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  "@id": "https://www.nuanyue.com/software/pdfgear/#software",
  "name": "PDFgear",
  "description": "Completely free PDF editor for Mac with a built-in AI assistant: edit text and images, convert to 30+ formats, OCR scanned pages, redact, fill forms and sign, with no ads or watermarks.",
  "url": "https://www.nuanyue.com/software/pdfgear/",
  "mainEntityOfPage": "https://www.nuanyue.com/software/pdfgear/",
  "operatingSystem": "macOS",
  "applicationCategory": "BusinessApplication",
  "publisher": {
    "name": "PDF GEAR TECH PTE. LTD."
  },
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  "softwareVersion": "2.28",
  "license": "proprietary",
  "offers": {
    "@type": "Offer",
    "price": "0",
    "priceCurrency": "USD"
  },
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    "id": "software:pdfgear",
    "slug": "pdfgear",
    "name": "PDFgear",
    "type": "SoftwareApplication",
    "entityType": "PDF tool",
    "description": "Completely free PDF editor for Mac with a built-in AI assistant: edit text and images, convert to 30+ formats, OCR scanned pages, redact, fill forms and sign, with no ads or watermarks.",
    "shortDescription": "Free PDF editor for Mac with AI chat, OCR and signing.",
    "answer": "PDFgear is a free PDF editor, and free here means what it says: no ads, no watermarks on saved files, no sign-up and no nagging upgrade prompt. It edits text, images and annotations directly in a PDF without converting the file first, converts to and from more than 30 formats including Word, Excel and PowerPoint, OCRs entire scanned documents rather than one page at a time, and permanently redacts content rather than covering it. There is a built-in AI assistant that summarises a PDF, explains a passage, translates it and answers questions about it. Forms can be filled or built from scratch, and signatures can be drawn, typed or certificate-based. Most editing runs locally on the Mac; the AI features, online tools and updates need a connection.",
    "page": "https://www.nuanyue.com/software/pdfgear/",
    "dataUrl": "https://www.nuanyue.com/data/software/pdfgear.json",
    "categories": [
      "productivity"
    ],
    "tags": [],
    "platform": [
      "macOS"
    ],
    "minOsVersion": "macOS 12",
    "architecture": [],
    "featured": false,
    "pricing": "free",
    "pricingDescription": "Completely free. The site states there are no ads, no product promotions and no forced upgrades, and that saved PDFs carry no watermark.",
    "license": "proprietary",
    "currentVersion": "2.28",
    "releaseDate": "2026-09-24",
    "openSource": false,
    "website": "https://www.pdfgear.com/",
    "appStore": "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pdfgear-pdf-editor-reader/id6469021132",
    "developer": {
      "name": "PDF GEAR TECH PTE. LTD."
    },
    "icon": "/apps/pdfgear.png",
    "features": [
      "Edit existing PDF text directly — wording, font, size, colour and spacing — without converting to Word first",
      "Resize or replace images, and add highlights and comments while reviewing",
      "AI assistant that summarises a long PDF, explains difficult passages, translates text and answers questions about it",
      "Convert to and from Word, Excel, PowerPoint, RTF, TXT, JPG, PNG and 30+ other formats, with batch conversion run offline",
      "OCR a whole PDF rather than one page or region, with 30+ languages supported",
      "Compress with multiple quality levels, batch handled in one go",
      "Reorder, insert, rotate, extract and remove pages from a thumbnail view",
      "Redaction that permanently removes names, account numbers, addresses and images rather than covering them",
      "Fill and sign forms, including PDFs with no interactive fields, and build fillable forms from a blank page",
      "Signatures drawn, typed or uploaded, plus certificate-based digital signatures"
    ],
    "useCases": [
      "Correcting a typo or a price in a PDF without paying for Acrobat",
      "Reading a long report by asking the AI to summarise it",
      "Turning a scanned contract into searchable, editable text",
      "Redacting account numbers before sharing a document",
      "Converting a batch of PDFs to Word without uploading them anywhere"
    ],
    "formats": [],
    "integrations": [],
    "pros": [
      {
        "text": "Genuinely free: the site states there are no ads, no product promotions, no forced upgrades and no watermarks on saved PDFs.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Edits PDF text directly without converting the file to Word first, which is unusual in a free editor.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Redaction permanently removes the selected content rather than covering it, so hidden text cannot be recovered after sharing.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "OCR processes a whole PDF at once rather than one page or region at a time.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Batch conversion runs offline, so sensitive documents stay on the Mac.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "cons": [
      {
        "text": "The AI features, online services, help content and updates all need an internet connection.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "The vendor's Mac page and its App Store listing state different minimum macOS versions.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Closed source, so there is no way to audit what a tool handling signed documents does with them.",
        "status": "editorially-reviewed",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "No version number is published on the Mac product page, so the current build has to be read from the App Store.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "app-store",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "whoIsItFor": [
      "Anyone who needs to edit or sign a PDF occasionally and does not want a subscription",
      "Students and researchers working through long PDFs with an AI assistant",
      "People handling sensitive documents who need redaction that actually removes content"
    ],
    "notFor": [
      "Anyone who needs a fully offline tool, since the AI features, online services, help content and software updates all require an internet connection",
      "Users on macOS 11 or earlier, where the App Store build requires macOS 12",
      "People who need deep pre-press or print-production features, which are not what this tool is for"
    ],
    "limitations": [
      "The vendor's own pages disagree on the macOS floor: the Mac product page says macOS 10.14 or later, while the App Store listing for the current build requires macOS 12.0. Nuanyue records the App Store figure",
      "The AI assistant, online services, help content and software updates require an internet connection; most other editing runs locally",
      "Requires at least 512 MB of RAM, 1 GB recommended, and 200 MB of free storage",
      "Closed source, and free — which is worth weighing when the product is handling signed or sensitive documents",
      "The Mac product page publishes no version number; the version recorded here comes from the App Store listing"
    ],
    "firstUse": {
      "installation": {
        "value": "Install from the Mac App Store, or download from pdfgear.com. No account is created and no sign-in is required to start.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "firstLaunch": {
        "value": "Open a PDF and start working — there is no registration step. The AI assistant, online tools and help content need a connection; most editing tools work without one.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "systemIntegration": {
        "value": "Registers as a PDF handler and works with files on disk. The site states images and documents are processed locally, with no storage of user files by the software.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "appleSilicon": {
        "value": null,
        "status": "unknown",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    },
    "updates": [
      {
        "version": "2.28",
        "date": "2026-09-24",
        "summary": "Current release, published to the Mac App Store on 24 September 2026.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "app-store"
      }
    ],
    "faq": [
      {
        "question": "Is PDFgear really free?",
        "answer": "Yes. The site states it is a completely free PDF editor and reader for Mac with no ads, no product promotions, no forced software upgrades and no watermarks on saved PDFs.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Which macOS version does PDFgear need?",
        "answer": "The App Store listing for the current build requires macOS 12.0. The vendor's own Mac product page says macOS 10.14 or later, so the two disagree; Nuanyue records the store figure, which reflects the shipped build.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Does PDFgear work offline?",
        "answer": "Partly. Most editing tools run locally on the Mac, including batch conversion and OCR. The AI features, online services, help content and software updates require an internet connection.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Does it put a watermark on saved PDFs?",
        "answer": "No. The site states plainly that saved PDFs do not carry any watermark.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Can PDFgear redact properly?",
        "answer": "Yes. The redaction tool permanently removes the selected information — names, account numbers, addresses and images — rather than simply covering it, which prevents the hidden content being recovered after the file is shared.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Do I need to sign up?",
        "answer": "No. The site states you can open PDFgear and begin working without registering or signing in.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "relationships": [
      {
        "target": "pdf-expert",
        "type": "competitor",
        "reason": "Both edit, annotate and convert PDFs on macOS, but PDF Expert is a paid app with a subscription option while PDFgear is entirely free.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "target": "pdf-reader-pro",
        "type": "competitor",
        "reason": "Both handle PDF editing, conversion and OCR on the Mac, but PDF Reader Pro is a paid product while PDFgear charges nothing.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "target": "pdf-justfit",
        "type": "competitor",
        "reason": "Both work on PDF files on macOS, but PDF Justfit is a compression tool while PDFgear is a full editor with AI, OCR and signing.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "sources": [
      {
        "id": "pdfgear:app-store",
        "type": "app_store",
        "url": "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pdfgear-pdf-editor-reader/id6469021132",
        "title": "PDFgear on the Mac App Store",
        "trustLevel": "A",
        "accessedAt": null
      },
      {
        "id": "pdfgear:official",
        "type": "official_website",
        "url": "https://www.pdfgear.com/",
        "title": "PDFgear — official website",
        "trustLevel": "B",
        "accessedAt": null
      }
    ],
    "claims": [
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        "id": "software:pdfgear.listedInCategory",
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      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.pricingModel",
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        "id": "software:pdfgear.ownership",
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        "id": "software:pdfgear.audienceNotFor",
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          "Anyone who needs a fully offline tool, since the AI features, online services, help content and software updates all require an internet connection",
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      },
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          "The Mac product page publishes no version number; the version recorded here comes from the App Store listing"
        ],
        "status": "editorially-reviewed",
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      },
      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.advantage.0",
        "subject": "software:pdfgear",
        "predicate": "advantage",
        "value": "Genuinely free: the site states there are no ads, no product promotions, no forced upgrades and no watermarks on saved PDFs.",
        "status": "verified",
        "sourceIds": [
          "pdfgear:official"
        ],
        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.advantage.1",
        "subject": "software:pdfgear",
        "predicate": "advantage",
        "value": "Edits PDF text directly without converting the file to Word first, which is unusual in a free editor.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "sourceIds": [
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        ],
        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.advantage.2",
        "subject": "software:pdfgear",
        "predicate": "advantage",
        "value": "Redaction permanently removes the selected content rather than covering it, so hidden text cannot be recovered after sharing.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "sourceIds": [
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        ],
        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.advantage.3",
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        "predicate": "advantage",
        "value": "OCR processes a whole PDF at once rather than one page or region at a time.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
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        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
      {
        "id": "software:pdfgear.advantage.4",
        "subject": "software:pdfgear",
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        "status": "developer-stated",
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        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
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        "lastVerified": "2026-10-05"
      },
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    ],
    "lastUpdated": "2026-10-07T00:00:00.000Z",
    "lastReviewedAt": null
  }
}