Best Free PDF Signers 2026: 7 Options Compared

Signing a PDF falls into two situations, and the right free tool differs. If you only need to place your signature on a form, such as a rental application or consent form, a reader with Fill & Sign is enough: Adobe Acrobat Reader and Foxit PDF Reader let you type, draw or insert an image of your signature at no cost. If you need to collect signatures from other people with an audit trail and completion certificate, you need an e-signature service. Free plans there are tight: Documenso allows 5 documents a month, SignWell 3, and DocuSeal 10 emailed requests a month on its cloud basic plan, while OpenSign advertises unlimited e-signatures on its free plan. For unlimited volume without a vendor, DocuSeal, Documenso and OpenSign are open source and can be self-hosted, at the cost of running a server. Check what the signature is legally worth in your country and for your document type; a drawn image is accepted for many everyday forms but not for every contract or government filing. Keep the signed copy and the certificate together. These seven tools are free to start and each listing notes the cap.

Adobe Acrobat Reader

Free Fill & Sign lets you sign any PDF by typing, drawing or using an image, on desktop and mobile. Adobe caps free signature requests, so it suits signing for yourself, not collecting others.

Price: Free (Free to download; view, comment, and Fill & Sign. Editing PDF text or images needs a paid Acrobat plan, and free signature requests are capped) (Adobe Acrobat Reader pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Proprietary freeware.

Best for: Signing a form yourself.

Foxit PDF Reader

Free reader that signs with a handwritten signature or saved image and fills AcroForm and XFA forms. There is no remote signing workflow in the free version.

Price: Free (Free reader: comments and annotations, AcroForm and XFA form filling, signing with a drawn or image signature) (Foxit PDF Reader pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Web browser. Proprietary freeware.

Best for: Signing forms without Adobe.

OpenSign

Free plan advertises unlimited e-signatures, collaborators, completion certificates and storage, and the code is AGPL-3.0 if you want to host it. Check the current limits before volume use.

Price: Free (Free plan with unlimited e-signatures, multiple collaborators, completion certificates and document storage, per the homepage) (OpenSign pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. AGPL-3.0 (open source).

Project activity: 7.2k GitHub stars · latest release v3.0.1 (Oct 26, 2026) · last commit Oct 26, 2026

Best for: Unlimited signatures on a budget.

DocuSeal

Cloud Basic sends 10 signature request emails a month; the self-hosted open-source edition has unlimited emails. Cloud Pro is $20 per user per month.

Price: Free (Cloud Basic: 10 signature request emails a month; the open-source self-hosted edition has unlimited request emails); paid from $20 per user/month (Cloud Pro; $200 per user billed annually) (DocuSeal pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. AGPL-3.0 with additional terms (open source).

Project activity: 18.8k GitHub stars · latest release 3.3.4 (Oct 26, 2026) · last commit Oct 26, 2026

Best for: Self-hosted signing for teams.

Documenso

Free plan allows 5 documents a month and up to 10 recipients per document, with AGPL-3.0 code available. The Individual plan is $25 a month billed yearly.

Price: Free (Free plan: 5 documents a month and up to 10 recipients per document); paid from $25 per month, billed yearly ($300 a year; Individual) (Documenso pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. AGPL-3.0 (open source).

Project activity: 15.6k GitHub stars · latest release v2.21.1 (Oct 22, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Light use of a modern open-source signer.

SignWell

Free plan covers 3 documents a month with 1 sender and 1 template. Fine for occasional contracts; the first paid plan is $10 a month.

Price: Free (Free plan: 3 documents a month, 1 sender and 1 template); paid from $10 per month (Light; the page shows $10 and $12 without labelling which is annual) (SignWell pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: A few outside signers a month.

Zoho Sign

Zoho Sign has a free option inside its plans and sits well with other Zoho apps. We did not capture the free limits, and Standard is $10 per user a month billed annually.

Price: Free; paid from $10 per user/month, Standard, billed annually (Zoho Sign pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Teams already on Zoho.

Worth knowing: Professional is $16 and Enterprise $22 per user/month billed annually.

Which one to pick

• You only need to sign one form for yourself: Adobe Acrobat Reader
• You need signatures from several people and a legal trail: DocuSeal
• You send many contracts and can run a server: OpenSign
• You send three or four contracts a month: SignWell