How to Type on a PDF

PDF is one of the most commonly used formats in the world. You’ve definitely worked with it at least once. Lots of different types of documents are usually stored and shared in this format: contracts, fillable forms, resumes, agreements, e-books, portfolios, etc. This popularity stems from the fact that PDF is incredibly safe and secure. You won’t be able to edit a PDF document as easily as a Word document or an Excel spreadsheet.

Indeed, you will need some special software to edit the already existing contents of a PDF while also maintaining its formatting, no matter how complex it is. And you will probably need to pay for this. For instance, Adobe Acrobat has both a free and a paid version, but only the paid one allows you to fully edit a PDF.

But let’s say that your goal is to simply add some comments or annotations. Maybe you want to make sure that recipients will know that your PDF is confidential or shouldn’t be printed. Maybe you need to fill out a non-interactive form. In other words, what if you simply need to add some new text to your PDF? Well, this can be done easily and without paying a cent!

In this guide you will find detailed instructions on how to type on a PDF for free in several uncomplicated ways. All of them involve using apps that you probably already have on your device or apps that are available for free. Some of them offer a great selection of editing tools and features and provide a nice level of flexibility, meanwhile others have limited customization options, yet they are perfect for making some simple and quick edits. By the end of this guide, you will know exactly how to type on a PDF on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.

How to Type on a PDF using Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat is one of the most popular software for viewing and editing PDFs, so there’s a high chance that you already have it on your laptop or PC. This method won’t require lots of time or effort.

Let’s see how you can type on a PDF document on Windows and Mac using the Adobe Acrobat Reader:

1. After you open your PDF document, choose the Fill and Sign option in the toolbar.
2. Find where the text needs to be added and click there. A new textbox will appear.
3. Type in your text on your PDF document.
   
4. Drag the textbox with the cursor if you need to adjust its placement.
5. Before making any changes to the text, make sure it’s selected. You can pick a different color for your text, but please note that there are no fonts to choose from.
6. If you need to make the text bigger, click on the big A. If the text needs to be smaller, click on the small A.
7. When you’re done, click the Close button. The changes will be applied.
8. If you need to save your edited PDF as a copy, navigate to File > Save As, then pick where your new file should be saved to.

All set! It’s much easier than you’ve thought, right?

What’s more, Adobe Acrobat actually has a mobile version, so you can use it to type on PDF documents on Android and iOS devices. This process is pretty similar. After Adobe Acrobat is installed on your smartphone, you simply need to find and open your PDF document in it, and as soon as you do that, you will see the editing toolkit. In this toolkit you need to pick the Text option, choose the necessary color and size, then type in your text on your PDF. Yep, it’s that simple!

How to Type on a PDF using Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word usually produces files of the .doc and .docx formats. But you can use it to edit PDF, as well. Though, your PDF document will have to be converted, first.

The main benefit of using MS Word to type on a PDF is that you will be able to change the contents of your document as well as add new elements to it. Let’s take a look at how exactly this can be done:

1. Navigate to Open > Browse in MS Word, then find and double-click on the necessary PDF document. Make sure that your dialog box shows you files of all formats.
2. MS Word will ask you whether you are okay with your PDF being converted into an editable file. Click “OK”, then wait until MS Word converts your PDF. This might take a few moments.
3. Now that your file is converted and open in MS Word, proceed to editing.
4. It’s possible to edit the actual content of your PDF document. Is there a word that you want to replace? Select it with the cursor, then enter the new word.
5. Do you want to add a new sentence or even a paragraph? Place the cursor where the new piece of text needs to be added and start typing.
   
6. MS Word offers a vast library of fonts and an amazing selection of colors, which can be used for the text itself or for highlighting bits of text. It’s possible adjust line spacing and text alignment. You’ll be surprised by how many different options for editing there are.
7. When all the necessary changes have been made, you can save your edited document as a Word file by going to File > Save As. Alternatively, you can convert it back to PDF by going to File > Save as Adobe PDF.

As you can see, this method is pretty simple yet offers more flexibility and editing options than the previous one.

What’s the catch, you may ask? Well, MS Word wasn’t designed for working with PDFs. You have to convert PDF to a Word document, then convert it back to PDF. As a result of that, the formatting of your PDF document might get messed up; especially if it’s very detailed and complex. In addition to this, you can edit a PDF in Microsoft Word using only one of the recent versions.

How to Type on a PDF using Microsoft Edge

Yep, you read that right. You can actually use Microsoft Edge to not only view, but also type on a PDF file for free. Since it’s a browser, you can use it on both Windows and Mac. You won’t need to install any special plug-ins.

You will simply need to locate the necessary PDF document in its folder on your computer, then right-click on it. In the drop-down menu select Open with Microsoft Edge, then do the following:

1. Go to the bar at the top and pick the Text tool.
2. Find the place where you want to add your text, then click on it to add a new textbox.
3. Type on your PDF document. You can enter anything you want.
4. If you want to change the color of you text, there are four options to choose from.
5. Unfortunately, there’s only one font available. But it is possible to change the letter spacing and the text size.
6. Change the position of your textbox with the cursor if needed.
7. At the top you will find the Save and the Save As buttons. Use either of them to save your edited document.

As you can see, everything is pretty straightforward. You won’t really be able to get super creative here. But this method is absolutely perfect for adding some small bits of new text within a couple of minutes.

How to Type on a PDF on iPhone

If you need to edit a PDF on iPhone or iPad, you’re in luck, because you already have the right tool for this task. With the help of the built-in Markup tool, you can add new text to your PDF document while you are on the go.

Nevertheless, with the Markup Tool you will be able to type on a PDF quickly and easily:

1. In the Files app tap on the PDF that you want to type on.
   Please note that if you want to keep the original file unchanged, you will need to create a copy of it first, then open this newly created copy.
2. Once the PDF is open, scroll to the place where the text should be added. Then tap on the Markup tool icon at the top.
3. Find the “+” button in the bottom right corner and tap on it.
4. Select the “Add Text” option in the drop-down menu.
5. You will see a new textbox show up. Select it, then tap on Edit and type in your text.
6. Use your finger to reposition the text if needed.
7. Use the toolkit to make changes to the style of your text. For instance, pick a different color for it.
8. Tap on Done to save all the changes.

This method will allow you to effortlessly annotate a single or multiple PDFs on the go. And you don’t even need to be a pro at editing to do it!

How to Type on a PDF using an Online App

Do you want to type on a PDF file quickly? But you don’t have the necessary app on your device and don’t want to install anything new? You can actually use an online app that works in a browser! You won’t need to download or install anything, which means you can get to work right away. There are lots of online apps that you can use to type on a single or even multiple PDF documents. For instance, Visual Watermark.

Visual Watermark is a watermarking software that additionally offers several online tools for basic image editing. It also has an app for watermarking PDFs, which can be used on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iOS devices. It’s well-optimized for mobile devices, so you can use it almost anywhere.

Here’s how you can type on a PDF file using Visual Watermark:

1. On Visual Watermark’s website choose Watermark PDF.
2. Import your PDFs, then click on Next Step. Please note that only the first page of the first file will be visible during editing even if you upload multiple documents that consists of multiple pages.
3. Click on the Add Text button.
4. When a new textbox appears, select and remove the words “Your Text” from the text input area.
5. Enter your text.
6. Use the cursor to reposition your text if needed.
7. Here you will have a great selection of various tools. You will be able to pick a solid color or a gradient; choose a different font from a large library; adjust the level of opacity and the size of your text as well as rotate it.
8. You can even make your text more visually appealing by adding an effect to it.
9. When you’re ready, go to the export settings by clicking on the Next Step button.
10. Click on the Preview & Adjust button and you will be taken to the Preview section.
11. This is where you can see how your text looks on every page of every PDF document. It’s also possible to tweak your text slightly without affecting other pages. You can set a different color or make your text smaller, for instance.
12. Do you want your text to be applied to only some of the pages? Just remove the blue checkmark from the pages that shouldn’t be watermarked by clicking on them.
13. Click on the Done button to exit the Preview section.
14. Specify the export settings if necessary, then click on Watermark Images.
15. When watermarking is finished, download edited copies of your PDF documents or save them to Google Photos or Dropbox.

There’s something you should be aware of. Visual Watermark is a batch-watermarking app. It means that you can use it to type on several multi-paged PDFs. But you will only be able to add one and the same text to each page and every file in your batch. For example, if you upload multiple PDFs and type in: “This needs to be rewritten”, these words will be added to all the PDFs. You won’t be able to add different bits of text to different files in a single batch.

Nevertheless, if you need to add one and the same text to multiple PDFs, you should use Visual Watermark for it. It will be quicker and more convenient than processing each file one by one, which is exactly what you’ll have to do in Adobe Acrobat, MS Word, MS Edge or the Markup Tool.

FAQ

How can I type on a PDF on Mac?

Oh, it’s super easy to edit a PDF on Mac – you can actually use Preview for it, which is a built-in app. This process is super easy and will require only a few steps:

1. Once your PDF is open in Preview, click on the “Markup” icon at the top.
2. Choose the Text option in the toolbar.
3. After a new textbox appears, click on it and type anything you want on your PDF.
4. Drag the textbox with the cursor to reposition it.
5. Do you need to make some other changes to the text? Select it with the cursor first!
6. In the toolbar click on the Aa button – this is how you can open the editing toolkit. You can underline your text, make it bold or italics, resize it as well as select a different font or color for it.
7. When you’re done, you will simply need to save your modified document.

How to type on a PDF document for free?

If you have an iOS device, you can use built-in apps to type on a PDF – the Markup tool can be used on iPhones and iPads, while Preview can be used on a Mac. Android devices don’t have a built-in option, unfortunately. But you can use Adobe Acrobat to type on PDFs not only on Android, but also on Windows.

The free version allows you to add annotations, comments and even a signature to your documents. On Windows you can also use MS Word or MS Edge to type on your PDFs. Alternatively, if you don’t want to install anything on your device, you can use Visual Watermark’s online app for watermarking PDFs. It works in a browser and only needs the Internet to operate. The detailed instructions for each of these methods can be found in this guide.

How can I type on a PDF in Google Docs?

This process is similar to watermarking a PDF in MS Word, so you will be able to edit the existing contents as well as add new text. First, log into your Google account and open Google Drive, then follow these steps:

1. Find your PDF in Google Drive. If it’s not there, upload it. Then right-click on the PDF that you want to type on and select Open with Google Docs. This will convert your PDF into an editable file.
2. Place the cursor wherever you want in the document, then enter the necessary text. You can also change or even delete the already existing text if needed.
3. Use the toolkit to edit the style of your text.
4. Go to File > Download > PDF Document and download your file to your device. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to export it back to your Google Drive right away.

The main disadvantage of this method is that it can mess up the formatting. So, use this option only if your document has a very simple formatting and consists almost exclusively of text.

To Sum Up

As it turns out, adding new text to a PDF isn’t as difficult as you might have thought. In fact you can do that in several different ways, using different apps and various devices. This guide provided you with detailed instructions on how to type on a PDF. Hopefully, now that you’re equipped with all the necessary knowledge, you will be able to achieve your goals effortlessly and within just a few minutes.

Nevertheless, if you are unsure of which method to choose, it might be a good idea to try not just one, but several methods featured in this guide. This way, you will be able to determine which one is the most convenient for you and produces the necessary results.