How to markup a PDF
To markup a PDF, open it in Preview on Mac (Shift ⌘ A for the toolbar), Microsoft Edge on Windows, or Adobe Acrobat Reader — then use the highlighter, callout arrows, and text note tools to mark up the exact spot. To let a client markup the PDF without downloading anything, share a link they open in a browser and click directly.
On Mac with Preview
Double-click the PDF to open it in Preview. Press Shift ⌘ A to show the Markup Toolbar — highlighter, text note, speech-bubble callout, shapes, arrows, freehand. The callout bubble is the most useful for design proofing: it points to a specific element and floats a label nearby, so there is no ambiguity about which paragraph or graphic you mean. Save with ⌘ S to embed the markup. Annotations bake into the file, so any PDF reader will show them.
On Windows with Edge or Adobe Reader
Right-click the PDF and choose Open with → Microsoft Edge. Click the pen icon for the highlighter, add text sticky notes, or draw freehand. Save As to keep the annotated copy. If you have Adobe Reader installed, click Tools → Comment for a broader set: callouts, arrows, stamps, measurement. Reader is free and saves structured PDF comments — the kind that round-trip correctly in any Acrobat-compatible reader. Edge markup saves as an overlay that some readers flatten silently, so for anything going to a designer or printer, Adobe Reader is the safer call.
On iPhone or iPad
Open the PDF in Files or Safari. Tap the share icon → Markup (pencil icon). You get a pen, highlighter, text box, arrows, and magnifier callout. Use the arrow tool combined with a text box rather than a freehand circle — it's easier to read in print. Tap Done → Save File. Important: iOS Markup saves a rasterised overlay, not structured PDF comments. The recipient sees the marks in any reader, but cannot reply or resolve them as threads.
When the client needs to markup the PDF, not you
The most common failure in client PDF review: you email a PDF, the client doesn't have markup software, so they screenshot it and draw on the image in their phone's photo editor, then email the screenshot back at 800×600px. Or they open it in a free mobile app that saves annotations in a format you can't open. Or they email back plain text — 'the second paragraph' — and you have to guess which element they mean. The cleaner path is a link that renders the PDF in the browser. The client clicks the exact paragraph, the photo, the wrong price — and pins a note right there. You see exactly what they clicked. Nothing to download, no file bouncing back.
If it's your client who needs to markup the PDF — not you — skip the email loop. Drop the PDF into Drafty, share the link, and they click the exact spot and pin a note, right in their browser with no account. Every comment lands anchored to the element they meant, in one thread. You reply, resolve, and push a revised version to the same link. No re-emailed files, no 800px screenshots, no 'which paragraph did you mean?'
Open a live demoQuestions
- Can I markup a PDF for free?
- Yes. Preview on Mac and Microsoft Edge on Windows both markup PDFs at no cost. Adobe Reader is also free to download and has a more complete set of markup tools — callouts, arrows, stamps, measurement. On iPhone, iOS Markup is built in.
- How do I markup a PDF and send it back?
- On Mac, markup in Preview and save — the annotations embed. On Windows, markup in Edge and Save As, or use Adobe Reader's File → Save. Email the saved PDF back. One thing to check: Edge stores markup as an overlay that Acrobat users can see but cannot interact with as comment threads. If the recipient is using Acrobat, use Adobe Reader for markup to ensure the comments round-trip correctly.
- How do I let a client markup a PDF without Adobe Acrobat?
- Share a link they open in a browser. Tools that render the PDF as a review page let the client click the exact element and pin a note without downloading anything or having any PDF software installed. This also avoids the emailed-file problem: instead of each person marking up their own copy, all notes land on one shared artifact.
- How do I collect markup from multiple people on the same PDF?
- Email doesn't work for this — each person marks up their own copy and you reconcile four different annotated files. A shared link where everyone marks up the same PDF keeps all notes in one place. You see who said what, on which element, without merging files.
- How is markup different from annotation on a PDF?
- The terms are interchangeable in practice. What matters is the format: Acrobat-standard PDF comments survive any reader; Edge overlays and iOS rasterised markup can silently disappear when the file moves to a different app.
- Why do my PDF markups disappear when someone else opens the file?
- Markup tools that save an image overlay rather than structured PDF comments look correct in the original app but flatten or disappear in other readers. Edge's markup and iOS Markup both do this. Adobe Reader and Acrobat save structured comments that any Acrobat-compatible reader can display and interact with. If you need your markup to survive across different readers, use Adobe Reader or another Acrobat-standard tool.
Keep exploring
Stop emailing files back and forth.
Share one link. They comment on the exact spot — no account, always the current version.