# PyMuPDF vs Smallpdf

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** PyMuPDF

| Attribute | PyMuPDF | Smallpdf |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 57.2 (63% (medium)) | 44 (74% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 100 | - |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 1,798 | - |
| adoption.github_stars | 10,910 | - |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"A Python library built on the MuPDF engine for reading, manipulating, converting, and annotating PDF and document files with integrated OCR support. Designed for local processing in air-gapped and regulated environments. It is indexed under PDF Editors.","source":"https://pymupdf.readthedocs.io/","question":"What is PyMuPDF?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"PyMuPDF offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://pymupdf.readthedocs.io/","question":"Is PyMuPDF free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"PyMuPDF supports Windows, macOS and Linux. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://pymupdf.readthedocs.io/","question":"What platforms does PyMuPDF support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. PyMuPDF can be deployed on-premise, air-gapped and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://pymupdf.readthedocs.io/","question":"Can PyMuPDF be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. PyMuPDF is published under the AGPL-3.0 licence, a copyleft licence, so check its terms before embedding it in a closed-source product. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF","question":"Is PyMuPDF open source?","confidence":0.95}]` | `[{"answer":"Smallpdf is a cloud-based PDF service offering 48 tools for converting, editing, compressing, and managing PDF documents. It's available as web applications, browser extensions, desktop software for Windows and macOS, and mobile apps for iOS and Android, with integrations for Google Workspace and Dropbox. It is indexed under PDF Editors.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/","question":"What is Smallpdf?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Smallpdf offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Paid plans are also available: Free, Pro, Team and Business. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/pricing","question":"Is Smallpdf free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Smallpdf supports the web, Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/","question":"What platforms does Smallpdf support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Not fully, on what we have confirmed. Smallpdf is offered as cloud / SaaS and hybrid, and a hybrid deployment usually means some components can run on your own infrastructure while the rest stays vendor-hosted. We have not confirmed a completely self-hosted option, so check with the vendor if that is a requirement.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/","question":"Can Smallpdf be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 5 integrations for Smallpdf, including Google Drive, Dropbox, Google Chrome, Google Workspace and Sign.com. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/","question":"What does Smallpdf integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed ISO 27001 and GDPR for Smallpdf. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Smallpdf not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/","question":"What security certifications does Smallpdf have?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Smallpdf is available worldwide. The vendor is headquartered in Switzerland.","source":"https://smallpdf.com/pricing","question":"Where is Smallpdf available?","confidence":0.75}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"cloud":true,"hybrid":true}` |
| description.long | A Python library providing efficient, precise control over PDF documents for reading, editing, and converting their contents. Built on a lightweight C engine with both low-level control and high-level convenience functions. | Smallpdf is a cloud-based PDF service offering 48 tools for converting, editing, compressing, and managing PDF documents. It's available as web applications, browser extensions, desktop software for Windows and macOS, and mobile apps for iOS and Android, with integrations for Google Workspace and Dropbox. |
| features.capabilities | `{"pricing_model":"freemium","deployment_model":"native_desktop","file_size_compression_engine":true,"interactive_form_field_creation":true,"password_protection_and_encryption":true,"permanent_blackout_redaction_engine":true,"microsoft_office_docx_xlsx_conversion":true,"page_merging_extraction_and_splitting":true,"base_text_and_image_editing_within_pdf":true,"ocr_optical_character_recognition_scanning":true}` | `{"iso_27001":true,"soc2_type_ii":false,"pricing_model":"freemium","deployment_model":"cloud_saas","file_size_compression_engine":true,"interactive_form_field_creation":false,"password_protection_and_encryption":true,"permanent_blackout_redaction_engine":false,"microsoft_office_docx_xlsx_conversion":true,"page_merging_extraction_and_splitting":true,"base_text_and_image_editing_within_pdf":true,"ocr_optical_character_recognition_scanning":true,"digital_signature_certification_enforcement":true}` |
| integrations.count | 1 | 3 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Tesseract","native":true,"category":"ocr"}]` | `[{"name":"Google Drive"},{"name":"Dropbox"},{"name":"Google Chrome"},{"name":"Google Workspace"},{"name":"Sign.com"}]` |
| language.primary | Python | - |
| license.spdx | AGPL-3.0 | - |
| market.availability | - | `{"hqCountry":"CH","primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"mac":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` | `{"ios":true,"mac":true,"web":true,"android":true,"windows":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://pymupdf.readthedocs.io/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-13T20:04:58.976Z"}` | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Free","summary":"Free","features":["30+ document management tools","Limited document downloads","Limited mobile app access","Limited Sign.com access"],"minSeats":1,"components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":0,"period":"month","currency":null}],"description":"30+ document management tools with limited usage","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"tools":"30+","downloads":"limited","mobile_access":"limited","sign_com_limit":"2 documents/month"}},{"free":false,"name":"Pro","summary":"Billed annually","features":["Unlimited access to 30+ tools","Unlimited document downloads","Edit Text, OCR, and more","Strong Compression","Unlimited AI-powered tools","Unlimited mobile app access","Unlimited Sign.com Premium subscription"],"minSeats":1,"commitment":"annual","description":"Unlimited access to all tools, AI features, and premium compression","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Team","summary":"Per-seat billed annually","features":["Everything in Pro","Special discounted pricing","Priority customer support","Centralized billing","Member access management","Unlimited Sign.com Premium for each team member"],"minSeats":2,"commitment":"annual","description":"Team collaboration with discounted per-seat pricing and centralized management","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"team_size":"2-19 seats"}},{"free":false,"name":"Business","summary":"Custom pricing available upon request","features":["Everything in Pro for Teams","Custom pricing","Flexible payment options","Dedicated customer support"],"minSeats":20,"description":"Enterprise solutions for large teams with custom terms","contactSales":true}],"summary":"Freemium model with paid subscription tiers billed annually.","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://smallpdf.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-08-25T15:50:20.686Z","freeTrialDays":7,"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | open_source | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | free | low |
| pricing.transparent | no | no |
| release.cadence_days | 35 | - |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.28.2","date":"2026-08-06T22:16:34Z","type":"stable","version":"1.28.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.28.0","date":"2026-06-29T09:18:49Z","type":"stable","version":"1.28.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.27.2.3","date":"2026-04-24T14:23:34Z","type":"stable","version":"1.27.2.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.27.2.2","date":"2026-03-20T09:56:24Z","type":"stable","version":"1.27.2.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.27.2","date":"2026-03-10T13:11:38Z","type":"stable","version":"1.27.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.27.1","date":"2026-02-11T15:12:59Z","type":"stable","version":"1.27.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.7","date":"2025-12-11T23:17:03Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.6","date":"2025-11-05T16:07:35Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.5","date":"2025-10-10T14:07:18Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.4","date":"2025-08-25T14:34:56Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.3","date":"2025-07-02T21:52:37Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.1","date":"2025-06-11T22:30:03Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.26.0","date":"2025-05-22T16:30:32Z","type":"stable","version":"1.26.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.5","date":"2025-03-31T23:25:00Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.4","date":"2025-03-14T19:16:56Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.3","date":"2025-02-06T13:12:40Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.2","date":"2025-01-17T16:36:36Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.1","date":"2024-12-11T22:51:35Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.25.0","date":"2024-12-05T20:45:10Z","type":"stable","version":"1.25.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pymupdf/PyMuPDF/releases/tag/1.24.14","date":"2024-11-19T11:21:54Z","type":"stable","version":"1.24.14"}]` | - |
| security.certifications | - | `[{"name":"ISO 27001","status":"active"}]` |
| security.gdpr | - | yes |
| security.iso27001 | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 5.2 | - |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":1,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=pypi&package_name=pymupdf&per_page=100","last_12m":1,"max_severity":"MODERATE"}` | - |

## Capabilities (PDF Editors)

| Capability | PyMuPDF | Smallpdf |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Deployment model | Native desktop | Cloud saas |
| Base text and image editing within PDF | ✓ | ✓ |
| Page merging extraction and splitting | ✓ | ✓ |
| OCR optical character recognition scanning | ✓ | ✓ |
| Permanent blackout redaction engine | ✓ | ✗ |
| Password protection and encryption | ✓ | ✓ |
| Interactive form field creation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Digital signature certification enforcement | - | ✓ |
| Microsoft office docx xlsx conversion | ✓ | ✓ |
| File size compression engine | ✓ | ✓ |
| SOC2 type ii | - | ✗ |
| ISO 27001 | - | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T20:51:11.263Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*