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Smallpdf and iLovePDF alternative: free PDF tools without daily limits

ComparisonsUpdated 30 October 20262 min read

Tool for this guide: Compress PDF

Short answer: if you keep hitting a free-plan limit on Smallpdf or iLovePDF, the SaveForMeNow PDF tools do the everyday jobs for free in your browser: compress, merge, split, convert to JPG, Word to PDF and sign. There's no sign-up, no watermark and no daily task count, and your files aren't uploaded. Smallpdf and iLovePDF offer more, such as cloud storage, team accounts, OCR and desktop apps, which can be worth paying for if you work with PDFs all day.

We make one of these tools, so we've kept the comparison to things you can check. We checked on 30 October 2026. Free plans change often, so check each site's pricing page for its current limits.

How they compare

Which tools you can use for free here

• Make a PDF smaller: compress PDF, or go straight to compress PDF to 100 KB for upload forms.
• Combine and split: merge PDF, split PDF and organize PDF to reorder or delete pages.
• Convert: PDF to JPG, PDF to PNG, JPG to PDF, Word to PDF, PDF to Word and PDF to Excel.
• Edit and protect: edit PDF, sign PDF, watermark PDF, protect PDF and unlock PDF.

When a paid PDF service is the better choice

• You need OCR to turn scanned pages into searchable, editable text.
• Your team shares documents and needs cloud storage, signing workflows or admin controls.
• You process very large files on an old phone, where in-browser tools can run out of memory.

Questions

Why is there no daily limit?

The work runs on your own device, so each extra file costs us nothing. That's also why your PDFs aren't uploaded.

Is it safe for private documents?

Files are processed in your browser and aren't sent to our servers. See how browser-based tools keep files private.

How do I get a PDF under an upload limit?

Use compress PDF with a target size in KB. It tries lighter settings first and stops at the first one under your limit. More tips: compress a PDF for email.