How to download Adobe Acrobat free or as part of Creative Cloud

Download Adobe Acrobat
(Image credit: Adobe)

Want to download Adobe Acrobat? You're in the right place. There are lots of options when it comes to packages, but we're here to help you find the choice for you. And if you want to try Acrobat for free, we'll show you how.

Adobe's industry-leading PDF editing and creation software can save you a ton of time and effort, and works across desktop, mobile and even on the web. You can download a free seven-day trial of Acrobat Pro DC from Adobe and get started right now with all the awesome pro tools.

While you can often find basic PDF tools in your operating system, they're normally limited in scope. Acrobat offers a much more complete set of tools, with a range of security and editing options. And it's not a static piece of software – it's constantly evolving, so a subscription means you will stay up to date. That's a must-have for busy creative professionals, allowing you to benefit from all the latest features automatically. 

There are various other Adobe software options that will also benefit digital creatives – check out our Adobe software list to find out the apps that are best suited to you. And if you're looking for a new and completely free Adobe experience, check out Adobe Creative Cloud Express.

Download Adobe Acrobat: get a free trial

Download a free trial of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC today

Download a free trial of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC today
Get Adobe Acrobat Pro DC for free with a seven-day trial, directly from Adobe. That's for Windows or Mac, with no obligation to buy if you cancel your subscription within seven days. Or, if you like it, you can convert to a paid subscription, either during the trial or after it’s expired.

Download Adobe Acrobat: three purchasing options

Download Adobe Acrobat Standard DC for Windows

Download Adobe Acrobat Standard DC for Windows
The standard version of Adobe’s industry-leading PDF software (for Windows only), allows you to create, edit and sign PDFs across desktop, mobile and in your browser. Click the links or the View Deal button below to find the price in your region. Monthly costs range from $12.99 (US); £13.14 (UK); Au$18.69 (Aus).

Download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC for Windows and Mac

Download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC for Windows and Mac
The Pro version of Adobe’s industry-leading PDF software is available for Windows and Mac. You get the full Acrobat feature set, including the ability to compare two versions of a PDF, turn scanned documents into editable PDFs and more. Monthly costs range from $14.99 (US); £15.17 (UK); Au$21.99 (Aus).

Download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC with an all-Apps Creative Cloud subscription (Windows and Mac)

Download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC with an all-Apps Creative Cloud subscription (Windows and Mac)
The best value way to download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC is to sign up for Adobe's All Apps subscription. This will also get you access to the full range of apps, including Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects and more. Prices range from $52.99 per month (US); £49.94 per month (UK); AU$76.99 per month (Aus).

The Windows-only Adobe Acrobat Standard DC can only be downloaded as a single-app subscription, for which you pay monthly or annually. The best value option is an annual subscription, which will cost you $12.99 / £13.14 / AU$18.69 per month. 

To download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, there are two options. The first, and cheapest, is again to subscribe as a single-app subscription, which you can choose to pay for either monthly or annually. The second and best value option is an annual subscription, which will cost you $14.99 / £15.17 / AU$21.99 per month.

The third option is an All Apps subscription. This will cost you more, but it provides access to all of the Creative Cloud apps, along with a range of other benefits. (If you’re not sure which CC apps could be useful to you, check out our Adobe software list.) An All Apps subscription currently costs $52.99 per month / £49.94 / AU$76.99 per month. 

Those prices see discounts from time to time – keep an eye on our guide to the latest Creative Cloud discounts. And if you're a teacher, student or working in education, you can get a special discount, which you'll find details of below.

Download Adobe Acrobat: discounts for students and teachers

Educational discount: save 65% on Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and all-Apps Creative Cloud subscription

Educational discount: save 65% on Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and all-Apps Creative Cloud subscription
Students, teachers and education workers can get Adobe Acrobat Pro DC as part of a heavily-discounted Adobe's All Apps subscription. This will also get you access to the full range of apps, including Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects and more. It's $15.99 per month (US) / £16.24 per month (UK) / AU$21.99 per month (Aus)

If you’re a student, teacher or anyone working in education, you can get 70% off Adobe Acrobat as part of a heavily discounted All Apps plan. Get the entire Creative Cloud suite of apps, along with 100GB cloud storage, Adobe Portfolio, Adobe Fonts, and Adobe Spark, for just $15.99 / £13.15 / AU$21.99 per month for the first year, and then $29.99 / £25.28 / AU$43.99 the following year (still a lot cheaper than the usual price).

Should you get Adobe Acrobat Standard or Pro?

Adobe Acrobat comes in two versions. Adobe Acrobat Standard DC, for Windows only, offers all the standard PDF features that allow you to view, create, edit, sign, and convert PDF files. Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, for both Windows and Mac, adds in special features such as:

  • Compare two versions of a PDF to review all differences 
  • Turn scanned documents into editable, searchable PDFs 
  • Advanced mobile editing tools
  • Validate and fix PDFs for ISO and accessibility standards

We'd recommend you download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC. It only costs a little more than Adobe Acrobat Standard DC, and you'll get the full feature set. Of course, if you use a Mac, it's the only option anyway.

Note that Acrobat Pro DC comes included when you download Creative Cloud, Adobe's all-apps subscription package which also includes Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and more. In our view, a Creative Cloud subscription is the best-value way to get Adobe Acrobat Pro DC if you use other Adobe products.

Can I download Adobe Acrobat for free?

Yes, you can download Adobe Acrobat for free, in the form of a seven-day free trial of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC (see above. Note that you cannot get a free trial of Adobe Acrobat Standard DC).

You can cancel your subscription at any time during your week's trial via your Adobe Account page or by contacting Customer Support, and you won't have to pay a thing. Alternatively, if you like the software and decide to keep your subscription, you can just keep going.

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Tom May

Tom May is an award-winning journalist and editor specialising in design, photography and technology. Author of the Amazon #1 bestseller Great TED Talks: Creativity, published by Pavilion Books, Tom was previously editor of Professional Photography magazine, associate editor at Creative Bloq, and deputy editor at net magazine. Today, he is a regular contributor to Creative Bloq and its sister sites Digital Camera World, T3.com and Tech Radar. He also writes for Creative Boom and works on content marketing projects. 

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