How to annotate a PDF (free, no software)
To annotate a PDF, open it in any tool that supports comments — your browser's built-in PDF viewer, Preview on Mac, or a free web annotator — click where you want a note, and type. To have someone else mark it up, share a link they can comment on without installing anything.
In your browser
Most browsers open a PDF with a markup toolbar — use the highlight and text-note tools, then download the annotated copy.
On Mac (Preview) or Windows
Preview's markup toolbar and Edge's drawing tools both let you highlight, underline, and add notes, then save in place.
To collect feedback from someone else
Email attachments get re-saved and lost. Share a link instead — they comment on the exact spot, you see every note in one place.
Need someone else to annotate it and send it back? Drop the PDF into Drafty and share the link — they mark up the exact spot with no account, and every note lands in one threaded place. No re-emailing files.
Open a live demoQuestions
- Can I annotate a PDF for free?
- Yes — your browser, Preview on Mac, and Edge on Windows all annotate PDFs at no cost.
- How do I let a client annotate a PDF without software?
- Share it as a link they open in a browser and comment on directly — no install, no account.
- How do I keep everyone's PDF comments in one place?
- Sharing a single link (rather than emailing copies) keeps every annotation on one artifact instead of scattered across versions.
Keep exploring
Stop emailing files back and forth.
Share one link. They comment on the exact spot — no account, always the current version.