While you can highlight text in a PDF, edit PDFs to add or remove information, or add together your signature to a PDF file, many PDF readers don't brand information technology easy to write or depict on a PDF file.

If you just desire to write messages in a crossword or draw amendments to a plan, you may not be able to find the tools y'all demand for that. Nonetheless, at that place are some methods you tin employ to write or depict on a PDF in Mac and Windows, which we'll explain in this guide.

How to Write on a PDF File in Windows

In Windows, you can convert the PDF file into a Word certificate, edit information technology, and then save it every bit a PDF file again to preserve your changes.

  1. Open a Word document, select File > Open and notice the PDF file you want to edit.
  1. Select the PDF file to open up it in Word. If yous get a message saying that Word will convert your PDF into an editable certificate, select OK and look for the program to finish converting your PDF to an editable format.
  1. Once the file opens in Give-and-take, you can edit the document. Select File > Save as and and then select Relieve as type > PDF to save the document back as a PDF file.

How to Add Text to a PDF File in Windows Using Adobe Acrobat Online

You can write on a PDF document in Windows with Adobe Acrobat'southward online service.

  1. Log in to your Adobe Acrobat online account and select Edit Text and Images.
  1. Select Add together a file from your device > Continue to open up the PDF file on your computer, and upload information technology to the site. Once the document is uploaded, it will exist in an editable format alike to a Word certificate.
  1. Select Add together Text on the toolbar at the top.
  1. Drag the cursor to the position where yous'd similar to add the text. Click here to create a text box and size information technology by dragging the circles on the edge and type your text in the textbox.
  1. You can also adjust your text's color and font size to fit your certificate. And so, select Shut to save your changes.
  1. Select Download at the top right side of the screen to download your PDF file.

With Adobe Acrobat online you can likewise add annotations or gummy notes, mark up text or convert the PDF to other file formats.

How to Depict on a PDF File in Windows

There are times you lot simply want to draw amendments to some plans or make full letters in a crossword. In such cases, the easiest thing to exercise is to use Adobe Acrobat Reader or online tools like PDFescape or SmallPDF.

Draw on PDF Using Adobe Acrobat Reader

Drawing tools are available in Adobe Acrobat Reader but only for PDFs that take commenting bachelor.

  1. Open up Adobe Acrobat Reader and select Tools > Comment.
  1. Select the PDF file you want to draw on.
  1. Select Cartoon Tools.
  1. Select the drawing markup tool, which can be a rectangle, oval, arrow, line, cloud, or polygon.
  1. Y'all can also use the Pencil tool to create costless-grade drawings.
  1. To draw in the PDF, choose a tool, click and elevate on the document to insert the shape you lot want, or click whatever of the T icons to insert dissimilar text types.
  1. Right-click and select Set Condition > Completed to finish cartoon the shape.

Notation: To draw perfect circles or squares or draw lines, press the Shift key on your keyboard while cartoon the shape. And then, select the shape and drag 1 of its handles to edit or resize it.

  1. You tin besides add pop-up notes or comments to the shapes you draw past selecting the Hand tool and double-clicking the shape to enter your text.
  1. To add a text box, select Add Text Box, click in the PDF and select Text Backdrop (Bold, Font, Alignment, etc.) in the Comment toolbar. If you want to remove the text box, select it and press Delete.

Describe on PDF Using PDFescape

PDFescape is a free tool with many features that allow you lot add text, draw on the PDF, and manage the pages however yous want. Here'south how to draw on a PDF file in Windows using PDFescape.

  1. Upload your file from your device or paste the URL to a PDF file online.
  1. Use the freehand tool to depict on the PDF document. You tin can also add an image or shape.
  1. Afterward cartoon on your PDF file, you can download it to your device.

How to Write or Draw on a PDF File in Mac

There aren't many genuinely free PDF editors for macOS that tin let you write in the PDF, add or remove images, fill up forms, etc. Nevertheless, the built-in Preview program can accomplish several PDF editing capabilities that might piece of work meliorate for you, depending on what you lot want to do.

  1. Select Get > Applications > Preview to launch the program.
  1. Select File > Open and detect your PDF file and open information technology in Preview.
  1. Select View > Show Markup Toolbar.

Note: The Preview app doesn't allow you to edit pre-existing text. If you want to overwrite a portion of the text, yous may have to draw a white box over the text to hide it then use the text tool to write on top of the box.

  1. On the Markup toolbar, select Sketch, Depict or Shapes to depict free-form or standard shapes similar a rectangle, oval, circle, pointer, line, star, and other shapes.
  1. To add text, click on the Text tool, which is located in-betwixt the shape tool and the signature tool.
  2. Select File > Salve to save the changes you lot've made on your document.

You can as well employ an online PDF editor to write or draw on a PDF file in Mac. Some of the unremarkably used tools include PDFescape, Sejda, or LibreOffice Draw.

For more on managing PDF files, turn to our guides on how to insert a PDF into PowerPoint, browse multiple pages into 1 PDF file, and convert a Discussion document to PDF.

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