Overall Winner
Soda PDF
beats PDFsam by 24 points
PDFsam 40/100
Soda PDF 🏆 64/100
P
PDFsam
Free
VS
S
Soda PDF
From $6.75/mo
The verdict
Soda PDF scores 64/100 against PDFsam's 40/100. Compare the full breakdown of scores, features, pricing, and user reviews below.
Score breakdown
Dimension
PDFsam
Soda PDF
Price & Value
★★★★☆ wins
★★★☆☆
Features
★★★☆☆
★★★★☆ wins
Ease of Use
★★☆☆☆
★★★☆☆ wins
Reviews
★★☆☆☆
★★★★★ wins
Each dimension rated 1–5. Higher is better across all four.
What users say
PDFsam
"Free open-source PDF splitter but plagued by aggressive upsell behavior"
Pros
Free open-source basic version for page manipulation Cross-platform support including Linux Specialized in split, merge, extract, and rotate operations
Soda PDF
"Feature-complete PDF editor hampered by clunky UX and poor support"
Pros
Professional feature set with edit, convert, OCR, forms, and security Good multi-document translation and editing capability Comprehensive desktop editor for Windows and Mac
Pricing & value
| Metric | PDFsam | Soda PDF | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Starting price | Free | From $6.75/mo | PDFsam |
Our pick