Wondershare PDFelement

Smarter study and learn faster with PDFelement for students.

Want to be a paperless student but not have an iPad or Apple pencil? Try using a PDF reader on your desktop as an alternative or a supplement to note-taking apps!

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Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista, 32-bit OS, 64-bit OS Go to Windows >

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E-Books vs. Paper Books

Best PDF Reader for Studying

An Expert PDF Editor
Working With Note-Taking Apps

Inspired By A+ Students
in Various Majors

CV & Recommendation
Templates for Students

E-books or paper books, which do you prefer?

E-books still do not match for printed books in 2022. However, the move to remote and hybrid learning has accelerated the adoption of e-books in the classroom these years. Many schools have made the digital shift since 2020, and more college and higher education students prefer various e-books.

Type	Formats	Pros	Cons	Tips
E-book	.epub / .pdf / .txt / .fb2 / .doc, etc.	· Easily available anytime, anywhere · Environment friendly ·Shareable content	· Require batteries or internet · Less focused	Explore free e-books for students How to find PDF textbooks Best free e-book reader for PC, Mac, and mobile
Paper Book	—	· Enjoyable reading experience	· Bad for the environment · More expensive · Take more space	How to digitalize paper books to PDFs How to translate scanned documents to any language

Get more ideas about reading in an ebook, paper book, or both!

E-book

Paper Book

Both

Why not try the best PDF reader to start an e-reading journey of studying?

Why not give e-reading a chance? Try opening an e-book the same
way you read a paper book!

Experience the best PDF editor for students to read, annotate, convert,
and edit e-books such as PDFs!

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Which is the best PDF reader for studying?

Find the PDF reader that works out best for you from the discussions about PDF readers on Reddit.

Look at the dilemma of some students in finding a PDF reader for free

We need better PDF readers for academic study!!

We need a way to picture/imagine/graph/table preview while reading paragraphs and pages in academic papers.
Most graphical results/diagrams explanations come in further text, but there is no tool to easily access or view graphical results/diagrams or pinpoint anything related.

@ u/pandadub_xx post on
r/academia in Reddit

Look at the dilemma of some students in finding a PDF reader for free

I want to read e-books like printed books.

I just started university, and I have been assigned a lot of books in PDF.
I need a program that allows me to read PDF books in a two-page view, add notes, and do pretty much all the things you can do in a physical book. An extremely useful extra would be able to use the Cloud.

@ u/Last_xx post on
r/software in Reddit

Look at the dilemma of some students in finding a PDF reader for free

I need a free PDF reader for students to highlight, underline and comment on e-books!

I am looking for a free PDF reader to use as a student. It must be lightweight and fast; better to have tabs for multiple documents in the same window.
It allows me to highlight, underline (with different colors), copy text and images, and add comments or text to the sides or sticky notes.

@ u/u/Monsieur_xx post on
r/software in Reddit

Look at the dilemma of some students in finding a PDF reader for free

I want a cross-platform synced PDF Reader/Annotator (for at least iOS/Win)!

My use case is reading PDFs for various university courses. I wish to have a solution that allows me to open a PDF on my desktop, read, annotate ... then, while on a commute, open the same PDF and continue where I left off from the desktop, annotate ... then back at home ... rinse, repeat.

@ u/hced_xx post on
r/crossplatform in Reddit

Get out of troubles in PDF reading and editing using PDFelement

Top features of best PDF readers wanted by students:

OCR images/tables for copying and
positioning in academic PDFs

Two-page view and translate
any content while reading PDFs

Highlight, add text, underline, or
add sticky notes to PDFs and export notes

Store a large number of PDF files in
Clouds for easy collaboration

How to make PDF searchable and copiable using the OCR feature?

Step 1. Open your scanned PDF file.

Launch PDFelement for Windows. On the Home page, click Open PDF and add your file.

Step 2. Perform OCR to make the PDF searchable.

Choose Tools>OCR. Then, select Scan to searchable text in image, specify Page Range, and select Languages.

Step 3. Search keywords to position the desired content.

After the file becomes searchable, you can use Ctrl+F to search the keywords you want.

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How to read a PDF and translate it quickly?

Step 1. Open a PDF file.

Drag the PDF to PDFelement for Windows or open the file by clicking Open PDF from the Home page.

Step 2. Read the PDF the way you like.

Click the View tab. Then, you can read your PDF like reading a book with customized settings and multiple modes, such as Two Page View.

Step 3. Translate selected words in the PDF.

Select the sentence you want to translate in the Edit mode and click Translate in the floating bar. Then you can translate the text to the target language you specify.

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How to annotate, highlight, and make notes on PDFs with ease?

Step 1. Open your PDF in PDFelement.

Open the PDF file you want to annotate with PDFelement software.

Step 2. Add comments to your PDF file .

Go to the Comment tab and use all the tools to annotate your PDF, such as Highlight, Underline, Sticky Note, etc.

Step 3. View the comments and export the PDF file.

Click the icon of Comment List on the left panel to view all comments. You can also export and import annotations here.

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How to share PDFs on the Cloud and manage PDF files across devices?

Step 1. Upload PDF documents to Document Cloud.

Log in to your Document Cloud account using your Wondershare ID, click Upload Files, and choose one or more files you want to upload.

Step 2. Share and send your PDF.

Click Share from the top navigation bar and choose documents from your PC or the Cloud. Then, you can set the deadline and permissions for the shared link and email notification.

Step 3. Archive and organize your PDF files.

Save your important and confidential documents in Cloud storage and share them with your team members.

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Comparison between 3 best PDF editors for students with the above features you need

Here’s a quick review of the best PDF readers and editors that most college students care about.

Top features wanted by students	Discount for students (*Need Students Verifying)	Supported OS	Two-page view	Read 2 PDFs at the same time	Annotate PDFs and export notes	OCR images or tables	Translate PDFs to different languages	Cloud Storage
PDFelement TRY IT FREE TRY IT FREE TRY IT FREE TRY IT FREE	$47.99/yr ~~$79.99~~ , $99.99/one-time ~~$159.99~~ Get Discount Now	Windows / Mac / iOS / Android
Adobe Acrobat Pro	$239.88/yr for Creative Cloud All Apps	Windows / Mac / iOS / Android
PDF Expert	$29.95/yr, $99/one-time	Mac / iOS

Check more comparison details

Type or write notes: Can students use a PDF editor
together with a note-taking app?

Let’s start with a quick look at the best note-taking apps for students: EverNote, OneNote, GoodNotes, Notability, Notion, and Flexcil.

Features	GoodNotes	Notability	Flexcil	OneNote	EverNote	Notion
Supported OS	iOS/Mac	iOS/Mac	iOS/Android	iOS/Android/ Windows/Mac/Web	iOS/Android/ Windows/Mac	iOS/Android/ Windows/Mac
Better experience at	Handwriting notes	Handwriting notes	Handwriting notes	Typing notes	Typing notes	Typing notes
Supported export format for notes	· GoodNotes document · PDF(editable/flattened) · Image	· PDF · Note · Image · RTF	· PDF	· OneNote(.one) · Word(.docx, .doc) · PDF(.pdf) · XPS (.xps) · .mht	· ENEX · HTML · PDF	· HTML · Markdown · CSV · PDF
Annotate PDF	Comment on PDFs with handwriting notes or typing notes	Record lectures using Note Replay and annotate textbook PDFs	Mark up PDFs and take notes in 1 window	Take notes on PDFs by typing or sketching	Draw and write on PDFs and images	Not supported
OCR PDF	Convert handwriting to text written in-app, unable to OCR image-based PDFs	· Convert handwriting to text, · Images that take up 1 /3 of the page or more can be searchable	Supports text OCR and not handwriting OCR.	Copy text from images and file printouts	Scan and search handwritten notes	Not supported
Student Discount	Free for schools who use Apple School Manager, no student discount for individual	Free for schools who use Apple School Manager, no student discount for individual	Free for schools, not free provided for individual	Free after the educational email verification	50% off for students	Free after the educational email verification
Drawbacks	· No Windows Version · Cannot create hyperlinks · Cannot OCR image-based PDFs · Crash when you export large PDF files	· No Windows Version · Cannot show notes on PDFs with annotations · Failed to open PPT correctly	· No Windows/Mac Version · Cannot OCR handwriting	· Cannot edit a PDF	· Cannot extract text from images/PDFs	· Cannot take notes on PDFs · No OCR features
Best Solutions	GoodNotes+a PDF Editor	Notability+a PDF Editor	Flexcil+a PDF Editor	OneNote+a PDF Editor	Evernote+a PDF Editor	Notion+a PDF Editor

Note-taking apps & a PDF editor for Windows/Mac:
The amazing combo for students to improve productivity!

Use a PDF editor with a note-taking app, and then you will be free from the trouble of
being unable to read, annotate, copy, and export PDFs within note-taking apps.

"Why did my notes on PDFs disappear on Notability?"

"Can I create my own digital planner with hyperlinks?"

"Why GoodNotes takes so long to open big PDF files?"

Use a PDF editor for students on Windows/Mac to supplement your note-taking apps, and maximize your study efficiency by taking full advantage of both.

· To show the annotations on a PDF, use a PDF editor to flatten PDF and then open it in your note-taking apps.

· Use a PDF editor to convert your lecture PPTs/PDFs to PDFs with margins. Then, take notes with your note-taking apps.

· Export your notes as PDFs from note-taking apps. Then, use a PDF editor to create categories for your notes to organize them.

· Compress large PDFs with a PDF editor. Take notes and manage PDFs in your note-taking apps.

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How to use PDFelment as an alternative note-taking app for students on Windows/Mac?

As we know, there still is no Windows or Mac version of GoodNotes, Notability, or Flexcil. Regarding note taking and
organization, OneNote and Evernote can be good alternatives to them on desktop.
But when it comes to PDFs, we recommend PDFelement for students.

Create a PDF from Notes templates, such as from a Cornell Notes template

Typing notes in the PDF. You can add text, images (including pictures of notes in notebooks), hyperlinks, etc.

Annotate PDF papers or textbooks in hundred pages without hassle using rich mark-up tools and OCR features.

Export notes for printing or sharing using Document Cloud.

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Get inspiration from A+ students in various majors!

See how they use PDFelement as one of the productivity study apps and study success.

PDF Editor for Students: Edit, Annotate, Sign PDF on iOS

The Best-in-class Tool for Educators and Students

What is an Easy-to-Use PDF Editor? (Student Review)

Real time-Study With Me (Tape One)

Real time-Study With Me (Tape Two)

Best PDF Editor to Improve Your Productivity and get A+ Studying

Tips for exam: Convert paper documents to editable and searchable PDFs on iPad

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Get free PDF templates for students

Free Dowload

Research Poster Template

Free Dowload

Math Course Note

Free Dowload

School Timetable Template

Free Dowload

Research Proposal Template

Free Dowload

Student Resume Template

Free Dowload

New Year's Planner
Template

Free Dowload

Study Planner Template

Free Dowload

Daily Planner Template

Get More Free Templates for Students

Tips: You can also get those templates by clicking Create PDF From Template. (The Templates function only built-in Windows version now.)

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the best user experience.

Can you take a few minutes to give your feedback? We use your input to improve our
products and services. If you've filled out the survey already, thank you!

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Choose the PDFelement plan that works for you.

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38% OFF

PDFelement for Desktop

Edit, print, eSign and protect documents. 100GB cloud storage for collaboration.

Annually One-Time Price

$79.99 ~~$129~~

$129.99 ~~$159~~

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PDFelement Desktop + iOS

Edit, print, eSign and protect documents. 100GB cloud storage for collaboration.

Annually One-Time Price

$99.99 ~~$189~~

$159.99 ~~$239~~

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Switch to Mac >> Switch to Windows >>

PDFelement Desktop + iOS + Cloud

Edit, print, eSign and protect documents. 100GB cloud storage for collaboration.

Annually

$129.99 ~~$249~~

buy now

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Get Team licenses here or Edu licenses here

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Smarter study and learn faster with PDFelement for students.

E-books or paper books, which do you prefer?

Get more ideas about reading in an ebook, paper book, or both!

Which is the best PDF reader for studying?

Type or write notes: Can students use a PDF editor
together with a note-taking app?

Get inspiration from A+ students in various majors!

Get free PDF templates for students

We want to provide you with
the best user experience.

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