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Test scope & comparison notes
These are recorded facts, not a unified ranking. Tested tiers and scope are not consistently recorded. Read pricing with its date and timing with its conditions. Privacy observations reflect visible flows and statements, not a security audit.
Cross-task capability coverage across selected products
Each product is scored independently per task edge; switch tasks below while keeping shared products selected| Task edge | PDFgear | PDF2Go | Switch / compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| PDF to Word | 82/100 DOCX · Output attached | 79/100 DOCX · Output attached | Active task |
| PDF compression | 99/100 PDF · Output attached | 96/100 PDF · Output attached | |
| Scanned PDF OCR | Not tested in topic | 91/100 PDF · Output attached | Compare in task topic → |
| PDF merge & split | 99/100 PDF · Output attached | 96/100 PDF · Output attached |
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Browse this task →| Criterion | PDFgear PDF to Word 82/100 Seven-aspect task score Free login-free access includes deletion, but a skippable sharing prompt interrupts conversion and tables retain only visual borders, hindering edits. Tested export DOCX · Output attached Historical test · 2026-10-18 | PDF2Go PDF to Word 79/100 Seven-aspect task score Login-free access offers format choices and deletion; text is retained but tables need rebuilding, and third-party download ads add friction. Tested export DOCX · Output attached Historical test · 2026-10-18 |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing & rules | ||
| Pricing plans | PDFgear web PDF-to-Word; free desktop alternative noted separately · 2026-10-20 Plan · source date Monthly / one-time Annual bill / period Quota & limits Web free2026-10-20 ↗ Free Free Free One PDF at a time, up to 100 MB; OCR is claimed by the vendor. Batch processing and no file-size limit are desktop features. 1 plan / billing-period records, all listed; — means that period is not recorded. The official web limit is 100 MB per file. Its OCR claim is not a RealTest scanned-document test. Desktop batch and offline processing are not web capabilities. Cancellation, sources & verification recordCancellation and refund terms follow official checkout and help policies. Official feature and pricing page ↗ · 2026-10-20 Capture 1 ↗ | PDF2Go USD single-user plans and education eligibility plan · 2026-10-20 Plan · source date Monthly / one-time Annual bill / period Quota & limits Free2026-10-20 ↗ Free Free Free Up to 50 MB without registration; limited processing, no batching; exact count not listed. Starter2026-10-20 ↗ USD 8/month USD 77/year Monthly 64 GB files, batching, priority queue; 1× AI allowance Annual 64 GB files, batching, priority queue; 1× AI allowance Pro2026-10-20 ↗ USD 29/month USD 278/year Monthly 64 GB files, batching, higher priority; 5× AI allowance Annual 64 GB files, batching, higher priority; 5× AI allowance Business2026-10-20 ↗ USD 89/month USD 854/year Monthly Per-person price; custom limits and centralized billing; 20× AI allowance Annual Per-person price; custom limits and centralized billing; 20× AI allowance Education eligibility plan2026-10-20 ↗ Free Free Free School-email verification; non-commercial educational use only, renewable while eligible. 8 plan / billing-period records, all listed; — means that period is not recorded. The annual view explicitly shows full-year USD 77/278/854; old monthly equivalents are not extrapolated. Paid plans use shared credits without full PDF credit rules here, so no file-count conversion is made. Verification has gaps; unknown prices and quotas are not inferred. Cancellation, sources & verification recordThe page states cancel anytime and a 14-day money-back guarantee; eligibility is subject to official refund terms. Official feature and pricing page ↗ · 2026-10-20 Capture 1 ↗ Official feature and pricing page ↗ · 2026-10-20 Capture 1 ↗ Official feature and pricing page ↗ · 2026-10-20 Capture 1 ↗ |
| Free & trial allowance on the test date | Both the web tool (including Advanced OCR) and cross-platform desktop/mobile apps are currently 100% free | Free guests can convert documents and enable basic OCR; heavy batch sizes or exceeding daily credit allowances require a Premium plan |
| Cancellation & refunds | Cancellation and refund terms follow official checkout and help policies. | The page states cancel anytime and a 14-day money-back guarantee; eligibility is subject to official refund terms. |
| Disclosure of costs & limits | Completely free throughout; only requires clicking 'skip' on the social share modal | Format and OCR options shown upfront before clicking 'PDF to Word converter Now' |
| Task quality | ||
| Measured fixture results | Text retained: 100% · Editable table cells: 0 · Page 2 preserved: Yes | Text retained: 100% · Editable table cells: 0 · Page 2 preserved: Yes |
| Fixture findings | Text was retained but tables were not editable grids; a sharing prompt appeared during conversion. | Text was retained, but tables became ordinary paragraphs; distinguish download ads from the real control. |
| Original historical observation | PDFgear stays true to its 100% free philosophy—offering both Standard and Advanced OCR modes without login (02_workspace.png) and exporting a 16.0 KB .docx with 100% text retention and instant deletion (03_download.png); its only drawbacks are a 'Share to Continue' prompt with a faint gray 'skip' button (03_share_modal.png) and paragraph-based rather than native <w:tbl> table reconstruction. | PDF2Go exports an 11.2 KB .docx with 100% text retention, Page 2 preservation, and an instant 'Delete Task' button, but flattens the 4×4 financial table into 61 separate paragraphs rather than a native Word table and displays green ad buttons below the result card (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). |
| Suitable uses · historical assessment | Users who detest paywalls and third-party ads or need free OCR text recognition on scanned PDFs | Users who need 100% text extraction (including free OCR) without logging in and do not require native Word table border reconstruction |
| Result & output evidence | ||
| Scans / OCR | The fixture is a text PDF; scans and OCR were not tested | The fixture is a text PDF; scans and OCR were not tested |
| Delivery capabilities | ||
| Recorded export specifications | DOCX · Output attached · No watermark in test | DOCX · Output attached · No watermark in test |
| Historical specification note · not an official maximum | Full 2-page unwatermarked .docx (16.0 KB, 39 paragraphs, free OCR mode supported) | Full 2-page unwatermarked .docx (11.2 KB, 61 paragraphs, 100% text retention) |
| Watermark observation | No watermark | No watermark |
| Batch & API | Single-file conversion on web; unlimited local batch conversion via free Windows/macOS desktop app | Supports local, URL, Google Drive, and Dropbox imports plus ZIP download |
| Recorded free-tier dimensions | Not verified | Not verified |
| Attached file dimensions | Not verified | Not verified |
| Published allowances & file limits · not tested | Web free: One PDF at a time, up to 100 MB; OCR is claimed by the vendor. Batch processing and no file-size limit are desktop features. | Free: Up to 50 MB without registration; limited processing, no batching; exact count not listed. / Education eligibility plan: School-email verification; non-commercial educational use only, renewable while eligible. |
| Speed & reliability | ||
| Timing observation | Network-observed server wait: 10.8s · End-to-end reference: 12.3s | Network-observed server wait: 11.4s · End-to-end reference: 12.9s |
| Date & fixture | 2026-10-18 · anchor_pdf2word_v1 · US-West (California, AS2914) | 2026-10-18 · anchor_pdf2word_v1 · US-West (California, AS2914) |
| Repeated tests & reliability | No standardized repetition count, success rate or variability range is recorded. | No standardized repetition count, success rate or variability range is recorded. |
| Interaction experience | ||
| Account requirements | No login in this test | No login in this test |
| Sign-in methods | No login or registration required | No login required (optional Google / email signup for extra free credits) |
| Manual adjustment | Not verified | Not verified |
| Interaction observations | Zero third-party banner ads, though clicking 'Convert' pops up a 'Share to Continue — Share this tool on social media to unlock access and continue converting your files' prompt with a faint gray 'skip' link at the bottom (03_share_modal.png). | Provides a clean red 'Download' button on the result card, but embeds third-party AdSense banners featuring deceptive green 'DOWNLOAD PDF TO WORD' buttons below and beside the workspace (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). |
| Background & reputation | ||
| Service lifecycle notice | Not verified | Not verified |
| Operator | PDFgear Tech Pte. Ltd. (pdfgear.com) | QaamGo Web GmbH (pdf2go.com) |
| Recorded origin | Singapore | Radolfzell, Germany |
| Domain history record | 2022–Present (fast-growing free cross-platform PDF suite) | 2016–Present (10-year German online PDF platform) |
| Background & reputation assessment | Operated by Singapore-based PDFgear Tech Pte. Ltd., widely praised across tech communities for its 100% free Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android apps. | Operated by QaamGo Web GmbH in Radolfzell, Germany (the same parent company behind Img2Go and Online-Convert). |
| External reputation record | Not verified | Not verified |
| Engineering & privacy | ||
| Processing location | Uploaded for cloud processing | Uploaded for cloud processing |
| Third-party tracking record | Not verified | Not verified |
| Engineering & privacy assessment | Provides an instant trash-can delete icon right beside 'Download File' and explicitly states 'Your files remain private and will be deleted after leaving our site' (03_download.png). | Full HTTPS transport with a prominent 'Delete Task' instant-deletion button on the result page and automatic 24-hour server cleanup. |
| Retention statement | Explicit retention period unconfirmed; inspect policy record | Claims deletion within 24 hours; deletion not independently verified |
| Evaluation basis | ||
| Pricing transparency | 33 / 35 Genuinely free with no subscription paywall, no registration requirement, no watermark, and even makes its 'Advanced (Enable OCR to recognize text from scans)' mode completely free for guests (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). | 29 / 35 Clearly exposes DOCX/DOC format options and a free 'Enable OCR' toggle right in the workspace before conversion, exporting a full unwatermarked .docx with no login required (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). |
| Interaction restraint | 19 / 30 Zero third-party banner ads, though clicking 'Convert' pops up a 'Share to Continue — Share this tool on social media to unlock access and continue converting your files' prompt with a faint gray 'skip' link at the bottom (03_share_modal.png). | 20 / 30 Provides a clean red 'Download' button on the result card, but embeds third-party AdSense banners featuring deceptive green 'DOWNLOAD PDF TO WORD' buttons below and beside the workspace (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). |
| Background & reputation | 18 / 20 Operated by Singapore-based PDFgear Tech Pte. Ltd., widely praised across tech communities for its 100% free Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android apps. | 18 / 20 Operated by QaamGo Web GmbH in Radolfzell, Germany (the same parent company behind Img2Go and Online-Convert). |
| Engineering & privacy | 14 / 15 Provides an instant trash-can delete icon right beside 'Download File' and explicitly states 'Your files remain private and will be deleted after leaving our site' (03_download.png). | 13 / 15 Full HTTPS transport with a prominent 'Delete Task' instant-deletion button on the result page and automatic 24-hour server cleanup. |
| Task quality | 51 / 65 OpenXML inspection confirms 100.0% text retention (all 4/4 headings, 12/12 table values, 3/3 body phrases, and Page 2 code preserved) with 3 background graphics preserving visual table borders, though it does not generate a native Word <w:tbl> table object (51.0/65) | 49.5 / 65 OpenXML inspection confirms 100.0% text retention (all 4/4 headings, 12/12 table values, 3/3 body phrases, and Page 2 code preserved), but flattens the 4×4 table into 61 standalone paragraphs (table_count = 0) rather than a native Word <w:tbl> object (49.5/65) |
| Deliverable specifications | 18 / 20 Exports a clean 16.0 KB .docx with no login or watermark, plus free optional Advanced OCR mode (18.0/20) | 17.5 / 20 Exports a clean 11.2 KB .docx with no login or watermark, plus free optional OCR and .doc legacy output (17.5/20) |
| Processing speed | ||
