The free Nitro PDF alternative, with no trial
Nitro has no free version of its editor: you get a 14-day trial, then a yearly plan from $180. Its free online tools are 8 converters. KovaPDF gives you 50+ tools free, with no plan needed.
- 50+ free tools, not only converters
- No trial, no card and no plan needed
- Free signature requests, within a limited allowance
KovaPDFNitro PDF- Price
- KovaPDFFree
- Nitro PDFStandard $180 a year
- Free tools
- KovaPDF50+ tools
- Nitro PDF8 converters
- Edit, merge, compress, OCR
- KovaPDFFree
- Nitro PDFPaid, 14-day trial
- Ask others to sign
- KovaPDFFree, limited allowance
- Nitro PDFNitro Sign from $120 a year
- Desktop app
- KovaPDFWindows, free
- Nitro PDFWindows and Mac, paid
- Site languages
- KovaPDF27
- Nitro PDF6
Nitro PDF's facts read from its own pages on 10 October 2026.
KovaPDF vs Nitro PDF, feature by feature
Price, limits, tools, privacy and apps, checked against Nitro PDF's own pricing and help pages on 10 October 2026.
| Feature | KovaPDFFree | Nitro PDFFree plan |
|---|---|---|
| Price and limits | ||
| Price | KovaPDFYes: Free: every tool. Pro from $3.99 a month, billed yearly | Nitro PDFStandard $15 a month, billed yearly ($180) |
| Free version of the editor | KovaPDFYes: Yes, the PDF Editor is free | Nitro PDFNo: No, a 14-day trial only |
| Free online tools | KovaPDFYes: 50+ tools | Nitro PDFPartly: 8 converters, up to 25 MB |
| Free trial | KovaPDFYes: None needed: every tool works free | Nitro PDF14 days, no card needed |
| One-off licence | KovaPDFNo; free, or Pro by the month or year | Nitro PDFPartly: Classic $270 for three years, Windows only |
| Renewal and refunds | KovaPDFPro renews until you cancel; refund within 14 days | Nitro PDFPartly: Renews automatically; refund within 14 days |
| Tools | ||
| PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint | KovaPDFYes: Free | Nitro PDFYes: Free converter |
| Office and images to PDF | KovaPDFYes: Free | Nitro PDFYes: Free converter |
| Merge, split, compress | KovaPDFYes: Free | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid Nitro PDF |
| Edit text in a PDF | KovaPDFYes: Free | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid Nitro PDF |
| OCR (read scanned pages) | KovaPDFYes: Free, 9 languages | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid Nitro PDF |
| Redact and PDF/A | KovaPDFYes: Free | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid Nitro PDF |
| Ask others to sign | KovaPDFYes: Free account, within a limited allowance | Nitro PDFPartly: Nitro Sign, $120 a user a year |
| AI | KovaPDFPartly: Summaries, limited; translation | Nitro PDFPartly: AI assistant in the paid plan |
| Bangla and Hindi font converters | KovaPDFYes: Bijoy and Kruti Dev to Unicode | Nitro PDFNo: Not in its tool list |
| Privacy | ||
| Files never uploaded | KovaPDFYes: 24 tools work in your browser | Nitro PDFDesktop app works on local files |
| When uploads are deleted | KovaPDFYes: When the job finishes | Nitro PDFNot stated for the free converter |
| Apps and languages | ||
| Windows app | KovaPDFYes: Free, 28 tools offline | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid |
| Mac app | KovaPDFNo: No | Nitro PDFPartly: Paid |
| Phone | KovaPDFPartly: Installable web app and free scanner | Nitro PDFPartly: iPhone app |
| Site languages | KovaPDF27 | Nitro PDF6 |
Prices and limits change. We read Nitro PDF's pages on 10 October 2026; check their site before you pay for a plan.
Which one should you use?
Choose KovaPDF if…
- You need more than a converter. Merge, compress, OCR, text editing and redaction are free on KovaPDF. On Nitro they come with the paid editor.
- You do not want a trial that ends. Every tool works free, so there is no 14-day clock and no plan you have to buy.
- You send documents for signature. Request Signatures is free with a free account, within a limited allowance. Nitro Sign is a separate subscription.
- You would rather not upload private files. 24 tools, including Merge, Split, Protect and OCR to text, run in your browser.
- You read the site in another language. KovaPDF is in 27 languages; Nitro's site is in 6.
Choose Nitro PDF if…
- You want a full desktop editor on Windows or Mac. Nitro PDF is a complete desktop program on both, with an AI assistant. KovaPDF's app is Windows only.
- You edit PDFs on an iPhone. Nitro has an iPhone app. KovaPDF on a phone is a web app you install from the browser.
- Your company needs single sign-on and admin tools. Nitro PDF Plus adds single sign-on and usage analytics, and Nitro lists ISO 27001, SOC 2 and HIPAA.
- You need qualified signatures in the EU. Nitro Sign's top plans offer qualified electronic signatures. KovaPDF does not.
The tools you use, under the same names
Open the tool, drop your file in. No account, nothing to install.
Why people look for a Nitro PDF alternative
Nitro PDF is a capable desktop editor, but it has no free version. Nitro's own answer to "Is there a free version?" is the 14-day trial. After that, Nitro PDF Standard costs $15 a month per user, billed yearly, which is $180 a year. Nitro PDF Classic, for Windows only, costs $270 for a three-year licence, not a lifetime one. Plans renew automatically, and Nitro refunds within 14 days of payment.
The free tools on Nitro's website are 8 converters: Word, Excel, PowerPoint and images to PDF, and PDF back to those four. Files can be up to 25 MB, and Nitro does not publish how many conversions are free.
What you get on KovaPDF, free
- The converters, and the rest. PDF to Word, PDF to Excel, Word to PDF and the other conversions, plus Merge, Compress, OCR PDF and the PDF Editor, which changes the text itself.
- Free without an account. Every tool works without signing in, within a limited free allowance that refills over time. A free account raises it.
- No trial and no card. Every tool works free. Pro is there if you want no limits, and you can cancel any time.
- Bangla and Hindi. Bijoy to Unicode and Kruti Dev to Unicode fix text typed in old fonts.
Free PDF to Word, without a sign-up
Most people looking for a free Nitro converter want one thing: a Word file they can edit. KovaPDF's PDF to Word is free with no account. For PDFs without pictures it even runs in your browser, so the file is not uploaded.
Signatures: Nitro Sign or Request Signatures
Nitro Sign is a separate subscription, from $10 a user a month billed yearly. Its higher plans add templates, SMS checks, an API and qualified signatures.
Request Signatures on KovaPDF is free with a free account, within a limited allowance, with a certificate of completion and a trusted timestamp seal. Signers do not need an account. These are simple electronic signatures, not qualified ones.
Need a desktop program?
The free KovaPDF app for Windows comes from the Microsoft Store, and 28 of its tools work offline. There is no Mac version yet, so if you need a full desktop editor on a Mac, Nitro is the stronger choice there.
Nitro PDF alternative: common questions
Is there a free alternative to Nitro PDF?
Yes. KovaPDF edits, converts, merges, compresses, runs OCR and redacts PDFs for free, in your web browser. There is no trial that ends, and no plan is needed.
Is Nitro PDF free?
No. Nitro offers a 14-day free trial of its editor, then a paid plan. Its website has 8 free online converters, with a 25 MB file limit.
Is there a free Nitro PDF to Word converter alternative?
Yes. KovaPDF's PDF to Word is free with no account, and for PDFs without pictures it works in your browser without uploading the file.
What happens when the Nitro trial ends?
Nitro says there are no automatic charges when the trial ends. To keep using the editor you buy a plan, from $180 a year. KovaPDF has no trial, so nothing ends.
Is there a free alternative to Nitro Sign?
Yes. KovaPDF's Request Signatures is free with a free account, within a limited allowance. Signers do not need an account, and each finished document gets a certificate of completion.
Does KovaPDF work on a Mac?
The website works in any modern browser on a Mac. There is no Mac app; the free desktop app is for Windows.
KovaPDF next to other PDF services
Nitro PDF is a trademark of its owner. KovaPDF is not connected with, or endorsed by, Nitro PDF. The facts above come from Nitro PDF's own public pages, read on 10 October 2026.