file into Firefox window, then it opens the file with following tool options:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Highlight<\/b> with Yellow, Green, Blue, Pink, or Red color.<\/li>\n<li><b>Add Text<\/b> with any color, but NO font option so far.<\/li>\n<li><b>Sign<\/b> with custom color, thickness, opacity.<\/li>\n<li><b>Add image<\/b> from local machine, adjust its size and position.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>After editing, just press <b>Ctrl+S<\/b> to open the dialog to save your changes.<\/p>\n<h3>2. LibreOffice Draw<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46823\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw-700x421.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"367\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw-700x421.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw-300x180.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw-768x461.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw-1320x793.webp 1320w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/libreoffice-draw.webp 1443w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>LibreOffice, the default office app for Ubuntu and many other Linux, support editing PDF files through the &#8220;Draw&#8221; app.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ubuntu 24.04 installed with Default mode, and Ubuntu 22.04 and earlier minimal installation do NOT have LibreOffice. In the case, just search &amp; install it from App Center or Ubuntu Software.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Just launch the &#8220;LibreOffice Draw&#8221; app, then either press Ctrl+O or go to &#8220;File -&gt; Open&#8221; and select open your PDF file. &#8220;Edit Mode&#8221; is enabled by default after opening PDF, though you may toggle the status by navigating menu &#8220;Edit -&gt; Edit Mode&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>In the &#8220;Edit Mode&#8221;, you can:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Click on the selection where you want to modify, then you&#8217;ll see a rectangle box to edit the text, and change it position.<\/li>\n<li>Insert image from local file.<\/li>\n<li>Insert Text Box.<\/li>\n<li>Add special characters.<\/li>\n<li>Add Fontwork styles with custom text.<\/li>\n<li>And many draw functions to add color, line, arrow, shapes, and more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>3. Master PDF Editor<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46824\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor-700x478.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"417\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor-700x478.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor-300x205.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor-768x525.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor-1320x902.webp 1320w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/master-pdf-editor.webp 1349w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>This is a <b>full-featured PDF Editor<\/b>, however, it&#8217;s a <b>proprietary software that&#8217;s only partly free<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>With Master PDF Editor, you can:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Drag moving a selection.<\/li>\n<li>Double-click selection to edit the text, rotate, re-arrange, change text font, color, size, spacing, opacity, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Insert link, button, check box, text field, list box, radio box, and signature.<\/li>\n<li>Add formatted text, shapes, arrows, sticky note, check mark, comment view.<\/li>\n<li>Highlight, underline, strikeout, a selection of text.<\/li>\n<li>Add stamps (e.g., Approved, Accept, Expired).<\/li>\n<li>Mark for Redaction, and more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To get the software, either install the Flatpak package from <a href=\"https:\/\/flathub.org\/apps\/net.codeindustry.MasterPDFEditor\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Flathub page<\/a>, or go to its website via the link below for official .deb package:<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons aligncenter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-fill\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple-gradient-background has-text-color has-background\" href=\"https:\/\/code-industry.net\/free-pdf-editor\/#get\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Master PDF Editor<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>4. Okular<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46825\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf-700x459.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf-700x459.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf-300x197.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf-768x503.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/okular-pdf.webp 1155w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Okular is a <strong>KDE document viewer<\/strong>. It supports annotating PDF files, but <b>sadly NOT for editing the selection text.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It provides a list of useful tool-bar options (toggle via <code>Tools -&gt; Annotations<\/code> or F6), that can do:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Highlight, underline, squiggle, strikeout a selection of text.<\/li>\n<li>Insert text, with custom font, size, and language.<\/li>\n<li>Add inline note, pop-up note, arrow, shapes, freehand lines.<\/li>\n<li>Add tags, e.g., Approved, Expired, Final, and more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Okular is available out-of-the-box in KUbuntu. For Ubuntu with GTK Desktops, e.g., default GNOME, MATE, and XFCE, it&#8217;s <b>available to install in Ubuntu Software or App Center<\/b>, as either Snap or Deb package. Though, it&#8217;s also available as Flatpak in this <a href=\"https:\/\/flathub.org\/apps\/org.kde.okular\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">flathub page<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>5. Xournal++<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46826\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp-700x450.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"392\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp-700x450.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp-300x193.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp-768x493.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp-1320x848.webp 1320w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/xournalpp.webp 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>If you just want to add annotations, without changing selection text, then the free open-source Xournal++ app is a <b>GTK alternative<\/b> to Okular without Qt and KDE dependency libraries.<\/p>\n<p>The app provides following tools:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Pen for hand writing.<\/li>\n<li>Eraser to clear annotations, delete stroke, or erase any content.<\/li>\n<li>Highlighter with different color and size.<\/li>\n<li>Text selection tool, with pop-up options to add highlight, underline, and strikethrough.<\/li>\n<li>Add formatted text, arrow, line, shapes, and more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Xournal++ is available in Ubuntu system repositories. You can install either Snap or Deb package from Ubuntu Software or App Center. For the most recent version, just go to <a href=\"https:\/\/xournalpp.github.io\/installation\/linux\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">its website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>6. OnlyOffice Desktop Editors<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-46827\" src=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de-700x439.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"610\" height=\"383\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de-700x439.webp 700w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de-300x188.webp 300w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de-768x481.webp 768w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de-1320x827.webp 1320w, https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/onlyoffice-de.webp 1352w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>OnlyOffice Desktop Editors, the popular free open-source office suite for offline use, adds support for full PDF editing since version 8.1.<\/p>\n<p>After opening a PDF file with the app, you may go to <b>Home -&gt; Edit PDF<\/b> to enable the options to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Edit Text &#8211; Click the selection where you want to edit, then, you can change the text, add highlight color, resize, re-arrange, change text font, add underline, strikeout, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Add, Delete, Rotate pages.<\/li>\n<li>Add formatted text, image, arrow, line, shapes, and more.<\/li>\n<li>Insert table, text art, hyperlink, equation, symbol (Insert tab).<\/li>\n<li>Comment, Pen, Eraser (Comment tab).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To get OnlyOffice, either install the Snap package (which runs in sandbox environment) from either Ubuntu Software or App Center, or go to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.onlyoffice.com\/download-desktop.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">its website<\/a> to download the Deb or AppImage.<\/p>\n<h3>Summary:<\/h3>\n<p>In this post, I&#8217;ve shown you some useful applications for editing PDF files in Linux.<\/p>\n<p>IMO, <b>Master PDF Editor<\/b> is the optimal choice, however you need to PAY for full features support. If you don&#8217;t want to pay, and need to edit the existing text in PDF, then <b>OnlyOffice Desktop Editors<\/b> is a good choice, while <b>LibreOffice Draw<\/b> also works but not so easy to use for beginners.<\/p>\n<p>To just add annotations, then Xournal++ and Okular are good choices, one for GTK (GNOME, MATE, XFCE, etc), another for KDE.<\/p>\n<p>They may be many other apps for editing PDF in Linux. I also tried WPS office in Ubuntu 24.04, which&#8217;s however stuck loading file. If you know more, please let us know by leaving comment below.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Looking for an app to sign, annotate, or edit PDF files in Ubuntu Linux? Here I&#8217;m going to introduce some for you! PDF, stands for Portable Document Format, is a file format that&#8217;s popular for office use. Besides using Adobe Acrobat, Linux has quite a few applications that can edit this file format. 1. Firefox<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46821,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[2035],"class_list":["post-46820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-app-review","tag-pdf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46820\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ubuntuhandbook.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}