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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 | Xodo | Smallpdf | Switch / compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| PDF to Word | 91/100 DOCX · Output attached | 89/100 DOCX · Output attached | Active task |
| PDF compression | 94/100 PDF · Output attached | 90/100 PDF · Output attached | |
| Scanned PDF OCR | 90/100 PDF · Output attached | 89/100 PDF · Output attached | |
| PDF merge & split | 95/100 PDF · Output attached | 92/100 PDF · Output attached |
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Browse this task →| Criterion | Xodo PDF to Word Converter (by Apryse) PDF to Word 91/100 Seven-aspect task score Login-free conversion retains text and tables and supports continued online editing; guests get only one free conversion per day before upgrade prompts. Tested export DOCX · Output attached Historical test · 2026-10-19 | Smallpdf PDF to Word 89/100 Seven-aspect task score Text and tables are retained with fast conversion in this run and upfront OCR pricing; tight free allowances and repeated upgrade prompts limit convenience. Tested export DOCX · Output attached Historical test · 2026-10-18 |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing & rules | ||
| Pricing plans | Xodo USD individual web and cross-platform suite; desktop alternative identified · 2026-10-20 Plan · source date Monthly / one-time Annual bill / period Quota & limits Xodo Web2026-10-20 ↗ USD 10.99/month USD 95.88/year Monthly 40+ web tools and unlimited document downloads Rules [1] Annual 40+ web tools and unlimited document downloads Rules [1] Xodo Document Suite2026-10-20 ↗ USD 24.99/month USD 107.93/year Monthly Web, desktop and mobile bundle with unlimited web use Rules [1] Annual Web, desktop and mobile bundle with unlimited web use Rules [1] Xodo Desktop · PDF Studio2026-10-20 ↗ USD 19.99/month USD 119.88/year Monthly Desktop alternative, not web access Rules [1] Annual Desktop alternative, not web access Rules [1] Web / suite trial2026-10-20 ↗ Free trial Trial Trial 3 days; valid payment method required, cancellable during the trial. Custom team plan2026-10-20 ↗ Contact sales Quoted Quoted Price varies by app bundle, seats and billing cycle; not all combinations verified. 9 plan / billing-period records, all listed; — means that period is not recorded. Monthly and annual bills confirmed. Document Suite USD 107.93/year is a new-annual-subscription promotion through 2026-12-31, retained while the annual subscription stays active. Team seat combinations and desktop perpetual licences were not exhaustively checked. Verification has gaps; unknown prices and quotas are not inferred. Cancellation, sources & verification recordMonthly subscriptions can be cancelled anytime; trials require a valid payment method. Refund terms were not fully verified. 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 ↗ | Smallpdf USD web individual and team plans; default 2-seat team bill · 2026-10-20 Plan · source date Monthly / one-time Annual bill / period Quota & limits Free2026-10-20 ↗ Free Free Free Daily downloads and file size are limited, without exact figures; PDF-to-Word OCR is a Pro feature. Pro2026-10-20 ↗ USD 15/month USD 120/year Monthly 1 user; unlimited document downloads; OCR and text editing. Annual 1 user; actual annual bill USD 120; unlimited downloads with OCR. Team · 2 seats2026-10-20 ↗ USD 24/month USD 192/year Monthly 2-seat total; USD 12/seat/month; supports 2–19 seats. Annual 2-seat annual total USD 192; shown equivalent USD 8/seat/month; supports 2–19 seats. 7 plan / billing-period records, all listed; — means that period is not recorded. Current USD web prices show actual annual bills. Team entries use the default 2-seat total and identify the per-seat rate. The free daily allowance is not quantified. Verification has gaps; unknown prices and quotas are not inferred. Cancellation, sources & verification recordFAQ says the trial can be cancelled without charge, reverting to Free at the end of 7 days. Paid refund details were not verified. 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 | Free guests get 1 free conversion per 24 hours; additional conversions trigger 'Daily free use reached' and require Xodo Pro | Capped at ~2 free tasks per day (selectable-text PDFs only; scanned OCR requires Pro), after which a 7-day trial wall appears |
| Cancellation & refunds | Monthly subscriptions can be cancelled anytime; trials require a valid payment method. Refund terms were not fully verified. | FAQ says the trial can be cancelled without charge, reverting to Free at the end of 7 days. Paid refund details were not verified. |
| Disclosure of costs & limits | Top banner notifies the user after the 1st conversion that the daily free quota is reached | Clearly labels Pro OCR before conversion, though remaining daily free task count is not shown upfront on the landing page |
| Task quality | ||
| Measured fixture results | Text retained: 100% · Editable table cells: 16 · Page 2 preserved: Yes | Text retained: 100% · Editable table cells: 16 · Page 2 preserved: Yes |
| Fixture findings | Retained tables and cross-page text; the historical guest allowance was one conversion per day. | Completed promptly with editable tables retained; free use is subject to daily allowances. |
| Original historical observation | Backed by Canada's Apryse (PDFTron) commercial SDK, Xodo exports a 10.0 KB .docx with 100% text and 16-cell native table fidelity in 4.2s; the only caveat is its 1-action/day free limit (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). | Smallpdf's cloud conversion engine is blazingly fast—CDP logs show the server reconstructed our 2-page PDF into a 10.1 KB .docx with a 16-cell native table in just 0.76s (02_workspace.png, 03_download.png); its main limitation is the ~2 tasks/day free cap. |
| Suitable uses · historical assessment | Users who only need to convert 1 important contract or financial report per day and want industrial-grade Apryse (PDFTron) table reconstruction | Occasional users who need a single ultra-fast (0.76s), high-fidelity PDF-to-Word conversion and haven't hit their 2-task daily free limit |
| 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 native .docx (44 paragraphs + 16-cell native table, watermark-free) | Full 2-page native .docx (10.1 KB, watermark-free, subject to daily free task cap) |
| Watermark observation | Watermark-free | Watermark-free |
| Batch & API | Supports Xodo Drive, Dropbox, and Google Drive; enterprise Apryse Server SDK available | Batch conversion requires Pro upgrade |
| Recorded free-tier dimensions | Not verified | Not verified |
| Attached file dimensions | Not verified | Not verified |
| Published allowances & file limits · not tested | Web free allowance: 1 action/day with limited access to web tools. / Web / suite trial: 3 days; valid payment method required, cancellable during the trial. | Free: Daily downloads and file size are limited, without exact figures; PDF-to-Word OCR is a Pro feature. / Pro trial: 7-day trial; verify billing conditions before starting. |
| Speed & reliability | ||
| Timing observation | Network-observed server wait: 4.2s · End-to-end reference: 5s | Network-observed server wait: 0.76s · End-to-end reference: 1.26s |
| Date & fixture | 2026-10-19 · 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 required (limited to 1 free action per day) | No login required within the daily free task quota |
| Manual adjustment | Not verified | Not verified |
| Interaction observations | Clean, ad-free workspace that lets users directly click Download or open the converted file in Xodo's online DOCX Editor. | First conversion completes smoothly without forced registration, though persistent 'Free Trial' upsell banners appear in the header and sidebar. |
| Background & reputation | ||
| Service lifecycle notice | Not verified | Not verified |
| Operator | Apryse Software Corp. (formerly PDFTron Systems Inc.) | Smallpdf AG |
| Recorded origin | Vancouver, Canada / Denver, USA | Zurich, Switzerland |
| Domain history record | Xodo launched in 2014 (parent company PDFTron founded in 1998) | 2013–Present |
| Background & reputation assessment | Operated by Apryse Software Corp. (formerly PDFTron Systems Inc., founded 1998 in Vancouver, Canada), a premier commercial PDF SDK provider. | Founded in Zurich, Switzerland in 2013 (Smallpdf AG) with ISO/IEC 27001 certification. |
| 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 | Clearly states 'We keep your data safe and confidential (permanently deleted after 1h)' and provides a trash-can icon for immediate manual deletion. | Complies with Swiss Federal Data Protection Act and EU GDPR; temporary files are automatically purged 1 hour after upload. |
| Retention statement | Claims deletion within 1 hours; deletion not independently verified | Claims deletion within 1 hours; deletion not independently verified |
| Evaluation basis | ||
| Pricing transparency | 29.5 / 35 Allows guests to upload and complete 1 full watermark-free conversion and download without login (01_landing.png, 02_workspace.png); immediately upon completing the 1st conversion, the top banner announces 'Daily free use reached. Save 40% off Xodo Document Suite' (03_download.png), capping free usage at 1 action per day. | 26.5 / 35 Clearly distinguishes free 'Convert selectable text only' from Pro-badged 'OCR (Scanned pages)' before conversion, and exports a complete 2-page .docx without login; however, the free tier enforces a strict daily task limit (~2 tasks/day) before prompting a 7-day trial wall (01_landing.png, 02_workspace.png, 03_download.png). |
| Interaction restraint | 25.5 / 30 Clean, ad-free workspace that lets users directly click Download or open the converted file in Xodo's online DOCX Editor. | 24 / 30 First conversion completes smoothly without forced registration, though persistent 'Free Trial' upsell banners appear in the header and sidebar. |
| Background & reputation | 19.5 / 20 Operated by Apryse Software Corp. (formerly PDFTron Systems Inc., founded 1998 in Vancouver, Canada), a premier commercial PDF SDK provider. | 19 / 20 Founded in Zurich, Switzerland in 2013 (Smallpdf AG) with ISO/IEC 27001 certification. |
| Engineering & privacy | 14 / 15 Clearly states 'We keep your data safe and confidential (permanently deleted after 1h)' and provides a trash-can icon for immediate manual deletion. | 14 / 15 Complies with Swiss Federal Data Protection Act and EU GDPR; temporary files are automatically purged 1 hour after upload. |
| Task quality | 62 / 65 Powered by Apryse's commercial PDFTron conversion SDK, achieving 100.0% text retention across 44 paragraphs, 16/16 native Word <w:tbl> table cells, and full Page 2 preservation (62.0/65) | 61.5 / 65 Powered by a high-precision Solid Documents-grade conversion kernel, achieving 100.0% text retention, 16-cell native Word <w:tbl> reconstruction, and full multi-page preservation (61.5/65) |
| Deliverable specifications | 17.5 / 20 Exports a complete, watermark-free 10.0 KB .docx without login, though free guests are strictly limited to 1 conversion per day (17.5/20) | 15 / 20 Exports an unwatermarked, untruncated .docx (10.1 KB), though the tight ~2 tasks/day free quota limits heavy daily workflows (15.0/20) |
| Processing speed | 13 / 15 Apryse cloud conversion finishes in ~4.2s and displays 'Done! Your file is ready.' (13.0/15) | 14.5 / 15 CDP job status JSON confirms pure server conversion took just 0.76s (11:13:40.990Z → 11:13:41.751Z)—the fastest engine in the category (14.5/15) |
