Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

PDFsam VS Sumnotes

Compare PDFsam VS Sumnotes and see what are their differences

PDFsam logo PDFsam

PDFsam Basic, a free, open source, multi-platform software designed to split, merge, extract pages, mix and rotate PDF files

Sumnotes logo Sumnotes

Export highlights from PDFs
  • PDFsam Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-27
  • Sumnotes Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-03-11

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.

Sumnotes features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Sumnotes offers a straightforward and user-friendly interface that allows users to easily upload PDF files and extract highlights without a steep learning curve.
  • Highlight Extraction
    The primary feature of Sumnotes is its ability to accurately extract highlighted text from PDF files, saving users time compared to manual extraction.
  • Export Options
    Sumnotes provides flexible export options, allowing users to save their extracted notes in various formats such as Word, Excel, or plain text, which can be convenient for different use cases.
  • Cloud Integration
    The service integrates with major cloud storage platforms like Google Drive and Dropbox, making it easy to access and manage documents from multiple devices.
  • No Software Installation
    As a web-based tool, Sumnotes does not require any software installation, enabling users to access its features quickly through a web browser.

Possible disadvantages of Sumnotes

  • Limited Free Version
    The free version of Sumnotes has limitations on the number of pages or documents that can be processed, pushing users towards a paid subscription for larger tasks.
  • Dependence on Internet
    Being a web-based application means that Sumnotes requires a stable internet connection, which can be a limitation in areas with unreliable internet access.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Uploading documents to a third-party service may raise privacy concerns for users who deal with sensitive or confidential information.
  • Feature Set
    While effective at extracting highlights, Sumnotes may lack advanced features and customization options that are available in more comprehensive PDF management tools.
  • Processing Speed
    The processing speed for extracting highlights may vary depending on the file size and server load, which can be a drawback for users needing quick results.

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. Itโ€™s particularly suitable for users who require basic features and occasional PDF editing.

PDFsam videos

How to Use PDFsam

More videos:

  • Demo - PDFSamVisual Demo

Sumnotes videos

Sumnotes tutorial/pdf extractor/highlights extractor

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to PDFsam and Sumnotes)
PDF Tools
89 89%
11% 11
PDF Editor
93 93%
7% 7
Office & Productivity
0 0%
100% 100
PDF Creator
100 100%
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 PDFsam and Sumnotes

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.

Sumnotes Reviews

We have no reviews of Sumnotes yet.
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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.

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 / about 2 years 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 3 years ago
  • Free pdf editor?
    That might be fit for your purpose PDFSam. Source: about 3 years ago
  • My 2023 Bingo Card
    Use pdfsam.org to split the pdf into individual sheets fyi. Source: over 3 years ago
  • What's the best tool to merge pdf files?
    PDFsam - merge, split, extract pages, rotate and mix your PDF files. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

Sumnotes mentions (0)

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

What are some alternatives?

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

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.

PdfHighlights - PdfHighlights extracts and exports all your PDF highlights and PDF annotations from all your PDF files into a single report.

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

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

Sumatra PDF - Sumatra PDF is a slim PDF/DjVu/EPUB/XPS/CHM/CBR/CBZ/MOBI viewer for Windows.

Smallpdf - PDF document management and conversion suite