Is Adobe Fill & Sign free?

Adobe offers free online tools and says you can convert, edit and sign with them for free. You need an Adobe account, and the file is uploaded to Adobe to be processed.

What does Acrobat cost in the UK?

On the pricing page we last checked, Acrobat Standard is £14.99 a month including VAT on an annual plan billed monthly (£178.85 prepaid for the year) and Acrobat Pro is £19.97 (£238.75 prepaid). Month-to-month is £24.98 and £29.96.

What can Acrobat do that PDFpad cannot?

Edit the existing text in a page, OCR a scan into searchable text, redact, compare documents, and apply certified or digital-ID signatures. PDFpad only adds new content on top of the page.

PDFpad vs Adobe Acrobat

Prices and features checked 20 September 2026

Acrobat is the most capable PDF tool there is. It edits the text already in a document, runs OCR, redacts, certifies signatures and does everything PDFpad deliberately leaves alone. If you need any of that, buy Acrobat.

For filling in and signing a form, the difference is what it costs and where the file goes. Acrobat Standard is £14.99 a month including VAT on an annual plan billed monthly, or £24.98 a month with no commitment; the free online tools need an Adobe account and upload your file.

PDFpad and Adobe Acrobat, feature by feature
Feature	PDFpad	Adobe Acrobat
Type on a flat (non-form) PDF	Yes	Yes
Fill existing form fields	Yes	Yes
Typed signature	Yes	Yes
Drawn signature (touch/mouse)	Yes	Yes
Upload signature image	Yes	Yes
Save and reuse signature	Yes	Yes
Date and tick fields	Yes	Yes
Flatten so fills can't be moved	Yes	Paid only
Save as PDF	Yes	Yes
Save as Word (DOCX)	Paid only	Paid only
Reorder / delete / merge pages	No	Paid only
Works on a phone browser	Yes	Yes
File never uploaded	Yes	No
No watermark on free tier	No	Yes
No account needed to start	Yes	No

Pricing, as published by each vendor
Tool	Free tier	Paid	Billing
PDFpadChecked 20 Sept 2026	Unlimited filling and signing; 3 PDF exports per 30 days, each with a small footer line	£6 a month, £39 a year, or £2 to unlock one document for 24 hours	Monthly or annualOne click from the account page, any time
Adobe AcrobatChecked 20 Sept 2026	Free online tools — Adobe says you can "convert documents to and from PDF, edit PDFs, and sign them — all for free"	Acrobat Standard £14.99/mo incl. VAT and Acrobat Pro £19.97/mo incl. VAT on an annual plan billed monthly; £178.85/yr and £238.75/yr prepaid; £24.98/mo and £29.96/mo with no commitment	Monthly or annual

Choose Adobe Acrobat if…

You need to edit the text that is already in the PDF, or redact, OCR or certify it
Your organisation standardises on Acrobat and you need certified signatures

Choose PDFpad if…

You fill in a handful of forms a month and £15–£25 a month is hard to justify
You do not want the document uploaded anywhere
You want to start without making an account

What each vendor says

Adobe Acrobat

Acrobat is the most capable tool on this list: it edits the existing text in a PDF, which PDFpad deliberately does not do. [source]
The annual plan is the advertised price; paying month to month costs £24.98 (Standard) or £29.96 (Pro) including VAT. [source]
The free online tools require an Adobe account and upload the file to Adobe. [source]

Questions

Is Adobe Fill & Sign free?: Adobe offers free online tools and says you can convert, edit and sign with them for free. You need an Adobe account, and the file is uploaded to Adobe to be processed.
What does Acrobat cost in the UK?: On the pricing page we last checked, Acrobat Standard is £14.99 a month including VAT on an annual plan billed monthly (£178.85 prepaid for the year) and Acrobat Pro is £19.97 (£238.75 prepaid). Month-to-month is £24.98 and £29.96.
What can Acrobat do that PDFpad cannot?: Edit the existing text in a page, OCR a scan into searchable text, redact, compare documents, and apply certified or digital-ID signatures. PDFpad only adds new content on top of the page.

Try it on your PDF

Open your document, fill it in, sign it and save. Nothing is uploaded, and you don’t need an account to start.

or drop a file here · nothing is uploaded

Adobe Acrobat alternatives

Competitor names are used descriptively to identify their products. Every price and feature above was read from the vendor's own page on the date shown and is re-checked quarterly. If something here is out of date or wrong, tell us and we will correct it.