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If you are a Mac user, reading PDF files and having a remarkable reading experience can be a headache if you don't have the right tool. Many people, especially newbies, struggle to do that. Whether it is a book, invoice, article, insurance documents, or hospital records, it is crucial to know how to view and read PDF on Mac.
Fortunately, technology has evolved, and tons of dedicated tools help you view PDFs on Mac. However, choosing the right one can be problematic for scores of people. This article takes you through 3 great tools to effectively and seamlessly read PDF on Mac.
Read PDF on Mac With PDFelement
A good PDF reading experience demands a good PDF reader. There are indeed many PDF readers around. However, Wondershare PDFelement for Mac gives you the best experience.
Wondershare PDFelement for Mac is a powerful PDF viewer & editor that makes it seamless to read and produce great-looking PDF files. This program is designed to transform how users interact with their PDF files. Thanks to the ease of use, amazing speed, affordability, and security.
The good thing about this program is that it supports batch processes, and users can use different layouts to read their PDF files. This program is enriched with top PDF features to ensure a top-grade experience. You can read, print, save, convert, annotate, edit, protect, share, compress, merge, organize, and perform OCR on PDF.
How To Read PDF on Mac With PDFelement
Wondershare PDFelement for Mac lets you read your PDF conveniently and securely. The following steps show how to read PDF on Mac with PDFelement.
Step 1Open the PDF.
To begin, download and install Wondershare PDFelement on your Mac PC. When the main interface is displayed, go to "File" and choose the "Open" option. Browse and upload the PDF file you want to read.
Step 2Select your desired appearance.
When the PDF file is uploaded, we recommend you to set your desired software appearance for Wondershare PDFelement for Mac, because a good-looking PDF reader makes you have a good mood when reading.
To do this, click the "Wondershare PDFelement" tab at the top, then hover the mouse over the "Preferences" tab. from the options displayed, you can choose the Appearance, Plugin, Commenting Setting, and General Setting. Choose a suitable option and follow the on-screen instructions to complete setting your preference.
Step 3Choose your desired reading mode.
This program gives you the convenience and flexibility to choose from an assortment of amazing reading modes.
To do so, click the "View" tab on the toolbar and scroll down the list to the "Read" section. Choose the "Enter Full Screen" or "Slide Show Modes" depending on your need. You can also choose a full single-page view, two-page view, two-page scrolling, and single-page view.
Step 4Navigate to your desired page.
Furthermore, this program allows you to navigate your PDF with ease. Click the "Go" tab on the program's toolbar to access several PDF navigation options. You can choose to navigate up, down, previous page, next page, first page, last page, or define the page you want to navigate to.
Step 5Add bookmarks to your PDF document.
Bookmarks allow users to mark favorite pages in a PDF document for easy navigation. With bookmarks, you can easily navigate to a specific page without scrolling through the document. This saves you time and energy.
To add bookmarks, click the "Edit" tab, then scroll down to the desired page. Click the "Bookmark" button on the left pane, followed by the subsequent "Add Bookmark" button. Finally, name your new bookmark.
You can also edit, delete, and change the bookmark hierarchy to meet your needs.
Step 6Take notes or annotate the PDF.
Wondershare PDFelement for Mac allows you to annotate, highlight, and take notes on your PDF. Reading a PDF, taking notes, or annotating allows you to highlight those important sections for rereading or attention.
To make notes or annotate your PDF, click the "Markup" tab on the toolbar and access the text markup options. You can choose the highlight or pen icon to highlight or make notes on desired contents of your PDF.
Looking for the best PDF editor for Mac? Watch the video given below and learn more about PDFelement.
Read PDF on Mac With Preview
Besides Wondershare PDFelement, Preview offers a plausible way to read PDFs on Mac. Preview is an inbuilt app on Mac primarily meant for viewing PDFs and images. You can also use Preview to do simple PDF editing.
The Preview provides several ways for users to view and read PDFs on Mac. This program allows users to access a table of contents, thumbnails, continuous scroll, contact sheet, single-page scroll, and two-page scroll. Furthermore, you can leverage the zoom feature to view desired pages and content in the desired size.
Preview offers a reliable platform for users to read PDFs on Mac. Although it is not heavily bombarded with features like dedicated tools, it still gives a good reading experience. The following steps illustrate how to read PDF on Mac with Preview.
Step 1 Right-click the target PDF, choose "Open With," then select "Preview."
Step 2 When the PDF file is loaded in Preview, choose "View" to access several PDF read options. You can choose a single page, two pages, continuous scroll, table of contents, contact sheet, or hide the sidebar.
Step 3 To navigate to a certain page, click "Go," then choose the "Go to Page" option.
Hear Your Mac Read PDFs
Preview also allows users to read PDFs aloud on Mac. This functionality requires a text-to-speech feature. Fortunately, this feature is available on Mac and is in active mode by default. You can access and change your preference by pressing the Option + Escape keys. To hear your Mac read PDFs, follow the steps below.
Step 1 Open your PDF with Preview and select the texts you want to hear your Mac read.
Step 2 Head to the "Edit" tab and hover your mouse over the "Speech" option. Click the "Start Speaking" option from the options given, and Mac will read out the selected texts aloud.
Read PDF on Mac With Adobe Acrobat Reader
Preview is a default PDF reader on Mac, but it doesn't give you good features to interact better with PDF files. While many PDF readers are in the market, it is difficult to ignore Adobe Acrobat.
Adobe is a pioneer in the PDF industry and is one of the highly used tools to view and read PDFs. This program allows you to choose desired read modes, change themes, and access full-screen and zoom pages to magnify or decrease the target text size.
How To Read PDF on Mac With Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat offers one of the finest ways to read PDFs interactively. The following steps show how to read PDFs in Adobe on Mac.
Step 1 To begin with, right-click the target PDF on your Mac, then choose the "Open With" option. From the list of apps displayed, choose "Adobe Acrobat."
Step 3 Once the PDF loads in Adobe Acrobat's interface, click the "View" tab and scroll down the list to choose desired options. You can choose read mode, full-screen mode, and page display.
Comparison of These 3 Tools
Picking the right tool to view and read your PDFs can be daunting. The 3tools are useful, but they have discrepancies. The following table compares them to simplify your selection.
Features |
Wondershare PDFelement |
Preview |
Adobe Acrobat Reader |
| Price | It has a free trial version and an affordable premium version at $79.99 per year. | This is a free in-built app on Mac. | The premium version is billed at $239.88 per year. |
| User Interface | It has an intuitive and user-friendly interface. | The interface is simple and not cluttered. | The interface is simple but looks a little old-school. |
| Reading Mode | It offers several interactive reading modes. | It offers fewer reading modes and is not that interactive. | It provides several interactive reading modes. |
| Ease of Use | It is easy to use. | It is not complex. | Although not complex, the lengthy processes and highly-packed interface are not suitable for newbies. |
| Features | It has nearly all PDF features, including advanced features like OCR. | It has basic PDF viewing and editing features. | It has plenty of PDF features. |
| Installation | The download installation process is straightforward. | It is inbuilt, and hence no need to download and install. | The installation process is a bit lengthy. |
| Compatibility | It is compatible with Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. | It is only available on Mac | It is compatible with Windows and Mac systems. |
PDFelement is a powerful PDF editor. It offers many PDF features and is suitable for all types and natures of PDF tasks. You can use it in any industry. Furthermore, its ability to work with mobile devices takes PDF editing closer to individuals than ever.
Preview is a free Mac app yet offers useful basic PDF functions. If you are looking for a free solution and don't need interactive reading, then Preview can be useful. However, you will need a third-party tool to get more PDF functions.
Adobe Acrobat is a great PDF tool. It offers plenty of features, and users can read their PDFs interactively. However, the expensive subscriptions and lengthy installation processes make it unsuitable for newbies and those under a strict budget. If you have some money to spare, Adobe Acrobat can still be an excellent option for any industry.
Conclusion
After reading this article, it is now an easy task to pick the right tool to read PDF on Mac. While this is true, you can see that Wondershare PDFelement for Mac is the cherry on top. Nevertheless, pick a tool that suits your need and read your PDF on Mac like never before.