Foxit PDF Editor 14 (Perpetual)

Foxit is the option for people whose PDF work is not casual: forms that collect data, redactions that have to hold up, Bates numbering on a set of exhibits, comparing two revisions of a contract. That is Acrobat territory, and Foxit is one of the few vendors still willing to sell that class of software as a download you own rather than a seat you rent.

The number is large and the boundary is clear. $209.99 buys version 14 outright for one user, on Windows or macOS. Updates within 14 arrive; version 15 will be its own purchase. Foxit also spells out what the perpetual licence leaves outside: the AI assistant, Workspace, Smart Redact, the document-management hooks and anything cloud-based are separate subscriptions. That candour is rare enough to be worth noting, and it means you can tell before buying whether the box you need is inside the box you are paying for.

Do not buy it for ordinary document handling. At this price the break-even against Acrobat is under a year, but against a $20 compressor or a $140 editor it is not close. And check the macOS feature list first — Foxit's Mac release has lagged its Windows one before, and the feature you are buying it for may be the one that is missing.