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pdflayer VS PDFsam

Compare pdflayer VS PDFsam and see what are their differences

DocRaptor
As the only API powered by the Prince HTML-to-PDF engine, DocRaptor provides the best support for complex PDFs with powerful support for headers, page breaks, page numbers, flexbox, watermarks, accessible PDFs, and much more featured
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  3. » Reviews
  4. » Alternatives

pdflayer logo pdflayer

Free, powerful HTML to PDF API supporting both URL and raw HTML conversion. Unlimited document size, lightning-fast and compatible PHP, Python, Ruby, etc.

PDFsam logo PDFsam

PDFsam Basic, a free, open source, multi-platform software designed to split, merge, extract pages, mix and rotate PDF files
  • pdflayer Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-23
  • PDFsam Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-27

pdflayer features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    pdflayer offers a simple and user-friendly API, making it easy for developers to integrate PDF generation into their applications.
  • High-Quality PDFs
    The service is capable of generating high-quality PDFs that maintain the integrity of the original content.
  • Customizable
    pdflayer provides a range of customization options, including custom headers, footers, and watermarking.
  • Multiple Formats
    It supports HTML to PDF conversion, which is useful for applications that need to convert web content into PDF documents.
  • Free Tier
    Offers a free plan with a limited number of conversions, which is great for small projects or initial testing.
  • Security
    pdflayer uses HTTPS encryption to ensure the security of your data during transfer.

Possible disadvantages of pdflayer

  • Cost
    While there is a free tier, the more advanced features and higher usage plans can become relatively expensive.
  • Learning Curve for Customization
    Although the basic features are easy to use, customizing the output PDFs to a high degree may require a bit of a learning curve.
  • Rate Limits
    The free tier and lower-cost plans have rate limits, which might not be sufficient for high-volume applications.
  • Limited Offline Capabilities
    As a cloud service, pdflayer requires internet connectivity for PDF generation, which might not be suitable for offline-first applications.
  • Dependency on External Service
    Relying on an external service means that any downtime or issues with pdflayer's servers can directly affect your application's ability to generate PDFs.
  • Feature Limitations
    Compared to other, more mature PDF libraries, pdflayer might lack some advanced features that power users may require.

PDFsam features and specs

  • Cost
    PDFsam Basic is free and open-source, which makes it highly accessible for individual users and small businesses.
  • User Interface
    The interface is simple and straightforward, allowing users to easily navigate and use the essential features without a steep learning curve.
  • Functionality
    PDFsam includes essential features such as merging, splitting, rotating, and extracting PDF pages, which can cover most common PDF editing needs.
  • Cross-Platform
    PDFsam is available on multiple operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, ensuring broad compatibility and usability.
  • Community Support
    Being an open-source project, PDFsam has a community of users and developers who contribute to its improvement and troubleshooting.

Possible disadvantages of PDFsam

  • Advanced Features
    The free version lacks advanced features like OCR, which are available in the paid versions such as PDFsam Enhanced.
  • Performance
    Some users report that the application can be slow when processing large documents or performing complex tasks.
  • Interface Design
    While functional, the user interface is not as modern or visually appealing compared to some other PDF software.
  • Commercial Use
    For businesses, the licenses for the advanced features in PDFsam Enhanced can be costly, especially for small enterprises.
  • Customer Support
    While there is a user community for support, professional customer support is limited to the paid versions, which might be a hurdle for those needing quick assistance.

Analysis of pdflayer

Overall verdict

  • Pdflayer is a good option for businesses and developers looking for a reliable PDF conversion API. It stands out for its ease of use and versatility, especially if you require customizable output PDFs. However, the 'goodness' of the service might depend on specific needs such as pricing, features, and the level of required customization.

Why this product is good

  • Pdflayer is a service that provides an API for converting HTML and URLs to PDF documents. It's known for its ease of integration, reliability, and scalability. It offers a straightforward REST API which supports a wide array of customization options for generating PDFs. It caters to users who need automated PDF generation integrated directly into their applications or workflows.

Recommended for

  • Developers needing a flexible PDF generation API
  • Businesses seeking to automate document generation
  • Organizations requiring integration of PDF conversion into web applications
  • Users looking for a scalable and reliable PDF generation service

Analysis of PDFsam

Overall verdict

  • PDFsam is considered a good tool, especially for users who need a straightforward and cost-effective solution for managing PDFs. Its open-source background ensures transparency and community support, while its user-friendly interface appeals to those without advanced technical skills.

Why this product is good

  • PDFsam (PDF Split and Merge) is a popular tool for handling PDF documents due to its simplicity, open-source nature, and ability to perform a range of common PDF tasks like splitting, merging, rotating, and extracting pages. It offers both a free basic version and a more advanced version with additional features, making it accessible and flexible for different user needs.

Recommended for

    PDFsam is recommended for individuals and small businesses looking for an easy-to-use, cost-efficient PDF tool capable of handling everyday PDF manipulation tasks without the complexity or expense of more advanced software. It’s particularly suitable for users who require basic features and occasional PDF editing.

pdflayer videos

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PDFsam videos

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How to Use PDFsam

More videos:

  • Demo - PDFSamVisual Demo

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to pdflayer and PDFsam)

pdflayer

PDFsam

PDF Tools
45 45%
PDF Tools
55% 55
HTML To PDF
100 100%
HTML To PDF
0% 0
PDF Editor
0 0%
PDF Editor
100% 100
PDF Conversion API
100 100%
PDF Conversion API
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare pdflayer and PDFsam

pdflayer Reviews

We have no reviews of pdflayer yet.
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PDFsam Reviews

15 PDF editors quick review
This is a simple open source Java pdf editor. The basic version allows you to edit the content and structure of pdf documents. Builds of this version are available for Windows, MacOS and Linux. PDFsam Enhanced version provides all the basic tools needed for the pdf editor. Special utilities for securing files and converting their contents are only available in the Pro version.
Source: thinkmobiles.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, PDFsam seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 32 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

pdflayer mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of pdflayer yet. Tracking of pdflayer recommendations started around Mar 2021.

PDFsam mentions (32)

  • JavaFX In Action with Pedro Duque Vieira, aka Duke, about Hero, PDFSam, FXThemes, FXComponents,...
    He shares insights into a few applications, like Hero (CAD application to calculate energy efficiency) and PDFSam (powerful and professional PDF editor). PDFSam had 100.000 downloads in April '24! - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • Pdftool.org: modify pdfs offline in the browser
    I find pdfsam to be the perfect offline tool for me on Windows. https://pdfsam.org And it's open source as well: https://github.com/torakiki/pdfsam. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Free pdf editor?
    That might be fit for your purpose PDFSam. Source: about 2 years ago
  • My 2023 Bingo Card
    Use pdfsam.org to split the pdf into individual sheets fyi. Source: over 2 years ago
  • What's the best tool to merge pdf files?
    PDFsam - merge, split, extract pages, rotate and mix your PDF files. Source: over 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing pdflayer and PDFsam, you can also consider the following products

PDFShift - Convert any HTML documents to high-fidelity PDF using a single POST request

PDF24 PDF Creator - Create PDF and convert documents to PDF for free with the free PDF24 PDF Creator.

DocRaptor - As the only API powered by the Prince HTML-to-PDF engine, DocRaptor provides the best support for complex PDFs with powerful support for headers, page breaks, page numbers, flexbox, watermarks, accessible PDFs, and much more

PDF-XChange Editor - The smallest, fastest, most feature-rich PDF editor/viewer available

PDFCrowd - Pdfcrowd is a Web/HTML to PDF online service. Convert HTML to PDF online in the browser or in your PHP, Python, Ruby, .NET, Java apps via the REST API.

Adobe Acrobat DC - Make your job easier with Adobe Acrobat DC, the trusted PDF creator. Use Acrobat to convert, edit and sign PDF files at your desk or on the go.

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