good free annotation apps

25 Best Annotation Software Tools (Free & Paid Apps)

In this post, we will dive into the 25 best annotation software tools that you can use for your specific personal and business needs.

💡 KEY INSIGHTS

• Flexibility in annotation tools is crucial for adapting to various data types and annotation needs.
• Advanced annotation tools significantly reduce the time required for data labeling through automation features.
• Ensuring data privacy and security is a paramount consideration when choosing annotation tools for sensitive projects.
• After evaluating numerous options, we selected the top 25 annotation tools, with PDF Reader Pro ranking as #1 for its comprehensive features.

Each tool comes with its pros and cons and there is a tool suited for every need.

There are advanced online annotation tools that exist to make our lives easier , from editing notes to summarizing important information, keeping track of to-do lists, all the way to editing images and video.

We use these tools every single day and all of which have their own unique features and can help us accomplish our everyday tasks with ease.

So, What Are Annotation Tools?

3 things to consider when choosing an annotation tool, 25 best annotation tools (free and paid).

Important disclosure: we're proud affiliates of some tools mentioned in this guide. If you click an affiliate link and subsequently make a purchase, we will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you (you pay nothing extra).

Simply put, they are text or drawing tools that help us add information to text, video, or image documents and various content pieces.

They can also be used in many different types of databases, such as Scale and Doccano.

There are countless tools out there and our job is to make the search easier for you.

Each tool has its particular uses , depending on your annotation goals, there will be different options for every need.

👉🏼 There are countless paid and free apps that are available on the market today.

One of the first things to consider when deciding which is best for you is the price (or perhaps no price at all).

Whether your choice is free or paid, consider the features that come with both versions, you may be getting a great deal with the paid versions that allow you to use all the features within the app at a low cost.

On the flip side, a free tool may be best if you are using the basic features on the app and see no reason to pay for extra features. It all depends on what you plan to use the app for.

2. The Functionality

This is probably one of the most important points to consider.

Ask yourself

• What will I be doing with this tool?
• Why am I using this tool?
• What can this tool do for me to make my life easier?

To make this decision simple, the tool should have the functionality you are looking for.

• Will you be using the tool for studies and taking down notes ?
• Will you be editing documents on a large scale and need fast and accurate software that saves you time?

Each tool possesses its own set of functional features and suits every person's specific needs.

3. Quality And Efficiency

This point all comes down to how well does the app run and how well it performs the tasks it needs to.

Many free tools may not always detect every error that needs correcting or a phrase that can be worded differently.

This is usually a consequence of insufficient QA (Quality Assurance) from the software itself.

👉🏼 Paid versions of some tools provide a more trustworthy base for picking up on errors .

However, the price may not always be worth the extra efficiency that the tool provides and there are still some effective free tools on the market, just with fewer features.

Now that you have a foundation to build upon, here are 25 tools that have made the list, both free and paid versions.

We will dive into each one's pros and cons so that you can make the best decision for your annotation wants and needs.

• PDF Reader Pro
• Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
• Markup Hero
• PDF Annotator
• Screenlight
• Zoho Annotator

1. PDF Reader Pro

PDF Reader Pro stands out as a remarkable annotation tool, distinguished by its user-friendly interface and comprehensive set of features. From our first-hand experience using this tool, we found it particularly efficient for a variety of tasks.

One of the key strengths of PDF Reader Pro is its versatility in handling different annotation types.

Whether it's highlighting text, adding notes, or even drawing directly on the document, the tool offers a seamless experience. The annotation process is intuitive, making it easy for users of all skill levels to navigate and utilize the tool effectively.

Here's More About Our Experience Using PDF Reader Pro

During our exploration of annotation tools, we had the chance to use PDF Reader Pro extensively, and our experience was exceptionally positive. It proved to be a highly effective tool for managing and annotating PDF documents.

Key Aspects Of Our Experience:

• Intuitive Annotation Features: PDF Reader Pro impressed us with its wide range of annotation capabilities. The ease of highlighting, adding notes, and drawing on documents made our annotation tasks significantly more efficient.
• Seamless Document Navigation: Managing and navigating through annotations was straightforward. This was particularly useful when working with large documents, as it allowed us to easily track and revise our annotations.
• Multi-Platform Compatibility: We appreciated the tool's compatibility across different devices, which facilitated a seamless workflow whether we were on desktops or mobile devices.
• Robust Security Features: The security features, including encryption and password protection, provided peace of mind when handling sensitive documents.

Overall Impression: Our experience with PDF Reader Pro was highly satisfactory. The tool stood out for its user-friendly interface, comprehensive annotation features, and robust security measures.

Our Rating: Based on our hands-on experience, we rate PDF Reader Pro a solid 4.8 out of 5 stars.

We weren't the only ones that have benefitted from using PDF Reader Pro. While doing our research we found reviews showcasing others' experiences.

Pros And Cons

PDF Reader Pro has a free trial available.

After the trial period, you can subscribe for a once-off price of $79.99/lifetime.

2. Adobe Acrobat Pro DC

With Adobe Acrobat Pro DC you can access PDF documents and comment, edit, share, add virtual sticky notes and send files amongst friends and colleagues with ease.

Adobe Acrobat Pro has many features which allow for the sharing of PDF files, converting, combining, and editing documents all in one place. You can convert PDF documents to:

• PowerPoint (PPT)
• Images to PDF format

There are unlimited projects to work on within the software and you can be sure to have all your work under one roof, making it that much easier and convenient.

This tool is not free and requires a monthly subscription of $14.99.

While this can work out to be a bit expensive annually, the features that come with Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and its high quality make the purchase more worthwhile.

• Many PDF conversion options
• Efficient editing features
• Easy to navigate
• Effective sharing capabilities
• Available on mobile
• Easy participation
• Simple PDF management
• Frequent updates
• The editing tab is quite clunky

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC is supported on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

Markup is one of Kdan Mobile's apps that provide basic tools that function at the highest level of productivity.

Markup is perfect for business professionals, but also for students who need to edit and summarize work at the click of a finger. From PDF files to website content, you can work on almost anything.

With Markup, you can collaborate with your entire team and make document review simple. Markup has an AI Auto Summary feature that allows all your work to be summarized quickly.

Summaries can be saved on your device for when you want and need to review workflow and make some changes.

Markup is a free-to-use tool. There are, however, Inn-App purchases that can be bought to add extra features to the app, should you need them.

• Easy to use
• Sufficient features with the free version
• AI Auto Summary feature
• Convenient collaboration
• The browser extension can be buggy
• Mobile version occasionally slow

Markup is available as a web extension on both Windows and Mac, it is only available on iOS Mobile devices and tablets.

With ClickUp, you can expect to create informative internal and external documents, edit existing docs and create wikis and impressionable knowledge bases.

ClickUp allows you to edit and create most files , from PDF documents all the way to Google Docs.

ClickUp boasts many features, but some of its key features include:

• Commenting on documents
• Notes tools
• Syncing calendars
• Arranging and organizing multiple priorities, and formulating checklists

There are over 100 exclusive features within this annotation app.

ClickUp allows for numerous app integration, including Slack, Google Drive, Dropbox, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom, just to name a few.

It is an advantage to have an annotation app that possesses screen-sharing options like those found in Zoom and Microsoft Teams.

For the most part, ClickUp is free to use but can be upgraded to the 'Unlimited' package for only $5 per month when paid on an annual basis or $9 per month when paid monthly.

• Over 100 features
• Numerous app integration
• Displays status of projects
• AIO (All In One) functionality
• Connect projects with others
• Great UI (User Interface)
• Complex learning curve
• App stalls at times
• Limitations with mobile version

As mentioned above, ClickUp has a web and mobile version. It is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile, as well as Tablets.

5. Markup Hero

Markup Hero is an annotation and screenshot tool with the main objective of improving communication and productivity.

This free tool allows you to take scrolling screenshots of any basic application window or any Chrome tab.

Even though Markup Hero has various features, here are its key features:

• Screenshots
• Crop and resize canvas
• Annotate screenshots , images PDF’s, and URL's
• Chrome, Google Drive, Slack App, and Annotation API integrations

The Sidekick and Hero plans are both free and enable you to have access to Markup Hero’s basic features.

However, you can decide to upgrade to the Superhero plan for $4 per month (billed annually). This plan was designed for professionals and other teams who need access to all their features without limiting their access.

• Free version available
• Annotating PDF’s
• Simple UI design
• Edible and accessible from any device
• Share links to screenshots
• It is still a newer product

Markup Hero is available on Windows, Mac, and Linux (Beta).

6. NoteLedge

NoteLedge is known for its use as a digital notebook that can be used by creatives for inspiration, creative processing, and its multimedia tools make for exciting mood board creation.

Share files and ideas with teammates and clients and create top-notch presentation content too.

NoteLedge allows you to interact with projects like never before and its sketching tools are some of its users' favorite features to use.

NoteLedge has a flexible workspace and lets you arrange your content in however many layers and pages you would like.

• NoteLedge has three pricing plans.
• The first plan is free and is only available on iOS devices.
• The second plan is $2.49 per month and is only available on iOS devices.
• The third and final plan is $4.99 per month and is available on Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac.
• Many features with each plan
• Effective and efficient
• Ads in the free plan
• Occasionally crashes

NoteLedge is available on Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS and is dependent on the price plan.

7. zipBoard

zipBoard is a web-based annotation and visual feedback tool for almost all types of digital assets . With it, you can review all your online proofs on a centralized platform and get rid of the endless email chains and screen-sharing meetings.

zipBoard lets you annotate images, videos, webpages (static and live), SCORM, PDFs, etc. and simplifies your visual bug tracking & QA process for reviewers.

zipBoard’s vast array of annotation tools lets you markup directly on top of your screen and share them across the team and stakeholders. It has an easy-to-use, simple UI, especially useful while getting feedback from non-technical clients and stakeholders, which is often the need.

All of these are without creating an account for the guest clients , letting you assign and prioritize the tasks from its dashboard.

With the traceability of all versions and changes and a clear designation of roles, zipBoard helps ensure confusion-free collaboration for all, whether you’re an agency or an individual.

zipBoard comes with 3 different plans and they offer a 15-day free trial in each of them.

• Team, Agency, Enterprise: Custom ( Contact zipBoard )
• Unlimited collaborators and projects.
• The biggest range of annotation tools.
• Provide your stamp of approval and sign-off creatives.
• Integrate the product into your ERP. API creation on demand.
• Best in class sharing features.
• There is no mobile app.
• The user community isn’t that big but the active support makes up for it.

zipBoard is entirely web-based.

8. Filestage

Filestage is another tool known for its online proofing ( reviewing and approving) of files, including PDFs, videos, images, designs, and audio (making it ideal for speech tool use).

The app's key features include complete commenting tools, sorting files all in one place, and tracking the progress of your files.

With Filestage, one of its powerful features is the automation of file sharing which has allowed for a faster return time of a document's reviews and approvals.

There is no limit to the number of files that can be shared and there is an unlimited reviewer option, send projects to as many people as you like.

Filestage can be integrated with many other apps, with some being Google Drive, Dropbox, Zoom, and Asana.

This makes feedback and approval easy for everyone.

Filestage is not a free-to-use tool, it does have a free trial option, otherwise, it has four pricing options to choose from.

• The first option is called the 'Essential' and it starts off at $10.66 per month.
• The second option is called 'Advanced' and starts at $22.50 per month.
• The third option is called 'Professional' , starting at $46.18 per month.
• The fourth and final option is known as 'Enterprise' and the amount is determined over email or phone call depending on the business needs.
• Fast return time on reviews and approvals
• Unlimited amount of file shares
• Integration with other useful apps
• Time-saving
• Uploading speed can be slow
• Feature limitations for pro plan

Filestage is available on Windows and Mac.

9. Annotate

Annotate allows you to directly draft documents within the app and allows for collaboration throughout the writing process.

A key feature of Annotate is its easy fact-checking system .

You can paste information from another document into Annotate, and it will provide a link to the original source, making it easy to credit references.

Share your documents with people you trust, Annotate allows groups to have discussions about projects and share ideas all within a safe space. You give permission to those you would like to see your files.

Review and edit documents too with ease, and all editing takes place within Annotate , no need to download any files to edit later.

One of the easiest and efficient fact-checking tools out there.

Most of Annotate's functions and features are free to use , however, there are plans for larger teams who need more customizable features. The price for these plans is determined by the number of users and the extra features they require.

• Organized User Interface
• File protection
• Fact-checking system
• The free version offers a limited amount of file space
• Can be slow at times

Annotate is available on Windows and Mac and offers basic viewing functions on Mobile.

With nTask, it is a select tool for project management . Teams can use this annotation software to plan and analyze important everyday tasks and collaborate with one another on project planning.

nTask offers strategic features that aid in streamlining and managing the resources of projects.

This app also provides useful budgets and other financial summaries to keep track of all the necessary facts and figures.

One of nTasks popular features is their Kanban Boards (project management visualization tool).

Users can visualize projects with Gantt charts (illustrate project schedules) by making use of the Kanban boards and planning their project's process. There are many ready-made board templates to choose from too.

There are four pricing plans that nTask provides.

• The first plan is free and is recommended for freelancers.
• The second plan is a ' Premium ' plan and is recommended for SMEs and Startups at $2.99 per month, per user.
• The third plan is a ' Business ' plan, recommended for larger corporate institutions at $7.99 per month, per user.
• The fourth and final plan is an ' Enterprise ' plan and the price is determined on demand .
• Easy to use and collaborate
• Efficient and effective project management
• Use of Kanban boards
• Streamlined deadline view
• Great integration with other apps (Slack and Zapier)
• Not enough customization options
• Attaching documents and images can be tricky

nTask is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

Miro is a fast, simple-to-use visual collaboration software that doubles up as a robust documentation and note-keeping tool. At first glance, Miro might seem like just a digital whiteboard — but its capabilities go far beyond that.

It’s designed to let your team collaborate effectively no matter where or when you work. Used by over 45 million people worldwide, Miro has the right tools , tech, and templates to go from idea to execution.

It’s why the platform quickly becomes your central project hub , and a way to always stay connected to your team. You can explore one of Miro’s many ways to communicate — including sticky notes , charts, graphs, and videos.

Miro is designed to fit into your hybrid workflow , and boasts of over 1,000 ready-made templates including mind maps, Kanban boards, Gantt charts, product wireframes , research boards, and flowcharts.

It’s trusted by 99% of the Fortune 100, and used by teams at TransUnion, HP, Upwork, Cisco, Qlik, and Atkins.

• Free forever plan available
• Intuitive and easy setup
• Built-in communication features for streamlined collaboration
• Visitor/guest accounts locked to paid plans only
• Zooming can be jumpy on larger projects
• Free version does not allow high-quality export to PDF

Miro has four pricing options.

• The free plan is free forever, but is limited to three boards
• Starter package , priced at $10 per use r per month
• Business package , priced at $20 per user per month
• Enterprise package , available at a customized price

Android, Apple, Windows, Mac, Web-app

12. PDF Annotator

PDF Annotator is ideal for those who want a select tool that can handle most PDF document purposes . There are many features that can assist with editing, reviewing, and enhancing PDFs.

The PDF Annotator can be used to highlight, add text, images, symbols, signatures, page numbers, and more. All your corrections and additions to the PDF are saved within the software.

You do not have to worry about you or others not being able to see your annotations within the document. You can view your edited PDFs in any PDF software.

PDF Annotator is not free but does have a free trial. It has two main license payment options . The license is operational for a year and is renewed annually.

• The first license option is ideal for normal business functions and for 1-4 users it is priced at $69.95 per year, excluding VAT.
• The second license option is perfect for students and university functions and for 1-4 users it is priced at $39.95 per year, excluding VAT.
• The more users, the cheaper license is annual, with the highest number of users being more than 1000 for $2.47 per year, excluding VAT.
• Tackles many PDF purposes
• Performance can be slow
• Specialized for specific annotation purposes only

PDF Annotator is available on Windows.

13. Marker.io

Marker.io allows you to collect feedback and bug reports straight into your favorite issue tracker—without leaving your website. Digital teams and web agencies use Marker.io for internal QA as well as user acceptance testing. With a widget that lives on your website, you can report bugs at the click of a button, saving your team hours in feedback management.

We used to copy/paste client emails. Now, Marker.io automatically creates those issues in Jira.

The best part? This tool automatically captures URL, environment info, console logs, and every other metadata developers might need to reproduce and fix bugs. And because of its deep 2-way integrations with the most popular PM tools (Jira, Trello, Clickup...), you'll never need to spend entire weeks triaging client feedback emails or user bug reports in your inbox again.

Marker.io offers a Starter plan at $39/month, and more features for Team, Company, and Enterprise plans.

• Easy to use for both your QA team and non-technical stakeholders
• Deep integrations with over 15 PM tools
• Intuitive, modern UI
• All-in-one tool for both internal QA and UAT

Not ideal for mobile apps

Marker.io has both a web and mobile version. It is available on Windows, Mac, Mobile, and Tablets.

14. Wipster

Wipster is known for its video proofing tools and is loved by creative teams who seek to review and collaborate with other creatives. Wipster allows you to invite an unlimited number of viewers and reviewers to your projects.

Along with inviting others to view your work, you are allowed to choose how your project is viewed and by whom, with Wipster's effective privacy settings.

Wipster has great integration possibilities, with other annotation software like Adobe, Dropbox, Slack, Wistia, Vimeo, and Brightcove.

Some of Wipster's key features include closed captions, threaded-comments, tracking content, and feedback controls.

Privacy is important and Wipster knows how to make its users feel at ease, knowing their work is safe and protected.

Wipster has three pricing plans.

• The first plan is free to use for freelancers and the occasional project.
• The second plan is ideal for teams of small or growing companies at $22.50 per month, per user.
• The third and final plan is for large companies that have multiple teams and the price is determined based on the specific needs of a company.
• Strong integrations (especially with Adobe)
• Organized feedback
• Fast editing capabilities
• Safe and secure
• Can be costly
• Occasional uploading issues

Wipster is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

15. Dropbox

Dropbox is one of the more popular annotation source tools.

One of the main goals of Dropbox is organization and making sure that you can access different file types at anytime Dropbox handles cloud content, traditional files, and multiple web shortcuts.

Dropbox can be used for personal and business-related projects. Its features allow you to store and sync files, share files with others even if they do not have their own Dropbox account, and manage collaborations with other teams or team members securely.

Dropbox helps to make sure all your files can be accessed at any time and ensures that lost files always have a backup, so you never lose out on your progress.

Dropbox is not free and comes with six pricing plans , two for personal use and three for business use, and one free plan for either personal or business use.

• The first plan is ideal for individuals at $11.99 per month.
• The second plan is best suited for households at $19.99 per month and allows for six users.
• The third plan is for solo workers at $19.99 per month.
• The fourth plan is for growing teams at $15 per user, per month.
• The fifth and final plan is for complex teams at $25 per user, per month.

The free plan offers limited features and is likely more suited for personal use. For additional features, the paid versions are more appealing.

• Easy synchronization
• Data backups
• Vast storage with paid versions
• Small storage with the free option
• The app can be slow at times
• Costly in the long-run

Dropbox is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

16. Doccano

Doccano is a commercial data annotation tool that specializes in-text annotation and functions as a select tool for machine learning practitioners.

Some of its key features include text analysis, sequence labeling, text summarization, and entity recognition (names, locations, and more). Each feature has its own efficient output format.

Doccano also deals with machine translations which helps translate sentences quickly into the desired languages. Doccano lets you annotate your text files in different languages too.

Doccano is a fantastic text tool for web developers and assists in completing projects in a fast and effective manner.

Doccano, however, is also one of the best text tools for users who do not possess a background in coding but need to learn how to manually label the data parallel to those with industry knowledge.

Not many open-source commercial data annotation tools can boast high optimization, but Doccano does, and it shows.

Doccano is an open-source data annotation tool, meaning it is free to use for all.

• Free to use
• Supports multiple languages
• Annotation tools are collaborative
• Completely manual annotation

Doccano is available on Windows and Mac.

17. Drawboard

Drawboard is a feature-rich tool. There are two main tools in the software, Drawboard PDF and Drawboard Projects.

With Drawboard PDF, you have everything you need to edit and review PDF documents with ease and accuracy.

One of Drawboard PDF's appealing features is the drawing tools that claim to feel like you are using real ink and many users love the different pen thickness options and color tools.

The PDF editing tool is simple to use and navigate and has many image resizing tools such as rotating, inserting, cropping, and deleting pages alongside its drawing tools.

With Drawboard Projects , the features are more applicable for team collaborations. Some of the useful features include PDF markups, drawings, and edits.

Drawboard Projects features are helpful to industry professionals like architects and engineers that require details to be added to house plans, drainage systems, and so on, but can be used by any industry professional to share files.

Drawboard has three pricing plans and is not free-to-use software.

• The first plan is known as 'Basic' and does not have unlimited project access to drawings and templates. It is $20 per month.
• The second plan is known as 'Standard' and has unlimited project templates for $35 per month.
• The third and final plan is called 'Enterprise' and the price is determined on the clients' needs.

There are additional features following each plan.

• Many PDF editing features
• Fast and efficient
• Lags at times

Drawboard PDF is available on Windows and Drawboard Projects is available on Windows, iPad, and only iPhone mobiles.

18. Screenlight

Screenlight is all about sharing your work with ease. Share files with all the available features that Screenlight offers, such as uploading video, audio speech tools, images, link sharing, reviewing, and complete commenting tools.

Once you have uploaded your files, Screenlight makes sure to develop preview files for you to choose from and enhance your projects. Formatting issues are a thing of the past with this collaborative tool.

Screenlight places an emphasis on its simplicity and time-coded comments that can be entered alongside the video where readers do not have to wait for the comment at a later stage.

It's time-coded comments are a brilliant feature that more sharing tools should offer.

Screenlight has three pricing plans.

• The first plan is free to use and can only be available to one user.
• The second plan is known as 'Professional' and is available to 25 users for $9 per user, per month.
• The third and final plan is known as 'Enterprise' and is available to large companies from $500 per month depending on the needs of the company.
• Affordable for individuals and small companies
• Easy collaboration tools
• Time coded comments
• Could use more graphic customization
• Platform availability

Screenlight is available on Windows and Android Mobile.

19. Red Pen

Red Pen is a select tool offering fast feedback tools and complete commenting tools.

This app is used for visual collaborating and serves as a place for teams to share files with each other and make use of all the note tools available.

With Red Pen, most of the comments are live and users get to see comments as they happen on the page. The number of collaborators is unlimited, you can invite as many people to review your project as you like.

Red Pen keeps track of all your edited images and welcomes additional versions as you go along.

Red Pen has a free trial option, but the software does have four pricing plans. The price is determined by how many projects you are running at once.

• The first plan is limited to 5 projects at once at $20 per month.
• The second plan is limited to 10 projects at $30 per month.
• The third plan is limited to 25 projects at $60 per month.
• The fourth and final plan is limited to 40 projects at $90 per month.
• Free trial option
• Live commenting tool
• Occasional bugs
• Costly in long-run

Red Pen is available on Windows and Mac.

Scale is another commercial data tool specializing in audio annotation and speech annotation aimed at NLP (Natural Language Processing).

Scale is integrated with machine learning, all you need to do is send your sensor data to Scale's API (Application Programming Interface) and it will do all the hard work.

Simply put, Scale's main objective is to transform your audio files into text translations that can be used for your specific project needs with its quality speech tools.

Scale is capable of translating different languages and converting those files into easy to handle audio snippets.

Scale can be integrated with Pilot, Google Docs, and Diffgram Data Labelling.

Scale is not a free-to-use software and the price of a plan is determined by your audio output needs. To receive a quote, contact the Scale team for more information.

• Provides annotations for large volumes of data
• Great customer service
• Fast text translating
• Reliable customer engineers
• Not supported as an app on Windows or Mac
• Price is not disclosed on the website

Scale is entirely web-based.

Nimbus acts as an image and screencast tool that allows you to send images, videos, screencasts, and screenshots to your friends, family, and colleagues.

With Nimbus, there are many key features available to help you customize your material, like recording, annotating, and making notes on screenshots, images, or video.

Nimbus has a fast upload speed and ensures that whatever you share gets seen quickly.

Nimbus is an innovative screencast tool for teachers, it serves as an effective communicative and collaborative tool amongst teachers, parents, and students.

It recently just developed a new business feature on its platform for helpful clientele collaboration .

There are features available to every users' needs.

Nimbus has three price plans, one of which is completely free.

• The first option is free and offers a decent amount of helpful features.
• The second option is called 'Pro' and is priced at $4 per month.
• The third and final option is called 'Business' and is priced at $6 per month.
• Enhances productivity
• Fast upload speed
• Each plan offers enough features
• Syncing needs work
• The mobile app can be clunky

Nimbus is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

With Diigo, you can annotate web pages and PDFs while browsing the net at the same time. Diigo allows you to add sticky notes, highlight text, place tags on your favorite web pages, outline your documents and so much more.

Diigo functions well as a multi-tool but especially well as a sharing tool and you can have collaborative discussions with colleagues, classmates, or friends.

You can access your tagged web pages from anywhere and at any time with Diigo's functional archive tool.

Diigo makes use of the Cloud , whenever you are browsing, save your web notes with links and pictures to ensure you never lose track. Diigo aims to make web surfing and editing documents a lot easier.

Diigo offers four pricing plans.

• The first plan is free but does not come with many features.
• The second plan is called ' Standard ' and is priced per year at $40.
• The third plan is called ' Professional ' and is priced per year at $59.
• The fourth and final plan is called ' Business ' and it is priced per month at $10 , per user.
• Collaborative options
• Efficient link saving
• Limited usage with the free version
• Can be slow

Diigo is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

23. Zoho Annotator

With Zoho Annotator, you can add comments to web pages and save those comments as images . Zoho Annotator works as a screen capturing and screencast tool that allows you to share files on a personal or business level.

You can add to your web snapshots by making use of the drawing tool that the software has to offer, it's all customizable. With Zoho Annotator, you can also smudge out certain words or sentences that you would rather like to be kept private.

You don't just have to use the software for web pages, you can use it to design diagrams, infographics, and mock-ups too.

Zoho Annotator allows for integration with many apps, some of which being Facebook, LinkedIn, Cloud drive, and more.

Zoho Annotator is completely free to use making it an appealing choice.

• Integrates with many apps
• Privacy function
• Cannot screenshot the full page on some websites

Zoho Annotator is available on Windows and Mac as a Google Chrome extension.

24. GoVisually

GoVisually is another effective proofing software to help you get the feedback you need or need to give. GoVisually allows people to provide comments with its notes tools, on PDFs, Video, and Design content.

GoVisually is particularly aimed at Designers and Video Creators, Creative Agencies, and Marketing Teams.

Both marketing and design teams can collaborate on projects and provide feedback that is helpful and allows a project to flourish.

With this software everything is seamless and quick , there is no more need for long email chains, this cuts out the middle man.

GoVisually has two pricing plans.

• The first plan is great for freelancers and is priced at $25 per month.
• The second plan is suited for agencies and teams and is priced at $60 per month.
• Practical features
• Easy uploads
• Optimizes workflow
• Unable to upload images in batches

GoVisually is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

25. Hypothesis

Hypothesis' Annotation Process focuses on many different groups of interest. These groups include teachers, scientists and scholars, publishers and editors, and journalists.

With Hypothesis, you can embed content into texts, take notes, enrich content, and fact-check various sources.

With teaching, teachers and students can collaborate together on projects using their own annotations and sharing their projects. This allows for thought-provoking insight and conversation in the classroom.

Scholars, scientists, and publishers can benefit from sharing information with one another and adding valuable text to projects with the specific text and speech tools that Hypothesis offers.

Journalists and Editors will find comfort in knowing that the sources they are using have been fact-checked and are suitable for their or your reporting and news writing.

So many people can use this software and find features that work for them and work well.

Hypothesis is free-to-use by anybody making it even more appealing, considering all the features that come with the software.

• Improves collaboration across the board
• Customizes content
• Occasionally slow

Hypothesis is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile.

Have An Idea Of The Best Tool For You And Your Needs? 💡

The world of annotation software is an overwhelming one, but with this guide, you can be sure to make an informed decision based on everything you or your business needs to function at its best.

There is no right or wrong choice when it comes to these tools, each has its own strengths and drawbacks, you are guaranteed to find the best fit for you.

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7+ Best Annotation Tools of 2024 (FREE and PAID)

Annotation tools can be used for many purposes, such as research, study, collaboration, and sharing information. The use cases for annotation tools are endless. In this guide, I ranked and reviewed the 8 best annotation tools , along with my top 4 choices, so that you can pick the best one

The 8 best annotation tools are  Adobe Acrobat Pro DC , Markup Hero,  Annotate , Filestage , zipBoard ,  ClickUp ,  PDF Annotator , and Hive.

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC

Free 7-day trial

Best for individuals and businesses

• Markup Hero

Free version 

Best for freelancers and businesses

Web, Windows, and Mac

Best for enterprises

Contact me , if you want your product to be reviewed

Annotation tools are software that helps annotate and track the changes in documents. They can be used for a variety of purposes, including reviewing changes, tracking changes, and collaborating on documents.

They can be used in a variety of fields such as education, business, law, medicine, and more.

Annotation tools can be divided into two types:

– Textual annotation tools : these tools allow users to annotate texts by adding comments, highlighting passages, or underlining words.

– Visual annotation tools : these tools allow users to annotate images or videos by drawing on them and adding text, arrows, and shapes.

There is a wide range of annotation software available on the market, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages, so you must carefully plan and access each one to choose the one that best meets your demands.

Let’s get started reviewing the top annotation tools.

Comparison of Best Annotation Tools

What are the best annotation tools.

The eight best annotation tools available are:

• Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
• PDF Annotator

1- Adobe Acrobat Pro DC

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC is a powerful tool that offers annotation tools, PDF conversion, and editing features. It is a must-have for any business or organization that needs to produce complex documents or deliver reports.

PDFs are often used in business to distribute important documents, but they can be difficult to work with when it comes to editing them. With Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, you can easily annotate PDFs and make changes without having to worry about compatibility with other programs.

The annotations can be text comments, highlighting, or drawing shapes on the document with your mouse cursor. You can also add stamps like “confidential” or “draft” on top of the document.

This annotation tool doesn’t have a FREE version however it provides a 7‑day free trial.

Best for individuals and businesses of all sizes.

Key Features:

• Add notes, highlights, and other annotations
• Edit text and images in your PDF.
• Compress PDF
• Recognize Text (OCR)

Adobe sign divides its pricing into two categories

1- Individual:

Acrobat Standard DC

• $12.99 annual commitment billed monthly
• $22.99 no annual commitment required. Windows only.

Acrobat Pro DC

• US$14.99/mo requires an annual commitment. Windows and Mac.
• US$24.99/mo no annual commitment required. Windows and Mac.

Acrobat Standard DC for teams

• US$14.99/mo/license  requires an annual commitment. Windows only.

Acrobat Pro DC for teams

• US$16.99/mo/license  requires an annual commitment. For Windows and macOS.

Acrobat Sign Solutions

• Call for pricing

2- Markup Hero

Markup Hero is a fast and easy annotation tool that allows you to markup images and PDFs with arrows, shapes, and text. With Markup Hero, you can quickly annotate images and PDFs without having to download or install any software.

It is a web annotation tool that is designed to help content creators and marketers annotate and share their work on the internet. With this tool, you can easily annotate and collaborate with your team members in order to produce content fast.

They also provide applications for Mac, Windows, Linux, and Chrome and support a FREE plan which makes it super convenient.

Best for individuals and small businesses.

• Scrolling screenshots
• Text, arrows, highlighters, icons annotations
• Create your own team or invite other people to collaborate with you in real-time
• Get notified when someone has commented on your annotation
• Integration with Google Drive and Slack
• API available

Markup Hero comes with 2 different plans

• Hero : Free for individuals and up to 10 markups per month
• Superhero : $4 unlimited usage, best for teams.

3- Annotate

Annotate is a web annotation tool that allows you to highlight, underline, and comment on any document. With its very easy-to-use interface and powerful features, Annotate that become the go-to annotation tool in the market.

Annotate is the best way to annotate PDFs. It’s simple, efficient, and easy to use. With Annotate, you can quickly and easily add annotations to any PDF document.

In addition to the annotation tool, it offers other features like document management, document workflow , and so on to make working with documents easier and to assist change your workplace into a digital one.

For all offices and data centers, Annotate adheres to the appropriate international risk management requirements.

Best for individuals and businesses.

• Document collaboration
• Document management
• Native chat
• Document annotation
• Integration with other systems

Annotate comes with a FREE plan for up to three users and 30MB of safe storage space. For other plans, you need to contact them.

4- Filestage

Filestage is one of the best annotation tools that lets you create and collaborate on videos, images, PDFs, and web pages.

The Filestage annotation tool is an easy-to-use, web-based tool that helps you annotate PDF documents. It allows you to add text, highlight important sections, and add your own comments. The tool is perfect for collaboration, as it allows you to share your annotations with others.

The reviewing features allow other colleagues to directly evaluate the material and discuss in real-time, eliminating the need to manually send them an email for evaluation. This will undoubtedly assist to accelerate the cooperation process and boost productivity.

Best for individuals and small businesses and it doesn’t provide a free version. However, you can have a free trial period.

• Unlimited reviewers
• One-click approvals
• Annotations
• Project dashboard
• Compare versions

It comes with four different plans, none of which are free.

• Essential : $9 / month / seat (For freelancers)
• Advanced : Starting at  $95  per month including the first 5 seats (For small teams)
• Professional : Starting at  $195  per month including your first 5 seats (For large teams)
• Enterprise : For companies and no pricing information

5- zipBoard

zipBoard is a web-based annotation and visual feedback tool for almost all types of content. It lets you annotate on images, videos, webpages (static and live), SCORM, PDFs, etc. and simplifies your visual bug tracking & QA process for reviewers. With zipBoard, you can review all your online proofs on a centralized platform and get rid of the endless email chains and screen-sharing meetings.

zipBoard’s vast array of annotation tools lets you markup directly on top of your screen and share them across the team and stakeholders. It has an easy-to-use, simple UI, especially useful while getting feedback from non-technical clients and stakeholders which is often the need.

All of these without the need to create an account for the guest collaborators, letting you assign and prioritize the tasks from its dashboard.

With the traceability of all versions and changes and a clear designation of roles, zipBoard helps ensure confusion-free collaboration for all, whether you’re an agency or an individual.

• Unlimited collaborators and projects.
• The biggest range of annotation tools.
• Provide your stamp of approval and sign off creatives.
• Integrate the product into your ERP. API creation on demand.
• Best in class sharing features.

zipBoard comes with 3 different plans and they offer a 15-day free trial in each of them. Team, Agency, Enterprise: Custom ( Contact zipBoard )

Clickup is a web-based platform that enables its users to create, manage, and collaborate on projects.

Clickup is a web-based project management and collaboration tool that provides users with an easy way to organize their work. The basic version of Clickup is free for teams of up to five people.

The app has been designed for anyone who needs help organizing their work or collaborating with colleagues on projects. It’s ideal for small businesses, entrepreneurs, sales teams, freelancers, and more.

ClickUp has a long list of satisfied clients, including Samsung, IBM, and booking.com.

Ideal for individuals and companies of all sizes with a mobile/tablet app.

• Powerful collaboration features
• Annotate in real-time with others
• Real-time reporting
• Time management

ClickUp comes with 3 different plans.

• FREE : Best for personal use
• Unlimited : $5 / user / month. Best for small teams
• Enterprise : You need to contact them. Best for many large teams

7- PDF Annotator

PDF Annotator is a PDF reader with many tools for annotating, filling out and editing PDFs.

PDF Annotator is a simple but powerful annotation tool, which helps users to fill out, annotate and edit PDFs. It also provides many helpful features to make the editing process easier. You can add text annotations in the form of text boxes or sticky notes, highlight text passages or draw shapes on the document.

PDF Annotator is easy to use and has many features that make it stand out from other annotation tools. It also offers a free trial so you can try it before you buy!

Best for individuals and businesses and only available as a Windows application.

• Easy to use
• Good annotation capabilities
• Adding custom images

This annotation tool doesn’t have a FREE version however, they have a 30-day trial to test it out.

• Business: $69.95 excluding VAT per year
• Education: $39.95 excluding VAT per year

Hive is a project management software package with a variety of team-friendly features. Annotation is one of these functionalities, which allows users to collaboratively annotate and edit documents in real-time.

Hive is a project management and annotation tool that is designed to help you and your team stay organized and collaborate better. Hive is a simple, yet powerful tool that will help you manage your projects from start to finish.

With Hive, you can upload files, create tasks, plan your timeline, annotate documents, and more. It’s the perfect tool for anyone who needs to get their work done with minimal effort.

• Project management
• Annotation capabilities
• In-App messenger
• Proofing & approvals
• In-App email
• Automate repeated processes
• Good integrations capabilities

Hive comes with 3 different plans and the most important is that it has a FREE version.

• Hive Solo : Free forever
• Hive Teams : $12 / user / month
• Hive Enterprise : You need to contact them

What is annotation tool?

The annotation tool is a software that helps to organize and manage information. It can be used for any type of information, such as text, images, audio and video. It lets you add notes or comments on the content in order to make it easier for you to find the needed data when you need it.

7 Best Document Collaboration Tools of 2024 (FREE and PAID)

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10 Free PDF Annotation Apps for Android & iOS

Need to mark the important points while reading a document? This article has you covered!

There are plenty of free PDF annotation apps for Android & iOS that lets you mark the important paragraphs, write notes, and all that. These apps are actual productivity boosters, especially if you’re using annotation in a collaborative mode!   Plus, the majority of these apps support document editing , so you get a full set of essential tools.

We’ve gathered together the 10 best free apps in that category you may try. Take a look!

Adobe Acrobat Reader

Could such a list even be full without an Adobe app? Probably not.

Sooth to say, it’s one of the best apps you can use to work with PDF files on the go. It’s an ultimate doc reader that lets you keep, view, and annotate your files wherever you are. You even get to add an e-signature to the docs if you have one. The interface is quite minimalistic and eye-pleasing to not distract you from the file in any way.

The app covers several view modes, so you may rather choose a single page or a scrolling mode. Besides, the doc’s content will automatically reflow to fit the screen, so there won’t be troubles with that. You’ll also get to search within the doc and leave bookmarks.

There’s also a dark mode that not only saves your eyes but the battery as well. Plus, the app lets you set the docs to printing right away if needed. The same goes for sharing — you get to send files via messengers for commenting or viewing. The app will send you activity notifications for all the shared files, so you won’t miss anything

You may also like: 11 Best document scanner apps for Android

PDF Reader Pro

It’s a PDF app that lets you manage files on the go.

The app runs on a stable mechanism that provides you smooth reading experience and powerful editing tools. This app lets you view and edit several files at the same time which is quite handy and great for multitasking. As for the annotation, the app lets you highlight the words, underline them, add stamps, links, and so on.

You can also write on top of the doc with freehand and add an electronic signature as well. Beyond that, you’ll get to add watermarks to all the official and business files. You’ll also get absolute freedom of action with the organization — you can reorder the pages, delete and add new ones.

The app covers a converting tool that lets you turn JPG, PNG, and other files into PDF. Additionally, you can add password protection to some docs if needed. The app also has a built-in scanner for images, notes, receipts, and all that.

Next, we have an all-in-one office suite that lets you access various formats of files.

If you normally work with several formats of docs — this app is your cup of tea. It covers all the commonly-used formats — from PDF to Excel, and even PowerPoint. Herewith, the editing tools are equally powerful for all the formats so no worries about that.

As for the PDF, the app lets you view, edit and share the docs easy as pie. You also get a full complexion of annotation instruments such as a highlighter, a stamper, underlines, and more. Plus, you get to write on top of the text and add an e-signature. There’s also a built-in scanner if needed.

The app also covers plenty of templates for presentations, resumes, and various types of docs (there’s even one for grocery shopping lists). The app comes with a converter that lets you change the doc’s formats in a blink of an eye. Besides, the app syncs with cloud storage services so you can keep all your files safe.

That’s a PDF editor that lets you keep PDF files on hand.

It’s a standard app for the genre with all the classic tools covered. To be more precise, the app lets you view and edit PDFs, comment on them, annotate them, and more. The app also lets you reflow your files and add bookmarks wherever needed.

There’s also a built-in searching engine that lets you search beneath the doc’s content. Plus, there’s a voiceover tool that will read the file out loud for you. The app also supports a tabbed interface, but it’s only available for tabs.

Additionally, the app comes with a collaborative mode that lets you work and docs along with other people. This mode supports annotations, stamps, and comments as well. You can also set activity notifications that will alert you to all the changes within each doc.

Google Play Books

Although you may be surprised to see that app on our list, it actually copes with the main task — opens PDF files and lets you annotate them.

Herewith, the overall concept of this app is slightly different — it’s an e-book reader with audiobook support. The mechanics are simple — you just need to download a book or its audio version to listen to on the go. Once you’ll finish the first book, you’ll start to get personalized recs.

The majority of the books are paid for, but you’ll get to view a free sample before buying. But let’s move to the annotation part. The thing is, this app won’t let you open your docs (you have all the other apps on our list to do that tho). However, you get to annotate books you read by highlighting, underlining, stamping, and more.

You’ll also get to adjust the font type, the text size and alignment, the margins, and more. Plus, you’ll get to leave bookmarks if needed. The app also lets you create custom shelves to organize your book collection.

Check also: 11 Free Speedreading Apps for Android & iOS

Next, we have another PDF viewer with a simple UI and controls.

Shortly speaking, this app can cover all your PDF-related needs. For instance, it lets you view docs, annotate them, scan, covert, and sign them on the go. The app also covers a collection of stamps such as approved, sign here, and all that, and you can add custom ones as well.

The app also lets you handwrite on top of the text and even add an electronic signature if you have one. And if you own a tablet you’ll get to open two docs at the same time. Plus, you’ll get to send docs to printing which is quite handy.

Beyond that, there’s a text reflow mode that includes speech conversation. You can also search within the text using keywords or jump to particular pages right away. This app zips and unzips the files automatically, so you won’t need an extra app for that.

Xodo PDF Reader

It’s a PDF reader with a fast viewing engine and solid functionality.

The concept of this app is pretty standard — it lets you view, edit, and annotate PDFs on the go. Plus, the app syncs with various cloud services, so you wouldn’t lose any docs. Herewith, all the edits you add in a file will be automatically synced with could service of your choice.

Speaking of the annotating tool, it covers all the basic tools such as a marker, an underliner, a stamper, and all that. The annotation is also available in a collaborative mode if needed. Plus, you can set notifications to alert you on all the changes added to the doc by other users.

Additionally, you get to add bookmarks for future reference. You can also write and type on top of the document and add an e-sign as well. The app lets you work across several docs at the same time, but it’s only for tab owners. Besides, there’s a built-in scanner if needed. The app runs on sub packs, but the majority of essential features are free.

Flexcil Notes

This is a note-taking PDF app that lets you edit your files like a pro.

As for the concept, it’s a digital planner that lets you manage your memo, read and edit docs on the go. The main goal of this app is to boost your productivity, so all the tools are easy to use and fast-working. The annotating tool lets you highlight text and images, underline words, and use gestures for note-making.

Along with that, the app comes with a built-in pen engine that lets you write on top of the text. Herewith, the pen is vector-based, so it’s not a problem to get nice handwriting. The color range of the pen is huge, and you can change the size and the brush.

The app also covers several viewing modes, so you could read your PDFs with maximum comfort. The text will automatically adjust to your screen orientation so no worries about that. Plus, the app works in multitasking mode on tabs which is great.

PDF Viewer Pro

It’s a PDF viewer that lets you manage your files easy as pie.

If you need to get maximum productivity out of document work — this app is for you. The app covers a collaborative mode and lets you work on several files at the same time. Besides, all the essential tools are covered — you get to view and annotate your docs, and share them at any time.

Thereby, the app syncs to a cloud service, so you can keep your docs safe and sound. There’s also a built-in searching engine that lets you search within the text using keywords. The annotating tool lets you highlight the text, leave comments, and write on top of the text.

As for the reading part, the app does the job pretty well. You’ll get several viewing modes, the ability to skip to a specific page, and a zooming tool as well. You can also change the theme of the app if you’re not into the original one (there are 12 options to choose from).

You may also check: 6 Free PDF Audio Reader Apps for Android & iOS

And lastly, we have a simple PDF reader app that is perfect for superficial work.

In the first place, this is a light version of an original app that is fully dedicated to reading and annotating. Thus, if you have to work with docs on a daily basis and may need to edit some — go for another app. Herewith, the app supports form filling so keep that in mind.

The UI is nothing special — it’s not bad but pretty standard (which is a question of taste). The reading aspect could cover all your needs as there are several viewing modes, and you get to adjust the scrolling method. Plus, you can zoom the doc, skip to specific pages, and add bookmarks.

The annotating tool lets you highlight the text and add hyperlinks. Plus, the toolbar comes with a search engine, so you could search within the text. And if your file has a table of contents it will automatically appear in the app as well.

Other great apps:

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How-To Geek

5 great programs for editing and annotating pdfs.

Want to annotate, sign, or otherwise edit a PDF? You'll need a dedicated PDF editing program for that. Here are our favorite picks.

Read update

Checked content for accuracy. Updated PDF Architect 7 to version 8.

Quick Links

What is a pdf, what to look for in pdf editing software, best overall pdf editor: adobe acrobat pro dc, best adobe alternative: pdf architect 8, best free pdf editor: xodo, best for teams and enterprise: iskysoft pdf editor, best for annotation: pdfescape.

Creating or reading a PDF is simple enough, but if you want to edit or annotate a PDF without changing it to a different format (or disturbing its layout), you'll need to have a dedicated PDF editor on hand.

UPDATE: 9/30/21

PDF is short for Portable Document Format. The file format was created in the early 1990s by Adobe co-founder John Warnock , and was designed with two ends: to provide a standardized document type that could be read on any hardware or operating system, and to create a document type whose layout wouldn't be changed as it was viewed across these differing systems and hardware. Today, you can open and read PDFs through your browser, or by using a dedicated PDF reader or word processor, but you'll need separate software if you want to edit or annotate one.

PDF editors are a different beast than PDF readers or word processors. They're designed to handle one specific format and perform a limited number of tasks within that format. Here are the important features any good PDF editing software should have:

• Editing Abilities:  It goes without saying that whichever program you choose should let you crack open a PDF and edit it. Whether you want to modify wording, insert and resize images, or change the order of the pages within a larger document, the best PDF editors should be able to handle whatever you throw at them.
• Annotation Support:  The ability to allow single or collaborative annotation and markup is paramount. Good PDF editors should offer helpful annotation tools like highlighting, sticky notes, comment boxes, message stamps (like "approved" or "confidential"), or even freehand notes.
• Security:  PDF editors should offer several security options for protecting sensitive data contained within your PDFs. In addition to simple password protection, some programs let you set access permissions, work with redaction tools, and even apply watermarks. These programs should support secure document signing as well.

Since Adobe invented PDFs over 25 years ago, it stands to reason that it should also offer the best option for editing them. Adobe Acrobat Pro DC ($14.99/month) proves why it remains the industry standard for PDF management. The software is available for Windows and macOS systems, as iOS and Android apps, and as a Google Drive add-on .

Adobe makes it easy to create, edit, and sign PDFs (and track their activity) with its modern, intuitive interface. The software lets you compare two versions to spot differences, convert a PDF into several other formats, turn scanned documents into editable and searchable PDFs, and even edit on the fly on your smartphone.

The software can handle more advanced tasks, like adding watermarks, bookmarks, and headers; redacting or removing hidden sensitive information; and adding audio and video. And signing a PDF? No problem. Get real-time status updates when collecting legally binding signatures, and get certificate signatures. Adobe also handles simultaneous live collaboration for editing and annotating, stamps with messages, and comment exporting to Microsoft Word. Overall, if there's something you need to do to a PDF (and if you want to look right and stay secure), Adobe Acrobat is your best choice.

Learn more at Adobe

If you want a PDF editor that looks and works similar to Adobe without the Adobe price tag, check out PDFForge's PDF Architect 8 (Free, with paid options). With the app, you can open and read any PDF file, view two documents simultaneously for comparison, create PDFs from Microsoft documents or by scanning a document, and reorder, delete, or move pages within your PDF.

If you need more functionality than that, however, you'll need to upgrade to one of Architect's paid plans, which start at $69/year. In addition to the features of the free plan, paid plans give you additional functionality, like splitting PDFs into multiple documents, editing and moving text, changing font style and size, inserting page numbers and headers, inserting and editing media, adding watermarks, and converting your PDF to a variety of other formats. The biggest potential downside is that PDF Architect is only available in your browser and doesn't have companion mobile apps.

Learn more at PDFForge

Xodo (Free) is a great option for those who need to edit a PDF but don't have the budget (or the desire to shell out) for a premium PDF editor. Despite being free, Xodo still packs a punch with its robust features and beautiful, modern interface (which is available online, and as iOS and Android apps). Xodo focuses on giving you a simple, clean functionality, instead of burying your document in a complicated and cluttered interface as many other editors do.

Xodo is a great option for signing documents, as it lets you create a signature with a stylus or your finger, and you can save it to use on additional future documents. Filling in forms is also a piece of cake---all you have to do is tap the field and type in your information. Want to annotate a PDF? Xodo's ample tools let you highlight and strike out passages, add sticky notes, underline for emphasis, and make freehand drawings. It even creates a summary list of annotations, which you can jump to simply by tapping on one.

If you need to have a real-time, collaborative workspace, it supports that as well, letting anyone with access jump into work and even chat. Once you've created your document, you can sync it with Dropbox or Google Drive, ensuring you're always working with the latest version. Easy and beautiful.

Learn more at Xodo

iSkySoft PDF Editor (starts at $69/year) is a solid PDF editor for individuals and it offers support for businesses as well. It has competitive pricing options for small businesses, starting at $109 per user per year, which it backs with team management. iSkySoft's enterprise tier offers custom pricing for groups over 20, and it comes with dedicated tech support, user licensing management, on-demand development, and flexible deployment.

The PDF editor is available to both Windows and macOS users (but not as a mobile app), and it works in nine languages. Its rich interface gives you a Microsoft Word-like experience for easy annotating and editing. It lets you convert PDFs from or to other formats; create forms; edit the layout and text of your PDF; add, remove, and manipulate images; insert, remove, or flip pages within it, and lock them down with passwords, redaction tools, and permissions.

Should you want to annotate a PDF, you can enjoy doing so with drawing features, sticky notes, stamps, and comments at your fingertips, plus iSkySoft supports multi-user collaboration. One of iSkySoft's most impressive features is its optical character recognition technology, which identifies scanned text from another document and then turns it into an editable and searchable image-based PDF.

Learn more at iSkySoft

For those who will primarily be annotating PDFs rather than creating or otherwise editing them, PDFescape (Free) is a terrific program for doing so. Although its interface is far more dated than the other options, it's still fairly easy to navigate and it has all of the basic tools you'll need for annotating and lightly editing/adjusting a PDF. You can add text and images, freehand draw, whiteout or highlight existing text, add sticky notes, and add in links. It also lets you add lines, arrows, circles, rectangles, checkmarks, and strikeout text.

The basic plan gets you free online PDF annotation abilities and basic editing, as well as the ability to create forms and share your PDF documents. If you need more functionality, consider upgrading to the PDF Premium plan, which is fairly inexpensive at $5.99/month (or $2.99/month if you opt for an annual plan). This plan gives you far more editing features, if you need those in addition to annotation tools. If you want to edit existing text, download the desktop version .

Learn more at PDFescape

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Top 8 Annotation Tools (Features, Pros, Cons, Pricing)

Erica Chappell

Managing Editor

February 13, 2024

Looking for the best annotation software ?

Whether it’s business professionals or teachers, when asked to choose between scribbled notes and a well-labeled document , we’re sure they’ll pick the latter. 

Annotation Software

Annotation software marks a document or piece of content with anything a user wants, like text , an image , shapes, signatures, and more!

A color-coded and properly labeled document helps present your thoughts clearly.  

And annotation tools help you do just that.

But with hundreds of such software in the market, which one should you pick?

In this article, we’ll cover what an annotation tool is and highlight eight popular annotation software available today. We’ll go over their key features, pros, cons, and pricing to help you pick the best one.

What Is an Annotation Tool? 

2. filestage, 4. annotate, 5. pdf annotator, 6. drawboard projects, bonus tool: markup hero.

Let’s get started!

An annotation tool is a text or drawing tool that helps you add information to text, an image, a database , or any other piece of content.

But that’s not all.

These tools can also be used on various formats such as a whiteboard or PowerPoint presentation , to annotate the selected content. And we’re not just talking about business or education content.

Annotation software is even used in fields like gene ontology ! 

For example, Genome annotation or DNA annotation tools help annotate the gene location in a genome .

Not the DNA that you’re thinking of!

Click on the above gif to know what we meant.

And that folks, was an example of web annotation . 

What’s web annotation ?

A web annotation is the addition of information to resources present on web pages. 

For example, adding tags to GIFs of Korean boy bands in a blog post is an example of a web annotation . 

Now, while we’re on the topic of examples…

What are annotations examples?

Since annotation is essentially just marking and adding tags to sections of content, there are tons of examples out there.

Here are a few common ones:

• Adding informative tags to an unlabeled dataset ( data labeling ) like a spreadsheet
• Using a line tool or a pencil tool to draw on the screen during a presentation
• Highlighting important text in a shared document with a highlighter tool
• Labeling your lunch as “do not touch” when you store it in the company fridge

(Well, maybe not that last one)

But if you think annotation is just about adding manual notes to the content, think again. 

What are 3 types of annotations?

• Manual annotation : the manual annotation type is exactly what it sounds like – it covers the process of manually annotating a piece of content
• Screen annotation : the annotation of a desktop screen with the help of a screen marker software is known as screen annotation (you commonly use these during Zoom meetings and other video conferences)
• Collaborative annotation : collaborative annotation is a teaching strategy to help students develop critical thinking, reading, and writing. 

Top 8 Annotation Tools in 2022

Here are the top eight annotation software that’ll make annotating your projects a cakewalk:

ClickUp is the world’s #1 project management tool .

But wait… you’re looking for annotation tools.

Why would a project management tool help?

That’s because ClickUp has advanced built-in annotation features to help you with all your annotation needs. And since it’s a comprehensive project management solution, you can use it for more than just annotation tasks !

From productivity monitoring to resource management , ClickUp can handle anything you throw at it!

Let’s see why ClickUp is the best annotation tool available today:

How do you annotate?

ClickUp’s Annotation feature supports PDF file and image annotation (.png, .gif, .jpeg, .webp).

You can easily add comments to task attachments in 4 simple steps:

• Open the desired attachment within a task
• Click “Add comments” in the upper right of the preview window
• Click on the attachment preview wherever you want to add a comment
• Add comments and assign them to anyone if you want them to take immediate action

Voila! 

Your added comment will now appear in the comments tab next to the attachment. Now the assigned comment will appear in the assignee’s Home tab as well as in the task’s comments section.

What’s more?

For added flexibility, you can even use ClickUp’s Chrome Extension for annotation and proofing documents. You can use the Chrome extension to markup images, upload them as a task attachment or add comments to the attachment — with ClickUp everything is possible!

Other key ClickUp features

• Docs : easily create, share, and store project or company-related documents with your virtual or in-house team 
• Comments : each ClickUp task offers a dedicated comment section that you can use to easily discuss and share any relevant file or links. You can even tag team members to ensure your comments aren’t overlooked.
• Collaboration Detection : know when your teammates are simultaneously adding a comment or viewing a task in real-time. This can be extremely useful to overcome some common virtual team challenges you’d face in remote project management .
• Notepad : a free space to jot down your thoughts and ideas quickly
• Mind Maps : create free form mind maps to plan and organize your project-related ideas

ClickUp pros

• User-friendly interface
• Offers a feature-rich  free version
• Can easily assign tasks to team members
• Easy task management with the drag-and-drop feature 
• Efficient resource management with more than one assignee for a specific task 
• Manage and track your project timeline with intuitive Gantt Charts
• Custom Access Rights help to share your projects with clients without compromising privacy
• Can quickly find all your project resources with the Smart Search feature
• Attempt project tasks in the right order with Task Dependencies
• Agile dashboards to measure your project progress with charts like Velocity , Burnup , Burndown , and Cumulative Flow  
• Can customize how you receive project notifications
• Offers app integrations with various third-party apps for seamless project management
• Available as web browser , desktop, and mobile apps

ClickUp cons

• No white-labeling available (can’t remove brand icon )
• Can’t export Dashboards

But don’t worry, at ClickUp, we’re constantly working to overcome such minor flaws.

Click here to learn more about what’s cooking in the ClickUp kitchen.

ClickUp pricing

ClickUp has three pricing options:

• Free Forever Plan : includes unlimited projects and members + 100MB of cloud storage space 
• Unlimited Plan ($7/user per month) : supports unlimited projects and members + forms + unlimited number of integration + advanced reporting + unlimited Gantt charts
• Business Plan ($12/user per month) : includes unlimited projects and members + unlimited Proofing + timesheets + two-factor authentication + sprint points + Google single sign-on + custom exporting

Filestage is a good proofing and annotation tool to help you annotate a PDF file as well as videos and audios. 

Filestage key features

• Add annotation to comments with markup tools
• Add attachments to include reference files in comments
• Use their dashboards to manage all review-related workflows
• Threaded comments facilitate clear discussions
• Easily review audio and video files with time codes

Filestage pros

• Can easily track file status during the review process
• Can add due dates to avoid missing deadlines
• Easily integrates with third-party apps
• Can add attachments in comments to enhance collaboration

Filestage cons

• Cannot undo an approved annotation action
• No support for web annotation
• Cannot assign tasks to team members

Filestage pricing

Filestage offers three pricing tiers:

• Starter ($99/month) : includes 15 active projects + basic project structure + basic support 
• Pro ($249/month) : includes 35 active projects + advanced project structure + priority support + 10 team members + project template
• Enterprise (custom pricing) : supports more projects + custom workflows + more team members

Prodigy is a data annotation tool that creates evaluation and training data for machine learning models. And while this data tool could act as a prodigy for annotation, it’s not what’d you call affordable for most teams.

Prodigy key features

• Offers text annotation for any script or language
• Allows text classification with multiple categories
• Annotate NLP (Natural Language Processing) relations to label your data
• Image annotation tool for tasks like object detection, image classification, and segmentation 

Prodigy pros

• Suitable for novice users
• Along with text and image annotation , can annotate audio clips as well
• Evaluate any model with randomized A/B testing
• Offers live demo and documentation for ease of use

Prodigy co ns 

• Supports collaboration annotation only for small teams
• You’ll need a separate tool for managing projects
• Doesn’t offer advanced semantic segmentation feature

Prodigy pricing

Prodigy comes with two pricing plans:

• Personal ($390/lifetime license) : offers a lifetime license + unlimited projects + unlimited annotator  
• Company ($490/seat) : includes “personal” features + flexible and transferable floating licenses

Annotate is a document collaboration platform that helps make the document annotation process a breeze, from the first draft to the final sign-off. However, if you’re looking to annotate on the move, this might not be the tool for you.

Annotate key features

• Perform text or image annotation with the help of figures like text box , polygon or freehand notes
• Easily create notes within a document and assign them to team members 
• Communicate over document and workspace chat while reviewing documents
• Draft your own documents and export as Word or PDF documents

Annotate pros

• Supports custom integrations with third-party apps
• Ability to create workflows within documents
• Restricted access for external collaborators

Annotate cons

• Doesn’t offer Android and iOS mobile apps
• No support for task and project management
• No calendar feature to manage your work schedule

Annotate pricing

Annotate offers three pricing plans:

• Free : supports up to 3 users + text annotation + document workspaces + full text search + in document collaboration 
• Standard (contact the sales team) : minimum 3 users + includes “Free” features + freehand annotation + notifications + document metadata and tagging
• Enterprise (contact the sales team) : includes “Standard” features + unlimited storage + unlimited users + document comparisons

PDF Annotator is a PDF annotation tool that lets you add notes and annotations to your PDF documents . This annotation software enables you to add comments, signatures, and designs,  making PDF annotation super easy.

PDF Annotator key features

• Can type your comments right into the document
• Freehand annotations with the Pen Tool
• Add stamps, signatures and page numbers to the document
• You can easily add markup and insert images 
• Import and export pdf annotation across different document versions

PDF Annotator pros

• Offers an embedded image editor
• Convert your document to any format like doc, xls or ppt
• Can extract, move or delete selected pages from a document

PDF Annotator cons

• Adobe DRM protected documents cannot be opened
• Only available for Windows operating systems
• Cannot annotate digital signature protected documents 

PDF Annotator pricing

PDF Annotator offers 3 buying options (prices vary for 4 users and above): 

• Annotator License: $69.95/ user
• Student License : $39.95/ user
• Faculty License: $69.95/ user

Drawboard Projects is a PDF markup software tool that offers a wide range of markup features like text tool and polygon tool . You can even annotate your documents with digital ink. However, if you’re looking to organize your annotations easily, you might want to look elsewhere.

Drawboard Projects key features

• Markup any PDF file or drawing
• Pin an issue to a specific area on drawings to provide context
• Offers a time-restricted review link for guest access
• Add tags to a file to enhance the searchability 

Drawboard Projects pros

• Collaborative markup and text annotation
• Can easily assign and track issue progress
• Integration with apps like Google drive and Procore
• Offers offline documentation support

Drawboard Projects cons

• Cannot organize projects into folders
• Only offers Windows 10 and iOS apps
• Integration with limited applications

Drawboard Projects pricing

• Basic ($24/ user per month) : supports up to 1000 drawings or documents + unlimited projects + third party app integrations 
• Standard ($44/ user per month) : offers unlimited drawings or documents + unlimited projects + email support + third party app integrations
• Enterprise (contact Drawboard team) : includes “Standard” features + federated access logins (SSO) + priority support

Doccano is an open-source text annotation tool . With its simple user interface, you can easily upload your desired dataset and start annotating.

Doccano key features

• Ability to perform sentiment analysis on text data
• Offers text classification that can be exported as plain text, CSV, JSON formats
• Supports data annotation feature of sequence labeling
• Sequence to sequence learning for training data models

Doccano pros

• Simple, user-friendly  interface
• Auto label with trained machine learning models
• Can annotate text of any language
• Open source annotation software

Doccano cons

• Can lag and become unresponsive at times
• Can shuffle the annotated pieces only when self-hosted
• Requires coding-heavy setup

Doccano pricing

As Doccano is open source , it’s a free annotation tool .

Ink2Go is a simple screen recording and screen annotation software . Its user-friendliness makes it an excellent candidate for any live presentation or seminars.

Ink2Go key features

• Write, draw or highlight any content on desktop or apps like Sticky Note
• Screenshot , screen capture or record your desktop with the added annotations
• Offers a built-in digital whiteboard or blackboard for better user experience
• Annotate across multiple pages simultaneously

Ink2Go pros

• Supports webcam for presentation and seminars
• Can annotate on extended or shared screen
• Floating drawing tool bar with the ability to align both horizontally and vertically
• Multiple pens, highlighters, and shapes like a rectangle for high-quality presentations

Ink2Go cons

• Limited toolbar items
• Irregular software version releases
• No live customer support

Ink2Go pricing

Ink2Go offers both Windows and Mac apps with a 15-day free trial. However, a single license costs $19.99.

Markup Hero is a screenshot and annotation tool that is web based, easy to use, and includes a bunch of helpful markup controls including: callouts, highlight, signature, crop, pen, shapes, colors, blur, and more. In Markup Hero, annotations are not flattened so you can edit you markup forever. Organize annotations with collections, search and naming, and share instantly with a link or copy to clipboard.

Markup Hero key features

• Always editable markups
• Multi-page markups and insert images
• Share links with permissions
• Chrome Extension for scrolling screenshots

Markup Hero pros

• Annotated images, PDF’s, Google Docs, and Websites
• Works on any device including mobile
• Good for screenshots and annotations
• Easily embeddable into Slack, social and even ClickUp tickets

Markup Hero cons

• No video capture
• No team accounts (yet)
• No custom domains

Markup Hero pricing

Markup Hero has a forever free plan with limited monthly annotations and you try the tool without even making an account. Unlimited markups and full features on the Super Hero plan is only $4.00 per month.

A well placed, detailed annotation is one of the easiest ways to add value to your content. It’s what can transform a boring piece of data into something as exciting as this:

Well, maybe not that exciting.

But you get the point.

Luckily, choosing an annotation software that fits your needs doesn’t have to be as difficult as perfecting English grammar!

Just go through the 8 options for annotation tools we covered here for a head start. 

And while each of these tools is great, ClickUp smashes it out of the park with its powerful features that help you proof your documents easily. 

From image and PDF proofing to a feature-rich  Forever Free plan, this versatile annotation software hits the home run.

Sign up for ClickUp today to present your perfectly annotated ideas to the world! 

Questions? Comments? Visit our Help Center for support.

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21 best annotation tools for documents, video, and more

14 min read

December 4, 2023

In today’s data-driven world, annotation tools have become indispensable for various tasks, ranging from data labeling and content review to collaborative editing and research analysis. 

These tools empower users to add comments, highlights, and annotations to different types of content, enabling enhanced organization, collaboration, and understanding.

In this article, we will explore the top 21 annotation tools that cater to different purposes and domains.

What are annotation tools?

Annotation tools are software applications or platforms designed to facilitate the process of adding comments, highlights, or other annotations to various types of content. These tools play a crucial role in tasks such as data annotation, document review, collaborative editing, and research analysis. 

Annotation tools offer a range of features and functionalities that let users mark specific sections of text, images, videos, or documents for further context, explanation, or reference.

Supercharge your document review rounds

Get point-and-click feedback on your documents with Filestage.

Types of annotation tools

There are various different types of annotation tools on the market that cater to specific needs. 

Here’s a list of the seven most common types of annotation tools: 

• Data annotation tools – these tools allow users to highlight, underline, strikethrough, or add comments to text-based content
• Image annotation tools – annotate images by adding text, shapes, or drawings
• Video annotation tools – annotate videos frame by frame, marking objects, actions, or events
• Audio annotation tools – annotate audio files by adding markers, tags, or comments at specific timestamps or sections
• Web annotation tools – annotate web pages or online documents, facilitating collaborative research and discussions
• Document annotation tools – annotate academic papers, research, articles, and more
• Code annotation tools – add comments, explanations, or documentation within source code files

Our shortlist of the top three annotation tools

Annotation tools can serve various different purposes. Here’s a closer look into the top three annotation tools that offer a comprehensive set of features from different fields of annotation.

1. Filestage – the best annotation tool for reviewing various file formats

Filestage is a review and feedback tool that makes it simple to collaborate on PDF documents, share videos , graphics, and marketing projects in general. 

It offers project managers a wide range of annotation and proofing features, which makes it easy for your internal and external key stakeholders to leave and discuss logical in-context feedback in real time.

A range of workflow features will make sure that you never miss a deadline or a game-changing suggestion. Next to custom pricing options, Filestage offers a Free plan – so you can check out the markup software at no risk.

And with the ability to integrate Filestage with Microsoft Teams, Jira, Adobe Premiere Pro, and a bunch of other tools, it fits in perfectly with your tool stack.

Key features

• Collaborative video annotation – Filestage enables multiple stakeholders to review and annotate various file types, including images, videos , and documents, in a centralized platform
• Review workflow management – It offers customizable workflows and task assignments, facilitating seamless collaboration and efficient annotation processes
• Commenting and markup tools – Users can leave comments, draw annotations, and highlight specific areas within files to provide feedback and suggestions
• Document version control – Filestage keeps track of file versions, allowing reviewers to compare changes and annotations over time
• Approval and feedback management – It provides features for approving or rejecting annotations and consolidating feedback from multiple reviewers

2. Labelbox

Labelbox is a popular data annotation platform that offers a wide range of annotation capabilities for images, videos, and text. It provides an intuitive interface for annotating and labeling data, along with powerful collaboration and project management features.

Labelbox supports various annotation types, including bounding boxes, polygons, keypoints, and semantic segmentation. It also offers automation features like active learning and model-assisted labeling.

• Data annotation – Labelbox supports a range of annotation types, including bounding boxes, polygons, semantic segmentation, and keypoint annotations, for various data types such as images, videos, and text
• Collaboration and review – It allows teams to collaborate on annotation projects, review annotations, and manage annotation quality control.
• Automation and active learning – Labelbox offers features for automating certain annotation tasks using pre-trained models and implementing active learning techniques to reduce annotation efforts
• Workflow management – users can create customized annotation workflows, assign tasks, and track the progress of annotation projects
• Integration and deployment – Labelbox provides integration with popular machine learning frameworks and cloud storage platforms for seamless data management and model deployment

3. SuperAnnotate

SuperAnnotate is a versatile and feature-rich data annotation platform that caters to image and video annotation needs. It offers a user-friendly interface with advanced annotation tools for bounding boxes, polygons, key points, and semantic segmentation.

SuperAnnotate provides powerful automation capabilities, including AI-assisted annotation and collaborative review workflows. It also offers integrations with popular machine-learning frameworks and platforms.

• Advanced annotation tools – SuperAnnotate offers a wide range of annotation tools and techniques, including bounding boxes, polygons, keypoint detection, instance segmentation, and semantic segmentation
• Collaboration and review – It enables real-time collaboration among team members, allowing them to review and validate annotations together
• Quality control – SuperAnnotate provides tools for quality control, such as metrics calculation, consensus review, and inter-annotator agreement analysis
• Automation and AI assistance – The platform uses AI to accelerate annotation tasks, improve annotation efficiency, and reduce human error
• Project management and versioning – SuperAnnotate offers project management features, version control, and comparison tools for managing and tracking annotation projects

Best data annotation tools

Data annotation tools are software applications or platforms specifically designed to assist in the process of annotating or labeling data.

Here are the top two data annotation tools available on the market:

1. Amazon SageMaker Ground Truth

SageMaker Ground Truth is a data annotation tool provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It simplifies the process of creating high-quality labeled datasets for machine learning models. It offers a scalable and customizable platform for annotation tasks, supporting both automated and human-in-the-loop labeling.

SageMaker Ground Truth supports various annotation types, such as bounding boxes, semantic segmentation, and text classification. It integrates seamlessly with other AWS services, making it convenient for end-to-end machine learning workflows.

• Customizable annotation workflows – It allows users to create custom annotation workflows tailored to specific data types and annotation tasks
• Human-in-the-loop annotation – It combines automated annotation with human review, providing mechanisms to review and improve machine-generated annotations
• Scalability – The tool is designed to handle large-scale annotation projects
• Active learning – It supports active learning techniques to intelligently select samples for annotation and optimizes the annotation process
• Integration with Amazon Services – It seamlessly integrates with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) products, such as Amazon Rekognition, for enhanced annotation capabilities

2. SuperAnnotate

SuperAnnotate is a versatile and feature-rich data annotation platform that caters to image and video annotation needs. It offers a user-friendly interface with advanced annotation tools for bounding boxes, polygons, keypoints, and semantic segmentation.

SuperAnnotate provides powerful automation capabilities, including AI-assisted annotation and collaborative review workflows. It also offers integrations with popular machine learning frameworks and platforms.

• Advanced annotation tools
• Collaboration and review
• Quality control
• Automation and AI assistance
• Project management and versioning

Image annotation tools

Image annotation tools allow you to annotate images by adding bounding boxes, polygons, keypoints, or semantic segmentation masks to identify objects or regions of interest within the image.

Here are the two most popular image annotation tools:

1. RectLabel

RectLabel is a powerful visual object tagging tool specifically designed for object detection and localization tasks. It provides an intuitive interface with robust image annotations, including bounding boxes, polygons, lines, and keypoints.

RectLabel supports automatic annotation suggestions and offers features like image segmentation, instance tracking, and batch processing. It also integrates seamlessly with popular machine learning frameworks like TensorFlow and PyTorch.

• Image annotation – RectLabel focuses on image annotation and offers tools for bounding box annotation, segmentation masks, keypoints, and text annotations
• Object tracking – It provides features for object tracking within videos, allowing users to annotate objects across frames and track their movement
• Collaboration and versioning – RectLabel supports collaboration among team members and keeps track of annotations and changes across versions of the data
• Customizable annotation tools – Users can customize annotation tools and labels to match their specific annotation requirements and workflow
• Export formats – RectLabel allows users to export annotations in various formats, including Pascal VOC, COCO, YOLO, and TensorFlow Object Detection API

2. VGG Image Annotator (VIA)

VIA is a versatile and open-source image annotation tool developed by the Visual Geometry Group at the University of Oxford. It supports annotation of various shapes, including points, polygons, rectangles, and ellipses.

VIA allows for annotating images individually or in batches, and it supports exporting annotations in multiple formats. It also offers customizability and extensibility, making it suitable for research and specialized annotation requirements.

• Multi-format support – VIA supports a wide range of image formats, allowing users to annotate images in formats such as JPEG, PNG, and GIF
• Multiple annotation types – It provides various annotation types, including bounding boxes, polygons, keypoints, and region descriptions, to annotate objects and regions of interest within images
• Collaboration and version control – VIA supports collaborative annotation, allowing multiple users to work on the same set of images simultaneously
• Annotation import/export – VIA allows users to import and export annotations in different formats, including JSON, CSV, and VIA project files
• Customization and automation – VIA offers customization options, such as custom attribute definitions, and allows users to apply pre-trained models for automated annotation

Video annotation tools

As the name suggests, video annotation tools are used to add additional information on videos. This means that you can mark objects, track movements, or label frames.

Here are the two best annotation tools on the market:

1. Video Annotation Tool from Internet Curation (VATIC)

VATIC is a popular open-source video annotation tool developed by the Computer Vision Group at Stanford University. It offers an intuitive web-based interface for annotating videos frame by frame. Users can draw bounding boxes, track objects, and add labels or attributes to the annotated regions. VATIC supports collaboration, allowing multiple annotators to work on the same video simultaneously.

• Video annotation capabilities – VATIC focuses specifically on video annotation, allowing users to annotate objects, track their movements, and draw on videos
• Collaborative annotation – It supports collaborative annotation workflows, enabling multiple users to annotate videos and review annotations together.
• Tracking and object identification – VATIC provides tools for object tracking, allowing users to annotate objects across frames and track their trajectories
• Review and quality control – The tool offers review and validation features
• Project management – VATIC includes project management features, such as task assignment and progress tracking

2. Computer Vision Annotation Tool (CVAT)

CVAT is a powerful open-source video annotation tool developed by Intel. It supports annotation for a wide range of tasks, including object detection, tracking, and segmentation. CVAT allows users to annotate videos by drawing bounding boxes, polygons, polylines, or points.

It offers collaborative annotation, synchronization across multiple annotators, and detailed annotation statistics. CVAT also provides automation features like interpolation, semi-automatic annotation, and inference integration.

• Wide range of annotation types – CVAT supports diverse annotation types
• Collaborative annotation and review – It enables real-time collaboration among team members, by collectively annotating and reviewing data
• Automatic annotation – CVAT offers AI-based assistance to accelerate annotation tasks and reduce manual effort
• Advanced video annotation features – CVAT provides comprehensive video annotation capabilities, including object tracking, video segmentation, and frame-level annotation
• Integration and deployment –The tool allows integration with deep learning frameworks and supports exporting annotations in formats compatible with popular machine learning libraries

Audio annotation tools

When looking into different audio annotation tools, you should consider all the file formats it supports, and whether it’s designed for more complex annotation tasks.

Here are the top two audio annotation tools with comprehensive set of audio annotation features:

1. EUDICO Linguistic Annotator (ELAN)

ELAN is a powerful and widely used audio annotation tool developed by the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics. It offers a comprehensive set of features for annotating audio and video recordings.

ELAN allows users to create and edit time-aligned annotations for multiple tiers, such as transcriptions, translations, and linguistic analysis. It supports various audio formats, offers advanced search and analysis capabilities, and is suitable for linguistic research and complex annotation tasks.

• Linguistic annotation – ELAN is specifically designed for linguistic annotation, enabling users to annotate speech, language, and gesture data
• Multi-layer Annotation – It supports multiple layers of annotation, allowing users to create and align annotations at different linguistic or temporal levels
• Time-aligned annotations – ELAN provides precise time alignment for annotations
• Metadata and transcription – The tool allows users to add metadata, transcriptions, and descriptive information to annotations, providing contextual information
• Annotation visualization and analysis – ELAN offers visualization and analysis tools to explore and analyze linguistic annotations and their relationships

Praat is a versatile and popular tool for audio annotation and analysis. It provides a wide range of features for manipulating and annotating audio recordings. Praat allows users to create annotations, transcriptions, and phonetic labels at various time points.

It offers visualization tools, signal processing capabilities, and scripting options for advanced customization. Praat is widely used in phonetics, speech analysis, and linguistic research.

• Speech and phonetics annotation – Praat is a specialized tool for speech and phonetics analysis, providing annotation features for audio recordings and linguistic analysis
• Waveform and spectrogram visualization – It offers visualizations of audio waveforms and spectrograms to facilitate detailed analysis and annotation
• Annotation types – Praat supports various annotation types, including segment labels, point labels, interval labels, and boundary labels, for precise annotation of speech data
• Scripting and automation – The tool allows users to create scripts to automate repetitive annotation tasks or perform advanced analyses
• Acoustic analysis – Praat allows users to extract and analyze acoustic features from speech data

3. Audacity

Although primarily known as an audio editing tool, Audacity also includes basic annotation features. It allows users to select specific regions of audio and add labels, comments, or markers.

While Audacity’s annotation capabilities may not be as extensive as dedicated annotation tools, it can be a convenient option for simple audio annotation tasks or when combined with its audio editing functionalities.

• Audio recording and editing – Audacity allows users to record, import, and edit audio files with a range of editing capabilities, including cut, copy, paste, and apply effects
• Multi-track editing – It supports multi-track editing, allowing users to work with multiple audio tracks simultaneously, adjust levels, and create complex audio compositions
• Effects and plugins – audacity offers a wide range of built-in audio effects, such as reverb, equalization, and noise reduction
• Spectrogram analysis – It provides a spectrogram view that displays the frequency and intensity of audio over time, allowing users to visualize and analyze audio characteristics
• Cross-platform and open source – Audacity is a free and open-source tool available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to users across different operating systems

Web annotation tools

When it comes to annotating a web page, it’s best to turn to a specialized web annotation software.

Here are three great examples of web annotation tools:

1. Hypothesis

Hypothesis is a popular web annotation tool that allows users to annotate web pages and PDF documents. It offers a browser extension that enables users to highlight text, add comments, and create discussions within the context of the webpage. Hypothesis supports public and private annotations, collaboration features, and integration with learning management systems. It promotes open annotation standards and interoperability.

• Web annotation – Hypothesis allows users to annotate web pages, documents, and digital content, making it easy to highlight, comment, and add notes directly on the content being viewed
• Collaboration and discussion – It supports collaborative annotation, allowing users to engage in discussions, reply to annotations, and interact with other users’ annotations
• Privacy and control – Hypothesis provides privacy controls, allowing users to choose whether their annotations are public or restricted to a specific group or audience
• Integration with learning management systems (LMS) – It offers integration with popular LMS platforms, allowing educators to incorporate collaborative annotation activities into their online courses
• API and customization – Hypothesis provides an API for developers to integrate annotation capabilities into their own applications or websites

Diigo is a versatile web annotation and bookmarking tool that enables users to highlight, bookmark, and add sticky notes to web pages. It offers browser extensions for easy annotation and organization of online content.

Diigo supports social annotation functionality, sharing and collaboration options, and the ability to create private or public annotation groups. It also provides a personal library for managing annotated resources.

• Web highlighting and sticky notes – You can add sticky notes directly on web pages to mark important information and save personal notes
• Webpage bookmarking and organization – It allows users to bookmark webpages and save them in an organized manner with tags, folders, and search functionality for easy retrieval
• Social annotation and collaboration – Diigo supports social annotation, allowing users to share their highlights, annotations, and bookmarks with others
• Webpage archiving – It provides a webpage archiving feature, allowing users to capture and save a copy of webpages, even if the original page is modified or removed
• Knowledge sharing and discovery – Diigo offers a platform for users to discover and explore content shared by others, expanding their knowledge base and staying updated with new information

Kami is a web-based annotation tool designed for collaboration and document annotation. It supports annotating PDF files , Google Drive documents, and web pages. Kami allows users to highlight text, add comments, draw shapes, and insert images within documents.

It offers real-time collaboration, sharing options, and integration with Google Classroom and learning management systems.

• PDF annotation and markup – Kami allows users to annotate and markup PDF documents with tools for highlighting, underlining, adding comments , and drawing shapes
• Collaboration and real-time editing – It supports real-time collaboration, enabling multiple users to work on the same document simultaneously and view each other’s annotations in real time
• Document organization and management – Kami provides features for organizing and managing PDF documents, including file merging, splitting, and rearranging pages
• Integration with Google Drive and Classroom – It offers integrations that allow you to easy access your files and create streamlined collaboration within the Google ecosystem
• Accessibility and integration with assistive technology – Kami offers accessibility features, including support for screen readers and integration with other tools to enhance the accessibility of PDF documents

Document annotation tools

Unlike any AI and natural language processing annotation tools, document annotation tools have a completely different purpose. They allow you to mark certain areas of your document and leave in-context feedback on top.

Here’s a look into some of the best document annotation tools:

1. Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat is a widely used and feature-rich document annotation tool. It offers a comprehensive set of annotation tools, including highlighting, underlining, strikethrough, adding comments, and drawing shapes. Adobe Acrobat allows for collaboration and review workflows, supports form filling, and offers advanced features like redaction and document security. It is compatible with PDF documents and is available for both desktop and mobile devices.

• Comprehensive PDF editing features
• PDF form creation and fillable forms
• Document security and protection
• OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
• Integration with Adobe Creative Cloud

Xodo is a versatile and user-friendly document annotation tool available on various platforms, including Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS. It provides a range of annotation tools, such as highlighting, underlining, adding text, shapes, and signatures. Xodo offers seamless syncing across devices, supports collaboration, and allows for document signing. It is particularly popular for its smooth and responsive user interface.

• PDF annotation and markup
• Collaboration and syncing
• Document organization and management
• PDF form filling and signing
• Cloud storage integration

3. Nitro PDF

Nitro PDF is a robust document annotation tool that offers a wide array of annotation options. It enables users to highlight text, add comments, draw shapes, and apply stamps or signatures.

Nitro PDF supports collaboration and version control, and it provides advanced features like OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and PDF form creation. It is available for both Windows and Mac platforms.

• PDF creation and conversion
• PDF editing and annotation
• Collaboration and review features
• Document signing and security
• OCR capabilities to convert scanned documents into searchable and editable text

Code annotation tools

If you’re looking to review a code, then these are the tools for you. These tools offer features like code highlighting, commenting, and version control integration, making it easier to leave feedback and collaborate on source code.

Here are the two best code annotation software:

1. Visual Studio Code (VS Code)

VS Code is a popular and feature-rich code editor that offers built-in support for code annotation. It provides features like line commenting, block commenting, and the ability to add descriptive comments within code.

VS Code also supports extensions that enhance code annotation capabilities, such as adding tags, generating API documentation, or creating interactive code snippets.

• Rich code editing experience with features like syntax highlighting, auto-completion, and intelligent code suggestions
• Extensibility and customization options to tailor the environment to their specific needs
• Version control integration with version control systems like Git, providing tools for managing code repositories, tracking changes, and resolving conflicts
• Built-in debugging capabilities for various programming languages
• It includes an integrated terminal for executing commands and a task runner for automating repetitive tasks within the development workflow

Eclipse is a widely used integrated development environment (IDE) that includes comprehensive code annotation features.

It supports commenting at the line, block, or method level and provides options to generate Javadoc comments for Java code. Eclipse also offers refactoring tools and code analysis features that aid in maintaining code quality and documentation.

• Robust Java Development environment – Eclipse is renowned for its strong support for Java development, offering features like code completion, refactoring tools, and debugging capabilities
• Plugin Ecosystem – It boasts a vast ecosystem of plugins and extensions, allowing users to enhance Eclipse’s functionality for various programming languages and development purposes
• Project management and tools integration
• Debugging and profiling capabilities – It allows users to identify and resolve issues in their code and optimize performance with powerful debugging capabilities
• Collaboration and version control – Eclipse supports integration with version control systems like Git and provides features for collaborative development, code reviews, and team coordination

3. JetBrains IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA is a powerful IDE known for its extensive code annotation capabilities. It provides various features to add comments, generate Javadoc, and create code documentation. IntelliJ IDEA supports different programming languages, including Java, Kotlin, Python, and JavaScript.

It offers code inspections, auto-completion, and other intelligent features that facilitate effective code annotation.

• Intelligent code editor with features like code completion, intelligent code analysis, and smart suggestions
• Advanced refactoring tools that assist in restructuring code and improving its quality
• Built-in version control with systems like Git, Mercurial, and Subversion
• Productivity boosters, including features like code generation, live templates, quick-fix suggestions, and customizable code inspections to catch potential errors and improve coding speed
• Robust plugin ecosystem

Annotate your files for free with Filestage

Filestage is a free annotation tool that allows you to seamlessly leave feedback on top of PDF documents, videos, graphics, and marketing projects in general. 

With Filestage, you can create a smooth annotation process by allowing all important stakeholders to leave feedback and review files.

Filestage’s free version is designed for freelancers and smaller teams and includes:

• Unlimited files, versions, and reviewers
• 2 active projects
• 2 GB of storage
• 2 review steps
• Support for all file formats
• Integrations
• Due dates and reminders
• Awaiting my review

Final thoughts

Various annotation tools are developed to cater to a wide range of purposes and industries. Whether you’re annotating images, videos, audio, code, or text content, these 21 annotation tools discussed in this article offer valuable features and capabilities to streamline your annotation workflows.If you’d like to see how Filestage can help you annotate various file formats and streamline your annotation process, make sure to try it for free →

Annotation and markup

11 best free PDF markup software on the market in 2024

How often did you want to highlight or leave notes on a text without having to print it? But as soon as you realized it was a PDF document, you knew it wouldn't be easy. Luckily, PDF markup tools are true lifesavers in this situation.

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How to annotate Microsoft Word documents (+ tips for accurate annotations)

Most of us would agree that Microsoft Word is kind of a legend in the world of text and editing tools. After all, it has been around since 1983.

How to annotate on Google Docs in seconds

Google Docs has become synonymous with effective online document collaboration. The tool has been changing the game in how we co-create and store documents in the cloud, which has won Google over two billion users.

How to annotate documents for fast and clear feedback

When it comes to giving feedback on a document, it can be tricky to explain what you mean using words alone. That’s where annotations come in.  Whether you’re reviewing a Word document, a PDF file, or any other type of document, using annotations to share your feedback makes the entire process clearer, easier, and even – dare I say it – more enjoyable.

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How to annotate a website for fast feedback and auditing

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How you can use PDF annotation to improve your document review process

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How to annotate video: Your guide for creating great video content

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Master the art of video annotation with 5 uncommon tips and the top 7 tools

In today's digital era, video content is slowly but surely overpowering all other types of content, covering various industries and applications. Whether it's for feedback, research, machine learning, or creating engaging user experiences, video annotation plays a crucial role in extracting meaningful insights from video files. 

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Top 13 video annotation tools for feedback and training AI

The average person now spends about 17 hours a week watching online videos. That's a whole lot of time. And a whole lot of video content. So whether you’re creating online language lessons, trying to boost engagement for a growing brand, or working on a machine learning project, annotating videos faster is always a win! That’s where feedback and AI video annotation tools come in.

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Innovative EdTech for teachers, educators, parents, and students

6 Best Apps for Annotating PDFs

By Med Kharbach, PhD | Last Update: March 23, 2024

In today’s digital age, where the flow of information is predominantly online, the ability to interact with digital documents has become crucial, especially in educational settings. This is where the power of PDF annotation apps comes into play, transforming how students and educators engage with their digital texts.

PDFs, known for their reliability and universal format, have long been the go-to choice for distributing educational materials, research papers, and various other documents. However, the static nature of PDFs often limits the level of interaction one can have with the content. Hence the importance of PDF annotating apps. These are tools that will help enhance the way you interact with your PDFs from highlighting text to adding notes and comments, these apps are just amazing.

Our exploration will cover a variety of apps, each with its unique features and strengths. Whether you’re looking for an app with advanced editing capabilities or one that simplifies collaboration, there’s something here for everyone.

If you are looking for tools to help you annotate web pages, you can check this collection .

Apps for Annotating PDFs

Let’s dive into the digital world of PDF annotation and discover how these PDF annotating apps can enhance your educational experience, making learning and teaching more dynamic, interactive, and efficient.

1. Adobe Acrobat Reader

Adobe Acrobat Reader is definitely one of my favourite PDF annotating apps in this list. It has helped me a lot with my readings especially during my graduate studies. Let’s first talk about the viewing features: 

Adobe Acrobat Reader provides you with an optimal reading experience through the liquid Mode and dark mode. You can choose whether to read in a single page or continuous scroll mode and with a single click you can print your PDFs. 

As for the annotation features, Adobe Acrobat Reader enables you to add notes, comments, highlights, and sticky notes to your PDFs. You can even write or draw on them. And if you are subscribed, you also have the added features of editing text and images directly in your PDFs, fixing typos, add or delete images. Additionally, you can fill in PDF forms and add your e-signature using your finger or stylus. 

Adobe Acrobat Reader also offers a number of interesting collaborative features. For instance, you can share PDFs with your colleagues or collaborators to comment on and you can collect these comments in a single file online. When you activate notifications you will be notified whenever your collaborators added their feedback.

Compatibility: iPhone/iPad and Android / Price: Free, offers in-app purchases / Age : 4+

2. Foxit PDF Editor

Foxit PDF Editor is another excellent viewing and annotating PDF app. Some of the key annotation features  Foxit app offers include the ability to edit your PDFs the way you want. For instance, you can add audios, videos, and hyperlinks to PDFs. 

You can also add or delete text and images, edit document properties, optimize PDF documents, reorganize PDF pages, fill out and save forms, add handwritten signatures to PDFs, add e-signatures to PDFs, and many more. 

The collaborative features it provides include: add annotations and stamps to shared PDFs, share PDF files and screenshots from inside the app, and more. Other interesting features include: 

Create blank PDFs from scratch or from Microsoft Office or HTML files, scan and convert paper documents to PDFs, combine PDFs to create a new PDF, convert PDFs to Microsoft Office, and many more. You can also use the app to protect your PDFs with a password.

Compatibility:  iPhone/iPad and Android /  Price:  Free, offers in-app purchases /  Age : 4+

3. Notability

Notability is an excellent note-taking and PDF annotation app which I have been using for a number of years now. Notability lets you easily import PDFs and documents and annotate them the way you like. You can also use the app’s document scanner to create searchable multi-page PDFs to share with others. 

Other important features provided by Notability include: annotate with freehand ink, drawing, and text; add photos, GIFs, and web pages; mark up imported textbooks, lecture slides, images, class assignments, and more; audio record your notes; work with two notes side-by-side; create outlines, interactive checklists, and text boxes; publish your notes in the Notability gallery and many more.

Compatibility:  iPhone/iPad/ Mac   /  Price:  Free, offers in-app purchases /  Age : 4+

4. PDF Expert

Another popular PDF editor and viewer app. PDF Expert lets you add various forms of annotations to your PDFs. You can highlight, underline, and strikethrough. You can also insert pre-designed stamps (e.g., approved, not approved, confidential etc.); use sticky notes to add comments or use drawing tools to draw on your documents; fill out PDF forms with interactive fields such as text fields, checkboxes and radio buttons; sign documents; protect your PDFs with passwords, edit or modify existing text; and more. 

Compatibility:   iPhone/iPad and Android /  Price:  Free, offers in-app purchases /  Age : 4+

5. iAnnotate 4

Use iAnnotate 4 to annotate your PDFs using a pen, highlighter, typewriter, stamp, straight-line, note, underline, strikeout, photo, voice recording, arrow, rectangle, circle, and date stamp tools. 

iAnnotate saves your marks up in the PDF enabling you to access them on any PDF reader you use. Other interesting features provided by this app include:

• “Compress your annotations onto the document to prevent modification. This is useful for preserving signatures or for preventing recipients from deleting or changing your annotations.
• Open a web capture tab and find the site you want to mark up. iAnnotate will convert it to a PDF for annotation.
• Explore your documents by thumbnails, bookmarks, annotations, or search results.
• Open multiple documents in tabs, and easily navigate between them, on both tablet and phone.
• Work on two documents side-by-side, for even greater productivity.
• Arrange documents by folders and sort contents by date added, date last opened, or alphabetical order.
• Create brand new PDFs with blank, lined, or graph-paper pages.
• Forward a summary of your annotations as an email or a new PDF.”

Compatibility:  iPhone/iPad and Android /  Price:  $9.99 /  Age : 4+

6. PDFelement

PDFelement is both a PDF editor and scanner that enables you to read, create, edit, annotate, and convert PDFs. PDFelement also supports text recognition allowing you to extract text and images from scannable objects. 

Other interesting features provided by PDFelement include: change font size and colour of original text, edit text and images, remove cluttered backgrounds, add notes and comments, draw shapes, supports handwritten signatures and imported image signatures, fill and sign forms, convert to of from different file formats (e.g., word, excel, PPT, pages, PNG, JPEG, TIFF, GIF), combine files into a single PDF, and many more.

Final thoughts

As we conclude this exploration of the best apps for annotating PDFs, it’s evident that these tools have revolutionized the way we interact with PDF documents. In the educational sphere, where the exchange of information is constant and critical, the ability to annotate PDFs is more than just a convenience—it’s a necessity. The apps discussed each bring something unique to the table. From Adobe’s comprehensive features to Notability’s specialized note-taking capabilities, these apps cater to a diverse range of needs.

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Meet Med Kharbach, PhD

Dr. Med Kharbach is an influential voice in the global educational technology landscape, with an extensive background in educational studies and a decade-long experience as a K-12 teacher. Holding a Ph.D. from Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada, he brings a unique perspective to the educational world by integrating his profound academic knowledge with his hands-on teaching experience. Dr. Kharbach's academic pursuits encompass curriculum studies, discourse analysis, language learning/teaching, language and identity, emerging literacies, educational technology, and research methodologies. His work has been presented at numerous national and international conferences and published in various esteemed academic journals.

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17 Best Website Annotation Tools in 2024

Software reviews.

In this post, we’ll look at 17 of the best website annotation tools, focusing on their pricing, use cases, and features.

It's just a fact.

Every phase of website development involves feedback:

• Design & early mockups
• Development & staging
• Internal QA
• Client and user feedback

Managing feedback through color-coded Google Docs, spreadsheet comments, and annotated screenshots can be chaotic.

The constant exchange of feedback among stakeholders can overwhelm any project manager.

What if you could directly annotate, markup, and comment on a website?

With the right tools, you can:

• Quickly annotate a website
• Highlight text or other elements
• Give visual feedback with markups
• Easily take screenshots
• Leave notes and comments for review
• Directly send feedback and bug reports to your issue tracker
• ...and more!

But, how do you choose the right one?

With so many options available, making a decision can be tough.

Let's have a look!

17 Best Website Annotation Tools

Here are the best website annotation and markup tools for 2024.

1. Marker.io

Add comments, annotations, and markups directly on your website.

Marker.io simplifies the process of taking screenshots and annotating them for your team and clients.

With one click, both technical and non-technical stakeholders can share feedback and report bugs.

Marker.io is ideal for client feedback and QA testing, thanks to its on-page annotations and integrations with project management tools.

Website annotations, markups, and comments

Marker.io can be added to your website as a widget or a Chrome extension. This makes it easy to capture and annotate web pages.

Just install the code snippet or browser extension to start annotating. The tool includes:

• Full or partial screenshots
• Arrows for emphasis
• Text-over-image
• Rectangle, circle & pen tool
• Blur for sensitive info
• Image overlays
• Color options

Marker.io is best for:

• Bug reporting and bug tracking. It helps your QA team or end-users report bugs quickly.
• Feedback collection. It gathers client feedback efficiently after delivering a website project.

Here's how simple it is:

• Click “Report a bug” when you spot one or have feedback.
• Annotate and markup the page, fill in the feedback form.
• Hit “Create issue”—and you're done!

2-way integrations

The best part about Marker.io is our deep integrations with popular project management tools like Jira, Trello, GitHub, and Asana.

Whenever your reporters submit feedback, an issue is automatically created in your chosen tool.

That’s right: you don’t need to spend hours triaging your inbox anymore . Plus, your developers can stay in their preferred environment.

When a task is marked as “Done” in your project management tool, that same task will also be “Resolved” in Marker.io.All stakeholders can see the status of reports in the dashboard.

For detailed discussions on specific issues, you can use the feedback page.

All comments and attachments sync with your project management tool.

Check it out:

Detailed bug reports

Asking clients and non-technical stakeholders to markup or annotate your website can sometimes lead to lost information:

• Console logs
• Browser and environment info
• Viewport details

This can cause endless back-and-forth between developer, project manager, and reporter.

And a bunch of headaches, too!

Marker.io automatically includes essential information with every report:

• Reporter name
• Environment info

Session replay

• Any other details developers need to fix the bug

Customizable feedback forms

QA testing involves a wide range of reporters, from your team to clients or end-users.

Marker.io offers two types of feedback forms:

• Guest Forms for non-technical users and clients
• Member Forms for your QA team

Both forms are fully customizable, allowing for detailed feedback from your team and simplicity for clients or end-users.

As a developer, when you receive bug reports from your clients, your first action is to try and reproduce that scenario.

But even with all the technical data in the report—you sometime still fail to understand what’s going on.If only you could see exactly what happened on the reporter’s side when the bug occurred…

Well—Marker.io's toolkit includes session replay for that reason.

Straight from your PM tool, simply click the “Watch replay” link.

You’ll then be able to watch the last 30 seconds (or more) before the report was submitted.

See session replay in action:

Ready to give it a go? Sign up for a free trial here —no credit card required.

Pricing: $39/mo.

2. Filestage

Comment and annotate on any file type.

With Filestage , teams can upload any file type (spreadsheets, images, website design mockups, videos, etc.) and annotate them.

It streamlines the approval process in a few steps:

• Create a project and upload your files.
• Invite reviewers to leave feedback.
• Edit and share new versions for side-by-side comparison.
• Approve the work—done!

Pricing: Starts at $19/user/mo.

3. NoteLedge

Note-taking, highlights, and markups on the go.

NoteLedge is a mobile app for designers, marketers, and creatives.

Use it on your phone or laptop to:

• Discover and save new ideas. Highlight what's important.
• Create mood boards to organize and visualize ideas.
• Sketch or highlight main ideas with various brushes.
• Export notes to PDF and share with your team.

The app has a free version, perfect for on-the-go note-taking.

Pricing: Free, with upgrades starting at $2.49/mo.

4. Fusebase

All-in-one workspace for non-technical stakeholders.

‍ Fusebase offers a shared workspace for your team and clients, simplifying your workflow.

The tool offers a complete white-label portal:

• Sharing documents or web pages
• Real-time editing and annotations
• Easy client access with just a link
• Feedback exchange through comments
• Mobile-friendly

Pricing: Starts at $6/user/mo.

5. Monosnap

Quick screenshots and uploads for startups, designers, and freelancers.

If you value speed, Monosnap might be for you.

It's straightforward:

• Take a screenshot with one click or a keyboard shortcut.
• Edit and annotate.
• Upload to cloud storage.

Because it is so straightforward, Monosnap is versatile:

• Capture entire webpages and give feedback
• Work asynchronously with editable video recordings or GIFs.
• Store updates on Dropbox, Google Drive, and more.
• Share your work with a simple link—no signup needed.

Monosnap also offers a Chrome extension!

Pricing: Only $3/user/mo.

Video feedback, annotations, and version control.

Although Wipster isn't specifically for websites, it's too good to leave out. Videos often form part of website design.

Wipster simplifies video feedback with:

• Media management tools for easy review of video, images, PDFs, and audio files
• Public URLs or password-protected links for sharing
• Customizable review cycles
• Easy editing and annotating
• Turning comments into tasks
• Version control for tracking changes

Pricing: From $19.95/user/mo.

7. Markup Hero

Multi-page annotations.

Markup Hero is an advanced highlighting and markup software for project managers and teachers, offering a wide range of annotation features:

• Screenshot entire websites
• Full editing history
• Various markup tools like arrows and highlighters
• Shareable links
• Undo and redo options

Markup Hero also allows side-by-side page annotations and organizes feedback with built-in collections.

Pricing: Free for basic use.

Search and organize feedback with highlights, markups, and annotations.

As a Google Chrome extension, Memex is user-friendly and supports:

• Highlighting, annotating, and drawing on websites & PDFs
• Organizing feedback in spaces
• Searching previously annotated screenshots
• Sharing work with teammates via a one-time link
• Works across devices and offline
• Data backup with major cloud providers

Memex also serves as a productivity tool, allowing you to highlight important articles for later reading.

Pricing: Free

Async teamwork with annotations.

Snagit by Techsmith is a screen capture and recording tool that replaces lengthy how-to documents with visual instructions.

Your team will love the visual explanations, and Snagit comes with a handful of features to help you:

• Screen capture
• Screen recording for detailed explanations
• Cloud library syncing
• Video and GIF editing
• Text grabbing from any source
• Markup tools for clear communication
• iOS screen recording on mobile

Pricing: One-time $75 license.

10. Page Marker

Markup and highlight websites with an extension.

Page Marker is a Chrome extension that excels at website annotation.

While it may lack in features, if you’re just looking to annotate a website, this is the way.

It also comes with its own set of shortcuts for fast highlighting:

• Marker - Shift+D
• Highlighter - Shift+H
• Eraser - Shift+E
• Text - Shift+T
• ...and more.

Pricing: Free.

11. GoVisually

Client portal for design feedback.

GoVisually is a proofing solution for design teams and web agencies looking to streamline feedback.

Features include:

• Sharing and reviewing web designs
• Annotating and commenting on PDFs and websites
• Uploading any file type (PNG, PSD, PDF…)
• Timely feedback response
• Faster client approval

Share projects easily with a single link and manage comments more efficiently.

Pricing: Starts at $20/mo.

12. Zoho Annotator

Website annotations for QA and client feedback.

Zoho Annotator is a Chrome extension that facilitates QA by allowing you to:

• Add contextual comments and annotations
• Save changes as an image
• Illustrate ideas without leaving your browser
• Copy and paste images into your project management tool

It includes standard annotation tools and blurs sensitive information.

13. PDF Annotator

Advanced PDF annotations.

PDF Annotator offers advanced features for annotating PDFs, making it great for feedback on website design ideas or early mockups.

• Text selection and extraction
• Pan and zoom
• Stamps and icons
• Arrows, lines, and shapes

On-page collaboration with shareable annotation links.

Another website markup tool is Spade . It's a free extension that adds a toolbar for annotating websites with:

• Pen and highlighter
• Move and resize options
• Keyboard shortcuts
• Export to PDF

Annotations are saved to the cloud and organized in folders on the Spade website, shareable with teammates.

15. Hypothes.is

Annotate text on any web page and organize group notes.

Hypothes.is is a great tool for students organizing web research, but it can also serve as a feedback tool.

• Select text to annotate
• Reply to or share annotations
• Private collaboration
• Search your notes

Comment on websites and save your research.

Diigo offers features to make research easier for students:

• Highlights and sticky notes on webpages
• Bookmarks for easy access to research
• Tags for content organization
• Simple sharing of annotations

All annotations are stored in the cloud.

Pricing: Free, with premium options available.

17. Annotate.com

Annotate and collaborate on PDF documents for Enterprise.

Annotate.com helps teams work faster with PDF documents.

They offer a variety of annotation tools, like:

• Text highlights
• Highlight boxes
• Freehand annotations
• Add images and text in comments

It's easy to get started: just create an account, and start a project by uploading your PDF document.

You can review all annotations and changes within the platform, and Annotate integrates seamlessly with Google Drive and Dropbox.

Pricing: Annotate.com is an Enterprise solution, so you'd need to contact sales to get a custom quote.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a website annotation tool.

Website annotation tools allow you to annotate, highlight, or mark up webpages. They come with drawing tools like arrows and shapes to help communicate your ideas.

How do you annotate a website? (+ Example)

Choose a tool from our list and start annotating.

A good annotation should be informative and concise:

• Use arrows and highlights to draw attention quickly.
• Keep text brief—attach comments or write a full bug report for detailed feedback.
• One issue = one screenshot = one annotation.

How to choose a website annotation tool?

Your choice depends on your use case and how often you expect to have to annotate a website.

• For regular internal QA or client feedback, Marker.io is a great option.
• If you're a creative looking for inspiration, try NoteLedge.
• For occasional screenshots and markup needs, free Chrome extensions might suffice.

What are some common use cases for an annotation tool?

Website annotation tools are versatile:

• Discussing and collaborating on webpages
• Annotating web articles for later reference
• Sharing and rating web resources
• Research and study purposes

They're useful whenever you need to visually communicate your ideas.

That wraps up our list of the best 17 website annotation tools for 2024.

These cover a wide range of use cases, and you should be able to find one that suits you.

Did we miss any? Let us know, and we'll consider adding it to the list.

Continue reading

We’re officially soc 2 type 2 compliant.

24 Best Website Feedback Tools in 2024: Comparison Guide

12 best beta testing tools in 2024: comparison guide, what is marker.io, who is marker.io for, how easy is it to set up, will marker.io slow down my website, do clients need an account to send feedback, how much does it cost, get started now.

Apps for Academics: Reading and Annotating

• Productivity
• Library Research
• Reading and Annotating
• Writing and Citing
• Audio and Video
• Visualizing Information

Ask a Librarian

Chat with a Librarian

Lisle: (630) 829-6057 Mesa: (480) 878-7514 Toll Free: (877) 575-6050 Email: [email protected]

Book a Research Consultation Library Hours

Annotate PDFs

• GoodReader Robust PDF reader with advanced annotating capabilities, excellent file manager, text file reader and editor, audio/video player, Safari-like viewer for MS Office and iWorks files. Syncs with Google Docs, Dropbox and more.
• iAnnotate Annotate, manage, search, and share PDF documents.
• Mendeley Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network. Make your own fully-searchable library in seconds, cite as you write, and read and annotate your PDFs on any device.

Follow Multiple Blogs in One Place

• Feedly The content of your RSS feeds, news sites and blogs are transformed into pocket-sized cards which load very fast and are easy to browse.
• Flipboard View news, blogs, and social network content in a magazine-layout that emphasizes linked content, videos, and photos.

Read eBooks

• BlueFire Reader Your go-to reading application for ePUB and PDF content, including BenU Library subscription eBooks from ebrary.
• iBooks iBooks is an amazing way to download and read books. iBooks includes the iBooks Store, where you can download the latest bestselling books or your favorite classics
• Kindle Read your Amazon Kindle books even if you don't have a Kindle. Automatically syncs your last page read between devices. Delete a book when you're done and Amazon keeps your copy online for later retrieval. Adjust text size, add bookmarks, and more.
• Overdrive and Libby ebooks Use your public library's Libby app through Overdrive to download free ebooks to your device.

Read Saved Webpages Offline

• Pocket Save articles, videos, recipes, and webpages you find online or from apps, like Flipboard and Feedly.
• Instapaper Save, read, and manage the things you find online. Instapaper syncs the articles and videos you save so that they’re waiting for you on all your devices. You can read anything you save, even offline. Highlight and comment on text in any article so you can store it, retrieve it, quote it and share it.
• << Previous: Library Research
• Next: Writing and Citing >>
• Last Updated: Jul 6, 2023 4:49 PM
• URL: https://researchguides.ben.edu/apps

Kindlon Hall 5700 College Rd. Lisle, IL 60532 (630) 829-6050

Gillett Hall 225 E. Main St. Mesa, AZ 85201 (480) 878-7514

Annotate With Ease

Try a free tool that does all you need without the bloat. Made for Mac, Windows, Linux, Chrome and your web browser.

How It Works

With Markup Hero you can immediately share your images / PDFs and add annotations in your web browser for free. It's simple to learn and easy to use.

🖥️️ Upload An Image / PDF

Start by uploading an image or PDF . Instantly add markup, share a link, or copy the image.

✏️ Markup Your Image / PDF

Effortlessly add text, shapes, drawings, and images to enhance and communicate your message.

🔗 Share Your Markup

Quickly share a link; or simply copy the markup to your clipboard and paste it into email, SMS, Slack or hundreds of other programs.

📒️ View Your History

Conveniently view all your screenshots and markups in one place, as well as see any markups that have been shared with you. Edit markups and duplicate as needed.

Customer Feedback

Markup Hero is great for managers, educators, and creators alike.

"Markup Hero is part of my daily workflow. I keep track of all my markups with the history feature and can easily make edits to my annotations on the fly."

- Product Manager @ Audiojoy

"Wow the tool is quite useful! How it immediately uploads and opens in the browser is fantastic! It allows me to quickly share feedback on marketing materials."

- Marketing Manager @ Your Army

"We are constantly sending screenshots, images and PDFs in Slack and Gmail. I love how my team can respond with their own annotations in Markup Hero."

- Support Lead @ Lulu & Georgia

4 Best PDF Annotator and Markup Apps for All Platforms

There are PDF editors available for every platform and they come in all shapes and sizes. The thing is that not all of us are looking for a PDF editor. A lot of us simply need a PDF annotator and markup tool that will let us highlight important parts or add a comment/thoughts. This is really useful when you are re-reading the PDF at a later point. You don’t have to go through the whole thing again and waste your valuable time.

Instead of using paid PDF editors that offer advanced features that you don’t really need or could care less about, it is better to get a PDF annotator and markup tool that will help you with just that, mark, annotate, and comment. Whether you are using an Android, iPad, Windows or Mac, we will cover at least one app for each. Let’s begin.

Best PDF Annotator and Markup Apps

1. pdf annotator and marker for android.

First up in the list is the Xodo PDF Reader and Editor, which is one of the highest rated, free PDF annotator and marker apps on the Play Store. The reason why Xodo made it to this list is because the UI is not only functional but the app comes with some cool features.

With Xodo, annotating and adding comments is as easy as long-tapping anywhere on the page. A small box will pop up with options like add comments, draw shapes like squares, circles, and lines, highlight text using color, underline or strikeout or simply type your thoughts. Where Xodo makes things interesting is that all these presets are customizable so you can change color, font type and size, thickness and even opacity while using annotating tools.

Finally, you can add signatures to documents or fill-in forms right on your Android smartphone. There is an option to add custom images to pages (think watermarks ) and even stamp them if that is what your boss wants you to do.

If you select a piece of text, Xodo will offer you to translate that text in other languages using Google Translate or find its meaning using the built-in dictionary. Very useful when reading books where you often find words that are out of your vocabulary box.

For people who like to listen, not read, while still needing to annotate their PDF files, Xodo comes with a speech-to-text feature that will read the selected word/s out loud. Very helpful when you don’t know how a certain word is pronounced.

Xodo will connect with other cloud storage service providers like Dropbox and Google Drive. You can then use it to annotate and mark PDFs in collaboration with others in real time. Useful for students working on a project.

• Connect with cloud storage apps
• Select font type, size, color
• Insert or draw shapes, sizes, objects, images, links
• Sign, fill-in, stamp forms, highlight, bookmark, comment
• Dictionary and translator

Download Xodo PDF Reader & Editor  (Free)

2. Best PDF Annotation App for iPad

At this point, I would like to remind you that Xodo, that we discussed above for Android, is also available on iTunes and remains one of the best PDF annotator and marker apps. But, iOS is home to many other PDF annotators and one of them is PDF Expert by Readdle. When you use the word “expert” in the name, you immediately set a high standard for yourself. PDF Expert won’t disappoint.

Apart from the usual features that you would expect in a robust PDF annotator like adding notes and comments, choosing font type and color, highlight, and filling and signing forms, PDF Expert offers custom stamps. Editors will be happy to know that you can now create commonly used stamps to annotate and give feedback.

Apple introduced the Apple Pencil in the new iPad lineup and PDF Expert takes full advantage of it. You can use Apple Pencil or your fingers to draw on pages and even images. Finally, PDF Expert will connect and sync data from all popular cloud storage platforms. With security in mind, PDF Expert has an option to not only password-protect your files but also use Apple’s Data Protection feature to encrypt the files and data within.

PDF Expert will cost you $9.99 and if you subscribe with an in-app purchase, you get additional features like the ability to edit full text and images, redact sensitive text, change opacity, and add links.

Note that PDF Expert is also available for MacBooks which will bring a lot of consistency between UI if you frequently find yourself switching between iPhone, iPad, and MacBook.

• Supports cloud storage
• Reduce PDF file size using compression
• Can be expensive for some users
• Can’t add links without subscription
• Dictionary and translator missing

Download PDF Expert  ($9.99)

3. PDF Annotator and Marker for Windows

Acrobat created the PDF standard and its PDF reader is not only free, but also pretty powerful. Features like adding notes, comments, changing font types, size, and color are all there. You can easily add stamps or create and upload your own customized one. Signing documents and filling forms were never so easy and accurate.

Not everything is free in the Adobe world. While highlighting notes, attaching files, recording audio is free, you will have to subscribe to the DC Pro plan, which can be expensive at $15/mon, to unlock advanced editing features like creating and editing PDF Files. Under Annotations, you will see a number of shapes that you can insert but I couldn’t find a way to add my own. You can, however, play around with its properties to change size, color, and more by right-clicking on it.

Finally, Adobe Acrobat DC Reader comes with a built-in converter to convert PDF files to popular MS Office formats like Word and Excel.

Note that Adobe will ask you to download and install McAfee antivirus which is ticked by default.

• Easy to use
• Fill-in, sign PDFs
• Add notes, comments, shapes, stamps
• Attach files, record audio
• Control font type, size, color,
• Convert to MS Office formats
• The subscription model is expensive, suitable for enterprise users only

Download Adobe Acrobat Reader DC  (Free)

4. PDF Annotator and Marker for macOS

Most big software and apps are cross-platform compatible which means all the features we saw above in Adobe Reader DC for Windows are also available for the macOS platform. It is pretty much the default way to read and annotate PDF files on the Mac platform.

If you are willing to pay for and need advanced features, you should look at PDFelement 6 Pro .

PDFelement 6 Pro is not just a reader and an annotator but a full-fledged PDF editor. You can easily add and edit both text and images in pages. Signing documents can be done using an image or by drawing using hand gestures. Regular font and text features like type, size, color, strike-through and adding notes and comments are pretty much standard.

One notable feature is the OCR using which you can convert scanned images into editable PDF files. Good for students and professionals alike.

Honorary mention will include Preview which is free and comes pre-installed on all MacBooks. With Preview, it is easy to manage font type, size, and color, and you can use it to fill forms. During tests, Preview found it a little difficult to locate the correct boxes while filling info. Under the Tools menu, you will find Annotate which will help you add a speech bubble to add comments or maybe notes. Finally, you can sign docs and add/remove pages. Preview is good enough for most people but if you need more features, and easy to use UI, there are far better options available on Macs.

Why not Acrobat DC Pro? Because for the same price, you get more options and features with PDF Element 6 Pro.

• Add, edit images, text, links
• OCR for scanned images to PDF
• Font type, size, color, etc.
• Sign, fill forms
• Comments, notes, bookmarks
• Convert or export to MS Office formats
• Subscription model

Download PDFelement 6 Pro  ($59.95)

Which is the best PDF Annotator App?

As you can see, there is some overlap. Quite a few apps are available on more than one platform and that is the sign of a good app. So you can use them interchangeably however you like. Adobe Reader DC is available on both Windows and Mac plus they also have mobile apps. Xodo PDF Editor is available on both iOS and Android mobile platforms. Similarly, PDFelement 6 Pro has covered both the major OSes. You can choose any depending on your personal use case scenario and liking.

Also Read:   8 Best PDF Editor for Ubuntu And Other Linux Distro

Gaurav Bidasaria

Gaurav is an editor here at TechWiser but also contributes as a writer. He has more than 10 years of experience as a writer and has written how-to guides, comparisons, listicles, and in-depth explainers on Windows, Android, web, and cloud apps, and the Apple ecosystem. He loves tinkering with new gadgets and learning about new happenings in the tech world. He has previously worked on Guiding Tech, Make Tech Easier, and other prominent tech blogs and has over 1000+ articles that have been read over 50 million times.

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10 Best Annotation Tools for Windows PC I Highlight Your Thought

If you are using Windows OS, you can capture screenshots by pressing the keyboards key PrtScr . But this default Windows keyboard shortcut can not highlight the important area that you want to mark or provide an extra message to the audience. An annotation software can do this. Unfortunately, Windows OS does not have a default powerful annotation tool. Though Microsoft Snip & Sketch has annotation features, it is limited.

Basically, the annotation tool helps you mark a specific object in a picture or document, fill PDF form, or even sign a document. This tool makes it easier for the audience to understand the message clearly. If you are a web designer or project manager, this tool helps you collaborate with your team to get feedback or instruct them perfectly.

This is a great tool for a presentation or demonstration of something that you temporarily think about and mark your key points to change. So let’s introduce trusted and useful annotation tools.

Best Annotation Tools for Windows PC

You may find lots of annotation tools on the web. But it isn’t easy to pick the right one for you don’t have any idea about the tools. In this article, we cover the 10 best annotation tools for Windows, which enable you to highlight or edit important text or ideas with audiences. Most of them are free. So let’s check the best for you.

1. Adobe Reader

Adobe Reader is probably the most used PDF reader. This app is compatible with almost all operating systems. This feature-rich application also includes an annotation feature. This annotation tool is hidden in the Comment tool. Select the comment tool from the top right or sidebar. Then bar open with many options; you can select an option to annotate your PDF.

Key Features

• You can highlight with various colors any text or shape.
• Moreover, you can underline any text using various colors.
• Besides, you can make a circle, rectangle, or any shape to highlight a particular section of the document.
• If needed, you can write down or erase any text in PDF.
• After highlight or edit the PDF , you can share this PDF with others using the PDF Share option.

Pros: The layout is fantastic. All annotation features are included in this package.

Cons: The paid version is too expensive. Some features do not work in the free version, and then you need to pay a big amount.

Download Adobe Reader Now

2. Microsoft Snip & Sketch

If you are using Windows 10 or above, you find this cool annotation tool by default. Go to the taskbar below the right new notification panel or press WIN+Shift+S , then the Microsoft Snip & Sketch tool has appeared. This tool lets you screenshot & highlight any point of the screenshot if needed.

• There is a pen and pencil to write down on the image. You can choose 30 colors from the color pallet and resize your pen or pencil size.
• You can highlight any section of text using the highlighter tool. There are 6 different colors to highlight.
• Besides, a rectangle and circle ruler tool helps to draw the line.
• A touch writing is also included with this app to free-hand draw or writes anything.
• However, you can erase all ink (that you draw by snipping tool) on the image with just a single click.
• Moreover, you can share this screenshot image via Mircosoft Onenote or mail.

Pros: It is the default tool for Windows 10 or above OS users. So you do not need to download it. Your basic requirement is fulfilled with just a single click.

Cons: The erase tool erase all link at once. If you want to erase a particular section, that cannot be possible in this app.

Download Snip & Sketch Now

PicPick is an all-in-one design tool that not only can capture screenshots but also can edit the image. This app has various graphic design accessories, including a color picker, ruler, crosshair, whiteboard, and many more handy tools. Besides, you can apply the image effect to enhance your image.

• Capture everything that you want. You can capture either the entire screen or active window or a specific part of the window.
• You can highlight your image using either text or different shapes with different colors.
• PicPick comes with basic image effects such as brightness control, drop shadows, frames, motions.
• You can easily share this image via mail, file sharing site, or social media.
• Besides, you can customize shortcut keys to make simple the editing process.
• You save the image not only JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP formate but also PDF formate. That is a big shot for PicPick.

Pros: The simple interface with a handy tool can use everyone without having any technical knowledge. It helps to make PRO!

Cons: I miss different brush tools such as Airbrush, Oil Brush. Besides, I also miss saving an image in GIF format. I Hope PicPick these cool features in its next update.

Download PicPick Now

If you are looking for a lightweight annotation utility, then Gink is the best option for you. It needs less than 5 MB to install on your device. Basically, Gink is an open-source application that you can download for free. Once it is installed, it runs on Windows background. When you need to take screenshots, just press G, then Gink appears on the screen. After that, you can take a screenshot and add additional text or mark.

• The user interface is clean and simple. So the audience can focus on the highlight easily.
• It has a stylus eraser to clean the particular part. Besides, it has a clear tool to clear the canvas.
• You can use the mouse for click-through mode.
• It has 5 pens in different colors and sizes.
• Moreover, you can draw on the screen and then take a screenshot to save your demonstration.

Pros: The great feature of this tool is that it can use in multiple displays.

Cons: To install this tool, you need to additionally install the .Net Framework if it is not installed on your computer.

Download Gink Now

5. PDF Annotator

By the name, it seems a simple annotation tool. But it is more than an annotation tool. You annotate not only your PDF document but also design, sign, comment on the document. However, this annotation tool has no free version—the regular license price around $70. But you buy a student package at $39.95. This annotation tool is only available for Windows OS.

• You can comment on the document.
• You can freehand highlight the document using the pen tool.
• Besides, you can add markup and images to the document.
• Moreover, you can add signature, page number into the document.
• You can import or export this pdf annotation in a different document version.

Pros: When you need to annotate a large document, then this tool is very helpful. Moreover, you can add or deduct any page into the document.

Cons: You can add a signature but can not add a digital protected signature with this annotation tool.

Download PDF Annotator Now

6. Microsoft OneNote

Microsoft OneNote is a member of the Microsoft Office family. Basically, it is a digital notebook where you can also use as annotate tool. This powerful annotation tool helps you to capture your thought into digital form. Besides, you take notes, make comments, record and edit audio, compile images and share your content with others. Surprisingly, it is a free product of Microsoft. You can download it from the Microsoft site for free. If you are using Microsoft 365, OneNote is already installed.

• This annotation tool supports audio and video media. So you can record, insert and mix media here.
• It provides cloud storage services and saves free up to 5 GB of files and media.
• If you need, you can revise your note with type or highlighting.
• You can draw your thought by using stylus ink or your finger.
• Moreover, you can organize your content across section, pages
• Besides, you can share OneNote content via mail, social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

Pros: The cloud storage facility is a unique feature as an annotation tool. Moreover, you use a Microsoft product for free. How sounds good!

Cons: There is no private encryption while saving the data to the cloud.

Download Microsoft OneNote Now

7. Foxit Reader

Foxit Reader is another powerful PDF annotator that you must like. It comes with full-featured annotation features. The user interface is straightforward and easy to use. Open Foxit Reader and go to the Comment tab. Here you find lots of annotation features such as text markup, typewriter, drawing, area highlight, note, pin, comment, and share option. You can download it free from the Foxit site.

• With Foxit Reader, you can fill the form using XML Form Architecture.
• You can add images, videos, and file attachments with your PDF documents.
• You can create, manage, and apply digital signatures and make them password protected.
• Besides, you can also create, manage, and apply stamps.
• If you need to add additional text, you can write it easily using Foxit Reader. Moreover, you can change the font name, font size, and font color.

Pros: This lightweight software supports all types of operating systems. So you can use it anywhere anytime.

Cons: Document merge, filter, and compression features are only available for Foxit reader online version called Foxitonline or purchasing another application called FoxitPhantomPDF.

Download Foxit Reader Now

Doccano is an open-source annotation tool for both Windows and Mac. This annotation tool is usually used for text classification, sequence labeling, sequence task. So you can recognize entities, summarize text and create a dataset. First of all, you need to create a project and then upload your data after starting annotation. It designs a simple interface. So you can make text annotation easily.

• This tool helps you to analyze the sentiment of the text.
• You can label your data according to the sequence.
• Moreover, you can draw a sequence flow for training data models.
• This text annotation tool supports multilanguage.
• It supports emoji! Interesting!

Pros: When your app is trained about data sequence, it automatically labels all data using a machine language model.

Cons: It has a lag issue. Also, without technical knowledge, it isn’t easy to run.

Download Doccano Now

Xodo PDF reader also works as an annotation tool. With free Xodo, you can edit, annotate, sign and sync PDFs with the cloud. You can open PDFs in Xodo and open Word, PowerPoint, Excel files,s and share them in PDF format. If you are looking for a simple PDF annotation tool, Xodo is the best option for you.

• With Xodo, you can draw and type directly on PDFs.
• If you need, then you can make a highlight, underline, and strikeout text.
• Moreover, you can add different shapes such as circles, rectangles, arrows, lines, and many more.
• You can use a thumbnail preview browser to change the page order, delete pages, and add a new page.
• Besides, Xodo has a great feature for PDF page rotation.

Pros: The great feature of Xodo is you can annotate in real-time by collaborating with your team members.

Cons: Xodo also has some lag issues.

Download Xodo Now

If you are looking for screen annotation software, you may try Ink2Go. It is screen annotation and screen recording software. While a video plays on your computer, you may save the particular moment as an image or record a whole or particular session. This is a great tool for a presenter to share his ideas with audiences. It has a 15 days free trial period. After that, the single license price is around $20.

• While a video or presentation slide runs on the screen, you can draw, highlight, or write your ideas on the screen.
• Your annotation clip is saved in different formats such as  JPEG, PNG, Bitmap or GIF (for Windows), and PNG (for Mac OS X)
• Besides, you can record video which is playing on the screen with annotation.
• Just press a single click you can toggle between your whiteboard and desktop.
• 8 pens, 4 highlighters, and 3 erasers with multiple colors make convenience your annotation job.

Pros: This tool is an excellent innovation for presenters or public speakers. Use hotkeys to switch quickly among different annotation tools.

Cons: The irregular version release. The last Windows version was released in August 2019. However, its annotation tools are limited.

Download Ink2Go Now

Our Recommendations

Each annotation tool discussed here is compact with full-fledged annotation features. If you do not have any specific choices, you can choose any of them discussed above here. However, my personal choice is Microsoft Snip & Sketch tool. Because it is default installed with Windows 10 and run quickly, press Windows shortcut keys. For personal use, I think Microsoft Snip & Sketch tool is OK!

If you are looking for a powerful annotation tool for Windows OS, you may choose the other tools from the above list. Overall, Microsoft OneNote is a great tool for annotation. If you are looking for PDF annotation, you can use Foxit Reader because it is lightweight and free. For public speaker or presentation purposes, Ink2Go is the best choice for you.

Finally, Insights

An annotation tool turns boring presentations more interesting. A well-placed annotation helps you to add more value to your content. So here I marked the 10 best annotation tools for you. If you are a project manager, office executive, teachers, public speakers, or presenters, I recommend you to pick any annotation utility to demonstrate more attractive presentation content. Apart from this list, you have a choice. You are requested to share with us. Your contribution helps others to draw a colorful step in their life!

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May 4, 2022

Top 10 Best free and paid video annotations tools

What is a video annotation tool?

Video annotation tools are text or drawing tools that help in including information, be it a text, an image, a database or any other piece of content.

10 best free video annotation tools

This post highlights the 10 best free video annotation tools. These tools are designed to enhance note editing, summarizing relevant information, and editing images and videos.

a)   Markup

Markup is a free video annotation tool. It is the perfect video annotation tool for business professionals. Yet, it is also popular in the student community especially amongst those who must edit and summarize their work. With Markup, you are at liberty to work on a plethora of things including PDF files or website content creation. Markup is easy to use, it has sufficient features on the free version and it is completely free.

b)   Clickup

Clickup permits you to edit and create most files including PDF documents and even Google Docs. Its most prominent features include commenting on documents, editing, and syncing calendars. I find Clickup very impressive because it has over 100 exclusive features. Most users also prefer Clickup because it is an annotation app that has screen-sharing options like the Zoom and Microsoft teams. Even though Clickup is free, it can be upgraded to an unlimited package.

c)   Markup Hero

This is another free annotation tool with interesting features. It doubles as an annotation and screenshot tool. The main aim of the Markup Hero app is that it improves communication and productivity. Some of its key features are screen shooting, cropping and resizing CANVA. It can easily be integrated with Chrome, Google Drive and Slack App. Just like the Clickup, the Markup Hero can also be upgraded to a pro version.

d)  Note Ledge

Note Ledge is well known for its digital notebook. The digital notebook is a way to find inspiration, and it is ideal for creating exciting mood boards.  It is highly used by content creators for similar purposes as it has a flexible workspace that allows you to arrange your content however you want. It is free and very affordable.

e)   Annotate

Within the Annotate app, you can directly draft documents. It permits collaboration with others through the writing process. A key feature of Annotate is the easy-fact checking system. With Annotate, you can paste information from other documents, after which it will provide a link to the original source, thereby making it easy to credit your references. Annotate provides a secure and private space for groups to share, discuss and bring up novel ideas for a project. Most of its functions and features are free although it can be upgraded to a paid version.

f)   Nimbus

Nimbus is an effective communication and collaboration tool in the classroom among teachers, students, and peers. It is widely described as an innovative screencast tool for instructors. Nimbus has very easy to use features and it has a free first plan. You should be rest assured that each of its options either paid or free, has enough features that you can make good use out of it.

g)   Docanno

This is a commercialized data annotation tool. Docanno’s specialty is in-text annotation and functions as a select tool for machine learning practitioners. Some of the key features on this app include text analysis, labeling and text summarization and each of these features has its own efficient output format.

h) Screenlight

With Screen light, you can easily share your work. It has the following features: video uploading, images, audio speech tools, commenting and link sharing. Screen light is a free annotation app although you can upgrade to a paid version. Also, it has tools that can be easily collaborated.

Isahit has developed a free SAAS labelling tool to allow teams of data scientists to initiate their computer vision projects internally and to monitor them at scale throughout the project.

‍ j)   Zoho Annotator

Besides its affordability, Zoho Annotator allows you to add your web snapshot by using the drawing tool that comes with the software. Zoho Annotator helps you to exclude certain words or sentences that you want to keep private. Zoho Annotator allows integration with other apps such as LinkedIn and Facebook.

10 Best paid video annotation tools

a)   Adobe Pro

Adobe Pro is a popular video annotation tool. It is well known for accessing PDF documents and comments. Among the things you can do on Adobe Pro are editing, sharing, and adding virtual sticky notes. Also, you can easily convert MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents into PDF and vice versa. It has many PDFS conversion options. Adobe Pro is a paid annotation tool.

b)   Filestage

Filestage is popular for online proofing (reviewing and approving) of files such as PDF, images, videos, and audios. It has important features such as commenting tools, storing all files all in one place and tracking the progress of your files. With Filestage, you can share multiple files to as many people as possible. Thus, sending feedback and approval to everyone becomes very easy. It can also be easily integrated with other essential apps such as Zoom, Google Drive and Dropbox. 

c)   PDF Annotator

If you are in search of an annotation tool that can handle all PDF documents, then the PDF Annotator is the most effective. It has features such as editing, reviewing, commenting and enhancing all PDF documents. PDF Annotator should be your number one option if you are in search of an annotation tool that allows you to highlight, write notes, add texts and images, and add signatures. I must add that you can view your edited PDFs in any PDF software. PDF Annotator comes in highly preferred because it is easy to use and it is capable of tackling many PDF purposes.

d)   Wipster

Content Creators particularly love Wipster because of its video proofing tools. With Wipster, you are able to invite an unlimited number of viewers and reviewers. You have the option to choose who views your project and how they view your project. It has an effective privacy setting. Like other video annotation tools, Wipster allows easy integration with Adobe, Vimeo, Slack and Dropbox. Some of Wipster’s prime features include fasting editing capabilities. 

e)   Dropbox

One of the main goals of Dropbox is to ease organization, and make it easy to access your documents at any time. As such, it is one of the most popular annotation tools. It can be used for personal and business-related projects. Dropbox handles cloud content, multiple web shortcuts and traditional files. An exciting feature of Dropbox is that you can access all your files at any time. You can also backup your lost files.

f)   Drawboard

Drawboard has two main tools: Drawboard PDF and Drawboard Projects. The Drawboard Projects has features that are more applicable for team work. Some of the features include editing, drawings and markups. It is believed that Drawboard Project features are helpful to those that work in the industry such as engineers and architects as they need precise details to be added to house plans and other details. The Drawboard PDF provides you with everything you need to edit and review documents with ease. Additionally, it is highly easy to navigate.

g)   Red Pen

The purpose of this app is for visual collaboration. Teams are able to share and edit files with each other. Red Pen has live comments and users are able to view comments as they appear on the page. On Red Pen, you can invite as many people as you want to review your project. Although Red Pen is paid, there is a free trial option.

h)   GoVisually

For Video Creators, Designers, Creatives and Marketing Teams, Go Visually comes highly recommended. This is because both teams (marketing and design) can work together on a project and provide timely feedback. Using this software or platform involves a quick and seamless process as there is no need for lengthy mails.

NTask has unique features that aids streamlining and managing resources of a project. Also, it aids in providing useful budgets and financial summaries to keep track of all figures. Its Kanban Boards is a project management visualization tool. With nTask, you can share your work with ease. Uploading videos, audio speech tools, link sharing can all be done on nTask. It has a time-coded comment which is a brilliant feature. Though it is a paid version, its first plan is totally free to use.

 j) Screenlight

It gives you the ability to easily share your work. Some of Screenlight’s share files features are uploading video, audio speech tools, images, link sharing, reviewing, and complete commenting tools. Once you have uploaded your files, Screenlight makes sure to develop preview files for you to choose from and enhance your projects. Formatting issues are a thing of the past with this collaborative tool. Screenlight places an emphasis on its simplicity and time-coded comments that can be entered alongside the video where readers do not have to wait for the comment at a later stage. Its time-coded comments are a brilliant feature that more sharing tools should offer.

If you want to go further in your projects, annotate larger volumes or benefit from a workforce that speaks more than 17 languages , meet isahit's team and discover their different labelling solutions !

Video annotation allows intelligent systems to recognize and identify objects, patterns, and more, based on the labeled data provided to them. 

What is video annotation for machine learning?

Video annotation for computer vision and AI learning is absolutely necessary. An instance it can be used is for training a self-driving car. From training autonomous vehicles to detecting roadblocks, pedestrians, and obstacles are good at determining poses and activities, video tagging has a role to play in training almost any vehicle model. This is perceptual AI. Machine learning and computer vision models can learn using the labeled datasets, eventually used to train the algorithms.

How does video annotation outsourcing work?

Just like image annotation, video annotation is used to build AI and machine learning models to be able to recognize real-world objects. But unlike images, its static counterpart, collecting video data can be much more complex. One way that you can ensure the quality of datasets is human-assisted data-labeling. It is always best to outsource this task to professionals who specialize in video annotation. With a human involved, practical insights can be quickly generated, leading to greater efficiency 

Types of video annotation services

1. semantic segmentation:.

If you want to develop more targeted and accurate computer vision AIs, you might consider semantic segmentation, which is about classifying images at the pixel level.

2. Polygon annotation:

This technique is best used for verticals that require a flatter approach to labeling features. It is used to annotate pipelines, roads, railways and datasets regarding road markings, lanes etc

3. Bounding boxes:

Arguably the most reliable video tagging technique, Bounding Box annotation is all about the idea of imaginary rectangles for detecting objects.

- 2D bounding boxes:

This basically involves creating rectangular boxes for object identification, categorization and labeling. When doing this, annotators need to manually draw boxes around the object in focus.

-3D bounding boxes:

This is quite similar to 2D bounding boxes. In this type of video annotation is applied to get a more realistic 3D visualization of a specific item. With 3D bounding boxes, you get more accurate results as it can also help you define the breadth, length, and depth of the object, even when it is in motion.

4. Landmark annotation:

This is often used to identify even the least visible of shapes, postures, or objects. This method involves creating dots all through an image and then linking them to create a skeleton of the object across each frame, key point, and landmark. This method is most suitable for detecting facial features, postures, face recognition, etc.

Top video labeling services

Isahit is a world class outsourcing platform with a team of expertly trained annotators for your projects, who are meticulously supervised by specialists. Isahit is perfectly able to give you the high-quality training data you need to deploy the world-class models that your business requires at scale. In addition, isahit creates a positive social impact on its community and is, as of the end of 2021, the first European ethical AI company with the B Corp.

2. V7 labs:

They are the makers of a computer vision platform that helps AI teams “automate” and ensure the future of their training data workflows as advances in AI continue. They offer a very accurate pixel-perfect image segmentation labeling tool that works on any object. Their software automates labelling, enables a high level of control of your annotation workflow, helps you spot quality issues in your data, and it also integrates easily into your workflow. 

Appen is an outsourcing company that employs a human in the loop system for their video annotation processes which can cover the short-term and long-term demands of your team and your organization.

The need for high-quality video annotation for AI training and machine learning has never been greater than it is now. It is quite important that you outsource to professional firms to enable you get the best predictive and automated annotation technology with top tier data annotation and subject matter experts that will be able to deliver the data you need to get to production, and deliver it fast.

What is video annotation? 

Video annotation is a process of training the computer to recognize objects. It forms part of the wider Artificial Intelligence field of Computer Vision. It teaches the computer to imitate the perspective traits of the human eye. Video annotation may include comments, shapes or drawings placed on or over a video frame.

What is a video annotation tool? 

A video annotation tool is a text or drawing tool that helps you to add information to a text, an image, database, or any other piece of content. An annotation tool performs a lot of other functions. It can be applied to other formats as PowerPoint Presentation to annotate the selected content of interest. Annotating complicated and sophisticated videos with high levels of accuracy, precision, and context is the main aim of a video annotation tool. They are important because it allows you to easily define the frames per second according to your peculiar needs.

Top 10 video annotation tools for computer vision in 2022

There are a myriad of video annotation tools for optimal computer vision. However, the top 10 annotation tools for computer vision in 2022 are listed below. In no order they include:

• V7: V7 is an automated annotation platform. It can automatically complete task labeling by combining image and video annotation, dataset management and autoML model. V7 enables teams to annotate, store, manage and automate their data annotation workflows in images, videos etc. The key feature of V7 is that automated annotation feature without having prior training.
• Labelbox: Labelbox was created in 2018, but due to its efficiency, it has quickly become one of the popular data labeling tools. Labelbox is a training data platform built from three essential layers that eases the entire process including labeling, collaboration, and iteration. Labelbox enables annotation with polygons, bounding boxes and other advanced labeling tools. Amongst its many unique features, the Labelbox also has a strong labeler performance analytics.
• Scale A1: This is a data platform that enables annotations of large volumes of 3D, sensor, image, and video data. Scale A1 is strong for autonomous driving use cases involving LIDAR and mapping.
• Dataloop: This is known as the all in one cloud-based annotation platform. It is embedded with tools and automation for producing high-quality datasets. It can accommodate the whole AI lifecycle including annotation, model evaluation, and model improvement by utilizing the human feedback in the loop.
• Isahit: Isahit is the first european ethical data labeling platform for AI and Data Processing, certified B Corp.

Isahit offers two options: 

Isahit lab : which is an agile and free labeling tool for data science teams to annotate internally and monitor it. 

Isahit data labeling solutions : if you want to annotate larger volumes and scale quickly, isahit takes over the customer's projects and trains its workforce on the projects. It is a special annotation service that combines customizable labeling tools, a dedicated project manager and a task force trained for your needs. Thanks to these projects, Isahit will recruit and train women worldwide, from socio-economically weak countries, to work on the projects. They will earn an additional income on average 5 times higher than their country's income, have free training and will be able to rely on a caring community present in 39 countries. 

• SuperAnnotate: This is another data platform for annotation. It is a video annotation and an end-to-end image annotation platform that streamlines and automates computer vision workflows. With the SuperAnnotate platform, you can create high-quality training datasets for numerous computer vision tasks such as object detection, video tracking and cuboid annotation.
• Playment: This is a fully managed platform generating training data for computer vision models. Playment is capable of supporting image and video data and offers a wide range of annotation tools such as bounding boxes, polygons, cuboids, or landmarks.
• Supervise.ly: This is a web-based image and video annotation platform where researchers of all kinds can annotate and experiment with datasets and neutral networks.
• Hive Data: Like Playment, this is a fully managed data annotation solution and training data for AI/ ML Models. It can support image, video, text, and 3D panoptic segmentation.
• CVAT: CVAT stands for Computer Vision Annotation Tool. This is an open-source, web-based image, and video annotation tool for naming data for computer vision and it is mainly supported by Intel. It provides four types of annotation including boxes, polygons, points, and polylines. CVAT supports the primary tasks of supervised machine learning: image classification, image segmentation and object detection.
• LabelMe: this is an online annotation tool created by the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. It makes provision for dataset of digital images and annotations.

Why do these video annotation tools qualify to be the top 10 video annotation tools for computer vision in 2022?

Here are some reasons why they are considered as the top 10 video annotation tools for 2022:

The Playment for instance has a built-in advanced quality control tool and it is strong for autonomous driving teams.

With the CVAT, it is quite easy to deploy. CVAT can be installed in the local network using DOCKER, although it must be maintained as it scales.

Aside from offering free image annotation tools, the Hivedata is also considered as effective because it offers pre-trained models and offers free image annotation tools.

The Supervise.ly is also preferred among others because it has the option to draw holes within the polygon.

Lastly, among the key features of LabelMe is that it has six types of annotation, and it comes at no cost, it is totally free to use.

How to know the best video annotation tool to choose

It is imperative to have a step-by-step guide when choosing the best video annotation tool.

a) Know your need

Prior to choosing the best video annotation tool to suit your needs, you must have clarity. What do you seek to achieve? You must know why you are annotating your video data? You must identify if it is for a long or short-term project. Being knowledgeable of this will help you choose the appropriate video annotation tool. Hence, if it is a long-term project, it will be appropriate to purchase a studious and dedicated tool. However, if it is only for a short-term project, then probably outsourcing will be a better alternative.

b) Identify your selection criteria

As already mentioned, if it is for a short-term project, then outsourcing is more economical. So, when it comes to outsourcing the service, there are certain technical aspects to be taken into consideration. A video annotation tool must be chosen:

I.  Based on application

II.Based on efficiency

III.Based on formatting

IV.Based on functionality

Having said this, it is important to also consider the price, the functionality, the quality, and efficiency of an annotation tool before purchasing.

c) Evaluate and re-evaluate

After identifying your selection criteria, the next important thing is to thoroughly search and evaluate vendors on the market that can supply your needs. In doing so, it is important to ensure that the selected vendor provides you with flexibility and post-purchase services that will align to your specific needs.

Access a trained Workforce, managed ethically.

Ethically scale your digital annotation projects with our highly trained workforce. Access our On-Demand Workforce to get the best quality in your Dataset Labeling.

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The 5 Best PDF Reading, Editing, and Annotation Apps for Android

Need to open, edit, and annotate PDFs on your Android device? Here are the best Android apps for PDFs.

We read books both for information and knowledge. Although both are essential aspects of reading, we cannot tell the difference between them. When you annotate, your mind develops a contextual relationship with the book.

You include facts, criticisms, and links to related documents or web links. This all gives you better navigational cues. We'll show you five PDF readers for Android that let you read and annotate ebooks to provide you with a better reading environment.

1. Xodo PDF Reader & Editor

Xodo is a feature-rich PDF viewer that lets you read, edit, and annotate ebooks. It comes with a built-in file manager, cloud storage support, and collaboration tools to annotate ebooks and review them in real time. You can fill forms and sign PDF documents . It's also compatible with the latest Adobe Acrobat specifications, which makes annotations consistent with other PDF viewers.

Annotate and View Notes

To create a highlight, tap the center of your screen to bring up the Action Bar . Tap the Annotation Toolbar , then the Highlighter icon. Drag the marker with your finger to the end of a sentence or paragraph to highlight the text. To change the color of the highlight, tap and hold the text to bring the popup menu. Tap Style to change the color, opacity or even annotation type.

If you wish to add a note, tap the selected text, then tap Comment Note to add a comment. Xodo supports many annotation tools including strikeout, underline, link, text, and more. You might also want to enable some options in the Settings screen.

Tap the Hamburger menu and toggle the Continuous Annotation Edit switch. The annotation toolbar will no longer swap with the hand tool, letting you focus on annotating the book. Also, toggle the Copy Annotated Text to Note switch. While adding a note, the selected text gets automatically copied into the annotation's note.

Related: How to Highlight Text in a PDF File

Export Notes

After marking up a whole chapter, tap the center of your screen to bring up Bookmark icon on the bottom navigation bar. Tap the Annotations tab, then choose Export located at the bottom of the screen. A new document (PDF) will open in a new tab, with a summary of annotations you did on a chapter. Long-press this tab and tap Show in Folder to jump to the file location.

If you're viewing the same PDF on an app that doesn't support annotations, you can save a flattened copy of the document. Tap on the Overflow , then choose Save a Copy > Flattened Copy . The flattened copy's annotations are no longer editable, but you can see the edits in any PDF viewer.

Download: Xodo PDF Reader & Editor (Free)

2. PDF Viewer Pro by PSPDFKit

PDF Viewer Pro is an all-in-one app that lets you annotate, fill forms, sign documents, and edit them. It comes with a built-in file manager, support for cloud storage, and collaboration tools to review edits with your team. The app writes annotations as per standardized Adobe specifications, so you can view them on any device.

Annotate and Export Notes

Open the document you would like to annotate. Tap the Annotation Edit button on the toolbar, then drag a finger to select the text. If you want to change the color of the annotation, tap the selected text and choose a different color from the toolbar.

To add a note, tap the selected text and choose Comment from the toolbar. You can add text annotations, comments with different styles, and callout annotations. Thankfully, the toolbar is not cluttered with a bunch of options. It's neatly categorized into groups, and you can even drag the toolbar to other locations.

After doing all your markups, tap the Share icon in the toolbar and select an app to share your annotations. You can choose to either Embed or Flatten the annotations. When you embed annotations, they remain editable in other PDF viewers .

You can also share a particular page of the PDF. And the app lets you decide if you want to keep annotations, flatten them, or remove them altogether.

Download: PDF Viewer Pro by PSPDFKit (Free, subscription available)

3. ezPDF Reader

ezPDF is the only Android PDF viewer with embedded multimedia capabilities. The app has a slightly old, skeuomorphic interface, and the red/orange action bar makes the interface non-intuitive. But despite the old interface, the app comes with many useful features. Annotating a document is just the start.

The top action bar is always visible while viewing a PDF. It allows you to make all sorts of annotations---adding text, commenting, highlighting, attaching files, creating shapes, and more. The controls are a bit confusing, as some options have an undo button and others rely on the eraser. Tap the Settings icon at the top bar and de-select any options you don't use to reduce clutter.

To highlight the text, drag the marker to select a desired portion of the text and tap Highlight . To do more with the text you highlighted, tap the AddAnnot option. Here, you can add a note with different colors, attach a file or image, write on a text box, and more.

After you're done marking up, tap the Annotations List on the action bar and select the annotation types you want to display or export. Then tap the Overflow menu and choose Export . Save or send the file as XFDF, FDF, or plain text. The FDF file format is compatible with Adobe specifications, so you don't have to worry about annotations disappearing.

Download: ezPDF Reader Free Trial (Free 15-day trial) | ezPDF Reader ($4)

4. PocketBook Reader

PocketBook reader is your virtual library that lets you read ebooks in multiple formats, including PDFs that use Adobe DRM. It enables you to read ebooks in foreign languages with a built-in dictionary and listen to them with its text-to-speech function. The app even includes a barcode scanner to detect metadata, plus much more.

To create a highlight, drag the marker to the end of a sentence or paragraph. In the popup that appears, tap Highlight . Then from the color picker box, select the color of your choice. If you marked the wrong text, select the highlighted text and tap Delete .

If you wish to add a note, select the highlighted text and tap Note . Enter your note and tap Save . The note sign will appear on the page. To view or edit the note, just touch the icon. After you've marked up as you wish, go to the Reading menu and choose Notes and chapter . Here at the bottom of the Reading menu , tap the Export option.

The note saves in the PocketBook folder as an HTML file. What makes this app unique compared to others is its natural reading settings. At any time, tap the center of your screen to evoke a radial menu. You can adjust brightness, the page display mode, zoom settings, and even create a highlight without going through tedious options.

Download: PocketBook Reader (Free)

5. Moon+ Reader

Moon+ Reader is an innovative app designed to give you complete control over your screen experience. You can fine-tune the screen brightness and tap the screen to effortlessly switch between day and night mode.

In PDF Options , you can change the view mode, increase or decrease the render quality, and enable thumbnail previews on the bottom bar. In Visual Options , you can set the font type, size, alignment, spacing, and more.

To have the best experience while reading PDFs on this app, you must tweak specific options. Tap Overflow menu > PDF Options and choose View Mode as Continuous with Render Quality as High . Set the quality to Low if the PDF you're reading has lots of images.

To create a highlight, drag the blue marker to the end of a sentence or paragraph. In the popup that appears, tap Highlight . You can also underline or strikethrough text with different colors. From the color picker box, choose the color you want to highlight with. Tap Note to add a comment on the selected text.

When you tap Save , a sticky note will appear on the text. After you're done marking up, tap the Bookmarks button, then Share , and choose to export notes and highlights as TXT or HTML. Do remember that scanned PDFs don't support any markups. The only option you have is to use OCR on the image , but even then, markups may or may not work.

Download: Moon+ Reader (Free) | Moon+ Reader Pro ($5)

You Can Annotate EPUBs Too

It's difficult to think critically when you only passively consume information. Deep work requires you to think harder beyond the simple context. Creating annotations is your first step for developing a knowledge-based mindset because you begin to establish connections with different ideas.

The Android PDF apps discussed here will help you become a better reader and thinker. But you can annotate EPUB files too. Some excellent EPUB reader apps lets you annotate and take better notes. If this interests you, check out the best Android ebook reader apps with amazing annotation features .

Top 10: Reading Apps with Annotation feature

Top 10 eBook Readers

Notability: Note-Taking App 4+

Digital planner and journal, ginger labs.

• #153 in Productivity
• 4.7 • 43.5K Ratings
• Offers In-App Purchases

Screenshots

Description.

Bring ideas to life with Notability! Download for free and enjoy the powerful, yet wonderfully simple note-taking experience. You will quickly see why we’re Apple Editor’s Choice! Notability is as versatile as you. Jot down thoughts, import & annotate textbooks, sync your notes with audio, or sketch your next masterpiece. Whether you’re a student, professional, or hobbyist—you’ll find all the tools you need. MORE THAN PAPER AND PEN • Write on a variety of paper templates with customizable spacing and backgrounds. • Take notes with multi-media tools like pencil, highlighter, text, and audio. • Mark up textbooks, documents, lecture slides, assignments, or images. • Clean up calculations with Math Conversion technology. • Search anything in your notes, including handwriting and imported documents. HANDWRITE AND SKETCH NATURALLY • Write with the most lifelike, vector-based digital pencil on the market. • Ink is fine-tuned for the most responsive, precise writing experience (compatible with Apple Pencil & Logitech Crayon). STAY ORGANIZED, PAPER-FREE • All your notes in one place! Always keep notes with you, without the weight, hassle, or paper waste. • Organize notes with customizable subjects and dividers. NEVER MISS A THING WITH AUDIO PLAYBACK • Get more out of your lectures and meetings with audio recording, synced to your notes. • Tap anywhere (in playback mode) to see your note come to life in real-time. • Search or copy time-stamped text from Audio Transcripts. EASILY SHARE IDEAS IN PRESENTATION MODE • Present ideas full-screen without distracting toolbars. • Engage an audience with all of Notability's tools including a Laser Pointer. MULTI-TASK WITH MULTI-NOTE • Work with two notes side-by-side. • Drag & Drop handwriting, typed text, and images between notes. IMPORT, ANNOTATE, AND SHARE • Import and mark-up PDFs, DOCs, PPTs, images, GIFs, and more. • Easily create searchable PDFs using built-in Document Scan. • Full-featured, left-aligned typing with word count and formatting options. FIND AND SHARE INSPIRATION • Publish your notes for the world to see in the Notability Gallery. • Browse notes from the community, search topics, save favorites, and download templates! --- Download Notability for free on iPad, Mac, and iPhone and enjoy Notability with limited editing and features. Unlock the premium, unlimited note-taking experience with an annual Notability subscription. Subscribers get: • Unlimited edits, Audio Transcripts, Auto-Backup support, and iCloud sync. • MyScript Handwriting Recognition and Math Conversion technology. --- Subscription auto-renews unless canceled, and will be charged via Apple iTunes account on an annual basis. Prices vary by location. You can manage your subscription in account settings after purchase. Family Sharing is not supported. For technical assistance reach our team at [email protected]. Visit notability.com or connect with us @notabilityapp on social. Privacy policy: https://notability.com/privacy Terms of Service: https://notability.com/terms Notability is a registered trademark of Ginger Labs, Inc.

Version 14.7.8

Fixes a crash when deleting notes. Thanks for using Notability!

Ratings and Reviews

43.5K Ratings

Editors’ Choice

We rely on this sleek, powerful notetaker to annotate documents, record lectures, sketch illustrations, and more. With built-in iCloud support, it’s perfect for keeping notes, documents, and doodles up to date across your iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

New Mac App is not good

I’ve been using Notability for the past few years and love it. Being able to upload PPT and PDF decks for meetings and then take notes on my ipad has been a game changer for productivity. I can review documents - mark them up - and then send the notes directly back to my team. Except for a (very) slight delay sometimes between my Mac and my ipad, everything was seamless. I recommended Notability to everyone. However, the latest release of Notability for Mac is a disaster. It crashes often. When it isn’t crashing it’s nearly impossible to use. Trying to drag notes from one folder to another is incredibly frustrating - difficult to accomplish and takes a ton of time to get it to work. Often I can’t seem to drag and drop except on the fourth or fifth try. Imagine if your mouse pointer only worked about 25% of the time. Also - I used to be able to “print to Notability” directly from PPT (incredibly useful for quick uploads) and that feature is gone. And uploading a folder from Finder by dragging it over to Notability is frustrating - super laggy, often results in the “spinning wheel of death”, or just crashes the app. I would go back to the previous version is a hot second if I could. It’s so annoying that I’ve even considered moving to a different notes system - although I really don’t want to do that. I love Notabilty and the ipad version works great. But I need my full Notability ecosystem to work well together. Like it used to.

My Most Used App Ever

I have used this app for over 3 years at the time I wrote this review. I used it everyday and have nearly 1000 separate articles and notes within it. I am at the end of my doctorate and have found that I nearly live out of my iPad and mostly this app. I average between 4-6 hours a day in the app. I have helped many people to come to use this app in their daily lives. I prepare my lectures, classwork, attendance, and nearly anything else I would otherwise put on paper all through Notability. If you have an iPad and an Apple Pencil, then Notability is a great contributor to success. I want to help the makers of Notability for the development and a continued improvement of this wonderful app that I bought the yearly subscription and I don’t even use the stuff in it. That is not because the stuff in there is not good, rather it is well made, I am just stuck in my ways of how I use the app. Lastly, I would like to thank the developers of Notability, as I am so grateful for their hard work and intuitive improvements. Keep up the great work and I will continue to use this app al long as iOS supports it. ***April 2023 update*** This app is still the best app I’ve ever used. I’ve got so many people to use it, and I use it every day. It is the most useful iPad app ever! I plan on continuing to use it, and definitely, and I am amazed by how many awesome updates and things that keep adding to it, great job Notability! Keeping innovating!!!

App Privacy

The developer, Ginger Labs , indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .

Data Linked to You

The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:

• Contact Info
• Diagnostics

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

• Identifiers

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

Information

English, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Norwegian Bokmål, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese

• Annual Subscription $14.99
• Monthly Subscription $4.99
• Annual Subscription $19.99
• 3 Months Subscription $9.99
• Family Subscription $49.99
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Family Sharing

Some in‑app purchases, including subscriptions, may be shareable with your family group when family sharing is enabled., featured in, more by this developer, you might also like.

Noteful: Note-Taking on PDF

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Goodnotes 6

8 Best Annotation Tools for Windows 10/11

If you have been using Windows 10 or 11 for a while, you might know that the operating system allows you to capture screenshots using the Print Scr button. Apart from the default Print Scr, Windows also offers a Snipping Tool utility. You can capture screenshots but can’t annotate them with the Snipping Tool.

Currently, hundreds of screenshot utilities are available online to help you capture screenshots quickly. However, most of them miss out on the image annotation feature. You can capture screenshots via those tools but can’t draw on them.

With Annotation tools, you can draw or use the highlighter to mark essential areas of your screenshot. These tools can prove helpful in marking a specific object in a picture, filling out PDF forms, and signing documents.

You can try some of the best Powerful Tools To Customize Windows 10

So, in this article, we will list down some of the Windows 10 Annotation tools. Most of the tools were free, and thousands of users used them. So, let’s check.

1. Foxit Reader

Foxit Reader is a PDF editor on the list, offering a few annotation features. Compared to other PDF editors, Foxit Reader is pretty easy to use and lightweight. With Foxit Reader, you can directly add the markup, drawings, highlight texts, etc., to the PDF document.

Other than that, Foxit Reader can also be used to add images, videos, and file attachments to PDF documents, fill sign and PDF forms, and more.

2. Snip & Sketch

Snip & Sketch is both a screenshot and annotation tool for Windows 10. The good thing about Snip & Sketch is that it doesn’t require any installation, as it’s built into the operating system. To use the Snip & Sketch feature of Windows 10, you need to press Windows Key + Shift + S.

This will bring up the snipping toolbar. From the toolbar, you can capture a full-screen screenshot. After capturing the screenshot, it allows you to add text, arrows, or even draw on top of the screenshot.

3. Pick Pick

Pick Pick is an all-in-one designing tool that can capture screenshots, edit the captured screenshots, etc. The good thing about Pick Pick is that it offers you a wide range of image editing options, such as annotating and highlighting your images – text, arrows, shapes, and more.

Apart from that, Pick Pick even allows you to enhance your images by applying effects. It’s a full-fledged screen capture and image editing tool for Windows 10.

Gink is a free-to-use, open-source utility to capture screenshots and annotate them. Guess what? Gink is possibly the most lightweight screenshot utility on the list that needs less than 5MB of space to install on your device.

Once installed, it runs in the background. Whenever you need to capture a screenshot, press the G Button and select the area you want to capture. Once captured, you can use the image editor of Gink to add texts, arrows, and shapes to the screenshots.

5. PDF Annotator

By the name, the tool sounds like a simple PDF annotation tool, but it’s much more than that. It’s a full-fledged PDF editing tool for Windows 10 that lets you edit PDFs and add comments, signatures, and designs.

Apart from PDF annotation, PDF Annotator has the feature ‘Document Version’. The feature retains the versions of the edits you make. That means that you can revert to a specific version at any time. However, PDF Annotator is a premium tool, costing around $70.

6. LiquidText

LiquidText is a Windows tool to review, gather, and organize information across different types of documents. You can take this as an annotation tool because it lets you draw freely or highlight your notes or documents.

As a part of the annotation feature, LiquidText also lets you add margins and comments to a document, note, or PDF file. The tool is lightweight and available for free on the Microsoft Store.

7. SketchCapture

SketchCapture isn’t as popular as other apps on the list, but it’s still a great app to draw and write on screen captures.

The tool is extremely lightweight & easy to use; you need to take captures of your screen and directly draw or write on it.

You can add arrows or other shapes to your images. Overall, SketchCapture is a great annotation tool for Windows you shouldn’t miss.

8. PDF Notes

If you want a Windows tool for drawing, editing plain text, and taking notes, look no other than PDF Notes. PDF Notes has a pretty powerful document markup tool that lets you work with the text of your documents to mark important parts.

You can highlight or underline certain parts of your images, leave notes in your text, add comments to the whole page, etc.

So, these are the best annotation tools for Windows 10/11 computers. I hope this article helped you! Please share it with your friends also. If you know any other such annotation tools for Windows, let us know in the comment box below.

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5 Best Open-Source PDF Annotation Tools for Linux in 2024

As a Linux user, you might have to work with PDF files due to the popularity and widespread acceptance of this format. There are a lot of different applications and computer programs that make it possible to view, edit, convert, and modify PDFs.

Sometimes there are occasions where you need something more powerful than a PDF viewer but less complicated than a full-featured PDF editor .

This is when PDF annotation tools come in handy. Such programs have limited functionality but work fine if all you need to do is leave a comment or draw something on a PDF file.

In this article, you will get acquainted with the best tools that can be used for PDF annotation on Linux distributions .

What is a PDF Annotator?

PDF annotations are additional objects, such as drawings, shapes, notes, or comments, that can be added to PDF files to provide contextual feedback on what is already present. Each annotation is an interactive element that can be edited or deleted by the users.

Annotations work best when you need to mark mistakes when proofreading a PDF file or keep notes when reading a complex document, like a technical specification, scientific book or user manual.

Annotations can also help you improve the readability of your text by allowing readers to pay attention first to what is important.

Taking the above into consideration, a PDF annotator is a software application that can open PDF files and add various objects that have a specific location on a PDF page.

The PDF annotation feature can be found in many PDF editors but there exist specialized programs that don’t usually offer editing functionality.

Top PDF Annotation Tools for Linux

Now that you know what PDF annotation is and when you can make the most of this feature, let’s take a look at the best tools of this type available for Linux users. All the options described below are open-source, and you can find their repositories on GitHub or GitLab.

1. ONLYOFFICE Docs

ONLYOFFICE Docs is an open-source office suite that seamlessly integrates into different file storage platforms, e-learning systems , and content management solutions allowing Linux users to create a secure collaborative space on their server.

In addition to documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and fillable forms , the ONLYOFFICE suite can open PDF files for viewing.

The built-in PDF tool can also be used as a file converter allowing you to save your PDFs as DOCX, ODT, TXT, FB2, RTF, and EPUB documents as well as PNG and JPG images.

When it comes to PDF annotation, the ONLYOFFICE editor lets you highlight text with different colours, underline what’s important and strikethrough unnecessary parts. You can also leave your comments and reply to comments left by other users.

Another useful feature is the ability to draw whatever you need and use the Eraser tool to get rid of drawings you no longer need.

With ONLYOFFICE Docs , you can annotate PDFs not only in your web browser but locally using the ONLYOFFICE free desktop app for Linux.

2. Xournal++

Xournal++ is an open-source program that works best for note-taking on PDF files. It has a modern user interface that you can easily customize by adding the elements you need to the toolbar and removing those that you never use.

Xournal++ is an ideal choice for Linux users who prefer visualizing their ideas with drawings. The app offers customizable pen, highlighter, and eraser tools and is compatible with the most popular drawing tablets and pressure-sensitive stylus.

With this program, you can create complex notes and use page previews. You can also add images and shapes. The built-in LaTeX editor makes it easy to write complex formulas.

The feature that you hardly find in other PDF annotation tools is the ability to attach audio files to your objects and play them with a special button.

Okular is a universal document viewer developed and maintained by the KDE community. Its distinctive feature is compatibility with a large number of popular formats, including PDF, DjVu, EPUB, JPEG, PNG, GIF, CBR, CBZ, and more.

With this app, you can open and view e-books, images, Markdown documents, and even comics.

With working on PDF files with Okular, you can switch to Annotation mode, When it’s activated, you are allowed to add comments and pop-up notes, insert text boxes and enter the required text, and highlight and underline what’s important.

What else makes Okular good for PDF annotation is convenient navigation. With the Thumbnails panel, you can browse graphically the whole document and quickly find the desired part.

Evince is another document viewer that can be used as a PDF annotator. It supports a variety of popular formats and works fine when you need to open a PDF file or comic for viewing.

Unfortunately, Evince doesn’t offer advanced PDF annotation features. It only allows you to highlight text and leave comments. If you are OK with these limitations and don’t need other features, Evince is a good choice as it works fast and comes with a modern minimalistic interface.

5. PDFrankenstein

PDFrankenstein is a GUI PDF annotation tool based on Inkscape, a popular vector graphics editor. This application offers a unique approach to PDF annotation.

In simple terms, when annotating a PDF page in PDFrankenstein, it’s converted to the SVG format and opened in Inkscape allowing you to draw and use other features, such as text highlight. When you save the annotated pages, they are exported to PDF, and all annotations become available in the original PDF file.

Basically, you don’t edit the original PDF file, you just add Inkscape objects and work with them. Such an approach allows you to keep original PDFs intact and get their annotated versions.

As you can see, if you are looking for a reliable PDF annotation tool for your Linux distro , you have some interesting options to choose from.

All the programs on the list are free and open-source, so you can try them out without putting your confidential information at risk. If you don’t mind using proprietary software as a Linux user, you can take a look at this pdf editor’s article .

You will find there a brief description of the best PDF editors that also come with PDF annotation capabilities.

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How to annotate any website

Take notes, make suggestions, and collaborate with others.

By David Nield | Published Mar 30, 2024 2:11 PM EDT

The web doesn’t have to stay fixed and static. With the right tools, you can type and scribble over the websites you visit, adding all kinds of annotations for all kinds of purposes. Maybe you want to leave notes for yourself or maybe you’re working on a project with others and need to leave notes on a page.

How you go about this varies depending on your browser. It isn’t difficult to do with most of the popular browsers, though you’ll probably need a third-party add-on. The only browser that’s really left out is Apple Safari , which doesn’t offer native annotation tools or any decent extensions—at least on the desktop, which is our focus here.

Google Chrome

Annotation isn’t a built-in feature with Google Chrome , but you’ve got plenty of third-party extensions to choose from that’ll add the functionality. One of our favorites is simply called Annotate : Install the extension, sign up for a free account, and you’re ready to go. You get a floating Annotate icon on the right of the browser window as you navigate around the web, and you can click on this to bring up the annotation tools.

You can scribble on top of web pages, add in text, and temporarily highlight certain sections too. It’s perfect if you’re running a real-time presentation, as basic presentation tools are built right in, and you can also save pages for later. If you need more tools (like shapes), and longer presentation times (above 12 minutes), you can get a Pro account for $35 a year.

Also worth a mention is Awesome Screen Recorder & Screenshot . As its name suggests, this is first and foremost a screenshot tool, but when you’ve grabbed images of websites, you can easily annotate them in a host of ways. Once you’ve captured some or part of an image, you can jump to the annotation workspace in a couple of clicks, where there are tools like pens, text boxes, and shapes to play around with.

Like Annotate, Awesome Screen Recorder & Screenshot comes with some simple presentation tools built right in, and has a premium subscription plan (from $5 a month) available if you need more tools—such as stickers, callout boxes, and watermarking. You even get a small amount of cloud storage space for free, making it easy to sync your annotated website grabs between devices.

Microsoft Edge

Full marks to Microsoft Edge , which has native annotation tools integrated into it—you don’t have to rely on a third-party extension tool if you’re using Edge. However, the tools aren’t quite as advanced as they are with some separate add-ons, so you might find you need some extra help after all.

The website annotation tools are connected to the screenshot feature: Click the three dots (top right), then Screenshot , and you’ll be asked if you want to grab an area of a page or the page in its entirety (including the parts you can’t see on screen). Once you’ve made your choice, a new window pops up on screen with the capture inside it.

Click Draw to start scribbling—if you click the arrow just to the side of Draw , you can change the color and thickness of your digital pen. There’s also the Erase tool, if you want to remove any of the writing you’ve put on top of the page. The options in the top right corner let you save the image, copy it to the clipboard, or share it to other apps.

If that’s not quite enough for you, Nimbus is definitely worth a look. It supports capturing single screenshots and longer screen recordings, and they can be embellished with drawings, shapes, text, and arrows. There’s plenty of functionality included for free, but for $5 a month you can get some additional features, such as watermarking options.

Mozilla Firefox

As with Google Chrome, there’s no native website annotation function in Mozilla Firefox , but you can find several third-party extensions to do the job for you. Out of the ones we’ve seen, Zoho Annotator stands out: Click the extension icon in the toolbar, choose which part of the current website you want to grab, and you’re taken straight to the annotation screen.

All the key tools you might need are included here, letting you add shapes, lines, text, and arrows on top of the page you grabbed. When you’re done, the resulting file can be easily copied to the clipboard, saved to disk, or shared to other apps. The add-on is completely free to use, and you don’t even need to register an account.

Another similar tool worthy of your attention is Memex , which is designed primarily to help you with research projects (though you can actually use it for anything you like). The focus here is on selecting sections of websites, adding comments to them, and sharing them with other people—just as you might do with a document you were collaborating on with a group of people over the web.

The extension lets you save webpages into several custom spaces, pick out particular sections from pages, and add images and comments to them. It works with videos, PDFs and social media posts as well, so it’s a tool that’s comprehensive as well as slick. You’re able to save up to 25 pages per month free of charge, and after that you’ll need to pay from $6 a month for the premium package.

David Nield is a freelance contributor at Popular Science, producing how to guides and explainers for the DIY section on everything from improving your smartphone photos to boosting the security of your laptop. He doesn't get much spare time, but when he does he spends it watching obscure movies and taking long walks in the countryside.

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• Free Stock Trading App Reviews
• Charles Schwab
• SoFi Invest
• Interactive Brokers
• Why You Should Trust Us

Best Free Stock Trading Apps of April 2024

Paid non-client promotion: Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate investing products to write unbiased product reviews.

The best free stock trading apps offer low account minimums, commission-free trading, research, financial tools, educational resources, and more. Get started with commission-free investing and learn how to choose a free stock trading platform that best fits your needs.

Some online brokerages may only offer free trading for certain asset classes (such as bonds, ETFs, and options) while charging fees or commissions for other investment trades. Stocks and ETFs are generally the most common investment option for free trading.

The Best Free Stock Trading Apps

• Charles Schwab: Best overall free stock trading app
• Fidelity Investments: Best trading app for index funds
• Firstrade : Best trading apps for fee-free active trading
• SoFi Invest: Best robo-advisors and low-cost investing
• Webull: Best trading apps for options trading
• Robinhood Investing: Best trading apps for active trading
• E*TRADE: Best trading apps for all types of investors
• Interactive Brokers: Best trading apps for advanced traders

The best online free stock trading broker typically offers $0 account minimums or low minimum requirements, commission-free trading, investment education, market research, and flexible customer support. 

Passive and active investors can benefit from commission-free trading on investments like stocks and ETFs. But the best brokerage for you depends on your individual needs. 

Here are the best commission-free trading platforms picked by Business Insider's editors in 2024.

Best Free Stock Trading Apps

Best free stock trading app overall: charles schwab.

Open and fund your account and get $101 from Schwab to split equally across the top five stocks in the S&P 500

$0 ($5,000 for Schwab Intelligent Portfolios; $25,000 Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Premium)

0% ($0 Schwab Intelligent Portfolios; $30/month Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Premium)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No minimums; commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, and options
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Thousands of no-load mutual funds and 50+ Schwab-managed funds; fractional shares (Stock slices) available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Automated and advisor-managed accounts available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Multiple trading platforms; stock screeners and other trading tools
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. $5,000 minimum for automated Schwab Intelligent Portfolios is on the higher end
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Schwab's no-load funds have a $100 minimum; some competitors offer lower minimums

Insider considers Charles Schwab to be the best online brokerage overall, as well as one of the best online brokerages for beginners. It's great for all types of investors — including active traders, passive investors, and retirement-focused individuals — in search of low costs and access to a variety of trading tools and platforms.

• App store rating: 4.8 iOS/3.8 Android
• Consider it if: You want a wide range of account types, with easy-to-use apps and web interfaces
• Awards: Investor's Business Daily recognized Charles Schwab as one of its Most Trusted Financial Companies for 2021.

Charles Schwab is a competitive choice if you're set on free stock trading. The brokerage's combined offering of commission-free accounts, automated accounts, and IRAs makes it an attractive option for all traders and investors. It's knowledge center provides informational articles on all areas of financial planning . 

You'll also have access to several types of investments, including stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and more. Like Fidelity, Schwab also offers several of its own index mutual funds, but these funds have slightly higher expense ratios. 

Schwab's two automated accounts — Charles Schwab Intelligent Portfolios and Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Premium — are best for hands-off investors. Schwab Intelligent Portfolios invests your money in a diversified portfolio of ETFs. The automated account also regularly monitors your portfolio's performance and rebalances the account when necessary.

What to look out for:  Keep in mind that you'll need at least $5,000 to use Schwab's Intelligent Portfolios automated account. If you want one-on-one access to a human advisor, you'll need at least $25,000.

Charles Schwab review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Index Funds: Fidelity

Fidelity Investments offers a wide range of investing products, including fractional shares.

$0 ($25,000 Fidelity Personalized Planning & Advice)

0% ($0, $3/month, or 0.35% for robo-advisor)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No account minimum or account fees
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No commissions for stock, ETF, and options trades; fractional shares available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Thousands of no-transaction-fee mutual funds and fee-free mutual funds
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Several research tools and trading platforms available
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Fidelity Go accounts cost more for investors with higher account balances
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Representative-assisted trades are slightly more expensive than other brokerages

Fidelity is one of the best online brokerages for beginners and retirement savings. It has great features for all types of investors and traders.

• Promotion: None at this time
• App store rating: 4.8 iOS/4.3 Android
• Awards: Morningstar named the Fidelity HSA as the best HSA provider in 2019, 2020, and 2021.
• Consider it if: You're focused on long-term investing and retirement.

Fidelity is a top stock trading app offering several investment products catered to all kinds of investors. Like many brokerages on this list, it offers commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, and options. But unlike its competitors, Fidelity offers a considerably unique product: Zero Expense Ratio Index mutual funds . 

Fidelity offers more than 3,400 mutual funds and more than 7,000 stocks and ETFs. If you're big on research access, Fidelity utilizes investment research from Thomson Reuters, StarMine, and other sources. 

Its automated investment account, Fidelity Go, creates and manages an investment portfolio for you. The other option is Fidelity Personalized Planning and Advice. These accounts offer automated investment management, giving you one-on-one human advisor access. 

What to look out for:  One thing to keep in mind is that if you're an automated investor, Fidelity Go charges more for higher account balances. For instance, Fidelity Go charges $0 for account balances under $25,000. If you're over $25,000, you'll pay an annual fee of 0.35%.

Fidelity review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Active Trading Without Fees: Firstrade

Firstrade brokerage offers investing, retirement, custodial, and cash management accounts for active traders

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No fees for stocks, ETFs, options, or mutual funds
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Options have no contract fees
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. International investing accounts for non-US investors
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No automated or advisor-assisted accounts
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Customer service only available during the week
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No cryptocurrencies

Firstrade could be a good brokerage choice for US residents and international investors looking to actively trade multiple investment types for free.

Firstrade is an online discount stock trading platform offering a variety of wealth-building products for active traders. The investment app stands out for three key qualities: Firstrade offers US trading and international trading in more than 65 regions, Chinese language support options for Chinese-speaking investors, and most investment products are free to trade.

Firstrade charges no fees for stocks, ETFs, options, and mutual funds. The investment app also charges $0 for options contracts (most investment apps charge $0.50 or $0.65 for options contracts). 

Firstrade also has no shortage of investment research and trading platforms. It offers free market research from Morningstar, Benzinga, Zacks, and Briefing.com. In addition to its web and mobile platforms, Firstrade provides more trading flexibility with its Options Wizard and Firstrade Navigator tools. 

Firstrade currently offers more than 11,000 mutual funds and a huge selection of commission-free ETFs . 

What to look out for:  Firstrade is best for active traders who prefer to handle investment transactions and research independently. The brokerage isn't the best option if you're looking for a robo-advisor or advisor-assisted account.

Firstrade review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Low-cost Trading and Automated Investing: SoFi Invest

Get up to $1,000 in stock when you fund a new account.

$0 ($1 to start investing); $5 fractional shares; $2,000 for margin trading

0% for active trading and automated investing

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No minimum to start investing
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No account or trading fees, and low fees to own funds
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Access to Certified Financial Planners at no additional charge
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. IPOs available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. SoFi 1% IRA match
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No tax-loss harvesting, an advanced investing technique where you sell a stock or mutual fund at a loss for a tax benefit
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No option for stop-loss orders when actively investing. SoFi's active investing account only uses market orders
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Currently only available to US residents

SoFi Invest us a great platform for US investors who are looking for an intuitive online trading experience, an open active or automated investing account.

• Promotion: Get up to $1,000 in stock when you fund a new account.
• App store rating: 4.8 iOS/4.1 Android
• Consider it if: You want an easy-to-use platform paired with rock-bottom pricing.

Though SoFi Invest is popularly known for its loan services, it offers competitive investment products. Its investments include stocks, ETFs, and IPOs, and it offers complimentary certified financial planner (CFP) access.

Whether you'd like to actively trade stocks and other investments, park your money in an IRA, or build wealth through an automated account, SoFi has an option for you. Plus, it charges zero fees for both its self-directed and automated accounts.

What to look out for:  SoFi only offers stocks and ETFs. This platform may not be your best choice if you want other investments (e.g., mutual funds or bonds ).

SoFi Invest review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Options Trading: Webull

Webull offers commission-free trading, retirement accounts, cryptocurrency trading, and margin trading.

$0 ($2,000 for margin accounts)

0% (1% markup for cryptocurrencies)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No minimum deposit
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Commission-free trading on US-listed stocks, ETFs, and options
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Cryptocurrencies and margin accounts available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Free real-time investment quotes
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No joint brokerage accounts, education savings accounts, or automated investing options
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No mutual funds
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Limited educational resources

Webull is best for active traders in search of commission-free investments, expert market data, extended hours trading, and cryptocurrency trading. The app could also be a good fit for beginning active investors and options traders due to its easy-to-navigate platform.

• App store rating: 4.7 iOS/4.4 Android
• Consider it if: You're after something that's free to use (for most people) and friendly to active traders

Webull offers low-cost trading all around. While the investment app's account selection is limited to individual brokerage accounts and IRAs, it lets you open either account at no additional cost (except small clearing firms and regulatory agency fees). Like the other platforms on this list, you can trade stocks for free.

Like Firstrade, Webull charges $0 for options contracts. Its other account features include extended hours trading (from 4 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. or 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.), Nasdaq-sponsored market data, and free real-time market quotes. 

If you're interested in investing in virtual assets or borrowing money to invest, Webull also offers cryptocurrencies and margin trading. 

What to look out for:  Webull's investment selection only includes stocks, ETFs, American Depositary receipts (ADRs), and cryptocurrencies. You may need to look elsewhere if you want other investment choices. 

Webull invest review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Active Trading: Robinhood

Earn 1.50% APY on uninvested cash for non-Gold users and 5.00% for Gold members

$0 ($1 for fractional shares; $2,000 for margin trading)

0% ($5/month for Robinhood Gold)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Free stock, option, ETF, and cryptocurrency trades; 1.50% APY on uninvested cash for non-Gold users and 5.00% for Gold members
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. IPO investing available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Cash management accounts available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Website is easy to navigate; advanced charts for all users
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Lack of investing research and trading tools; can only take advantage of professional research if you're a Robinhood Gold member
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No joint accounts, education savings accounts, or mutual funds
• App store rating: 4.2 iOS/4.0 Android
• Consider it if: You want to trade crypto and invest in a wide range of stocks and ETFs.

Robinhood Investing is best for active, options, and day traders looking to buy and sell investments at low costs. The app currently offers commission-free stocks, ETFs, options (though options cost $0.65 per contract), and cryptocurrencies.

Robinhood and Webull share several similarities when it comes to fee-free active trading. They offer the same investments but vary regarding account types and features. Unlike Webull, Robinhood offers larger instant deposits (up to $50,000) for margin accounts, plus a cash management account that offers a 0.30% APY.

Robinhood also provides professional investment research, but this only applies to Robinhood Gold members. Robinhood Gold has a $5 monthly fee, but it includes both margin trading (borrowing money to invest) and bigger deposits.

Robinhood offers a 1% IRA match on all IRA contributions. Gold members can earn up to a 3% match on IRA contributions until April 30. 

What to look out for:  Robinhood's investment research is mainly available for Robinhood Gold members. Though the investment app offers a library that contains informational blog posts on investing topics, you won't get much guidance beyond that.

Robinhood review

Best Free Stock Trading App for All Types of Investors: E*TRADE

The brokerage provides three free trading platforms: Power E*TRADE, E*TRADE Web, and E*TRADE Pro.

$0 ($500 Core Portfolios)

0% (0.30% Core Portfolios)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. No commissions on US-listed stocks, options, and exchange-traded funds
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Wide selection of investments available for most accounts
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Thousands of no-load, no-transaction-fee mutual funds available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Competitive mobile and online offerings for digital investors and traders
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. 24/7 support and live chat
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Need at least $500 for automated investment management
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Infrequent traders pay more for options contracts

E*TRADE is a great fit for frequent traders interested in low-cost stock, ETF, and options trading. The brokerage also offers a robust mobile app for Apple and Android devices, and it supports less active investors through its managed and automated portfolio offerings.

E*TRADE  is another popular brokerage that offers free trades on stocks, ETFs, and other investments. The investment app also has thousands of no-load, no-transaction-fee mutual funds (mutual funds that are free of commissions or sales charges).

Its options — which are also commission-free — cost $0.65 per contract if you make less than 30 trades per quarter. But if you make more than 30 trades per quarter, E*TRADE charges $0.50 per contract.

E*TRADE account selection also includes automated accounts and managed portfolios. Its Core Portfolios automated account has a $500 minimum requirement and 0.30% annual fee. Its managed portfolios — Blend Portfolios and Fixed Income Portfolios — give you access to human advisors who help manage your investments.

E*TRADE also offers IRAs, Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), and custodial accounts. 

What to look out for:  If you're planning on trading options, you'll pay less if you trade more frequently, but you'll pay more if you make less than 30 trades per quarter. 

E*TRADE review

Best Free Stock Trading App for Advanced Traders: Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers provides trading access to more than 150 markets in 33 countries around the world, allowing you to invest in stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs, cryptocurrencies, futures, bonds, fractional shares, and more.

$0 ($100 Interactive Advisors automated accounts)

$0 for IBKR Lite; $0 IBKR Pro (per-share commissions apply)

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Low commissions and fees
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. International trading opportunities
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Competitive trading platforms and tools
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Several account types available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Thousands of no-transaction-fee mutual funds
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Cryptocurrency investing available for bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ethereum, and litecoin
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Less active traders pay more for IBKR Pro
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Website can be tricky to navigate

Interactive Brokers is one of the best online brokerages for advanced, active investors who trade securities frequently and value access to market analysis and trading platforms.

• Promotion: None at this time.

Interactive Brokers offers a long list of trading tools and platforms, market research resources, and investment products for experienced, active traders. In addition to its commission-free stock trading, the brokerage lets you place trades in the US and international markets. This might be appealing to retail traders interested in investing in foreign currencies. 

Interactive Brokers also provides fractional shares, automated investing, cryptocurrencies (through Paxos Trust Company), and investment education. For instance, its Traders Academy offers courses on all things investing. The brokerage's Trader Workstation (TWS) application gives you trading access in over 100 markets worldwide.

Interactive Brokers' automated advisor, Interactive Advisors, could be a good fit for those seeking more guidance. Minimums on its automated accounts range from $100 to $50,000.

What to look out for: The investment platform's website can be tricky.

Interactive Brokers review

Best Free Stock Trading Apps Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Several brokerages have free stock trading, including Charles Schwab, Fidelity, SoFi, and more. Make sure to research whether or not a platform offers free trading before opening an account. Some online brokerages offer free stock trading but may charge fees on other investment options. 

To start buying free stocks, open a brokerage account with a free stock trading feature such as Webull or Robinhood. Deposit money into your brokerage account, then use the funds to buy stocks or free.

Trading apps like Robinhood, Webull, eToro, Acorns, M1 Finance, and much more offer free stock trading, which is otherwise known as commission-free trading on stocks. Many brokerages offer free stock and ETF trades. However, you may have to pay for trades of other assets like mutual funds, international trades, and crypto. 

Many stock trading apps offer commission-free trades on assets like stocks and ETFs. Brokerages like SoFi, Robinhood, and Fidelity offer free trades of certain asset classes like stocks. But depending on the brokerage, you may have to pay to trade other investments.  

You can trade certain stocks commission-free and without certain regulatory fees with certain free stock trading platforms. However, not all stocks or online brokerages are available for free trading. Some platforms may restrict the trading of certain securities or international markets. 

Yes. Commission-free trading platforms are great for beginners seeking free stock trading and simplified investing strategies. Commission-free trading platforms may also offer additional account features, educational resources, and goal-building tools. 

Choosing a Free Stock Trading Platform

The best free stock trading apps for beginners will offer low fees, low minimums, easy-to-use platforms, and access to educational resources like webinars and blogs. Generally, robo-advisors are beginner-friendly investing platforms that provide customized portfolios with automated management features. 

Robo-advisors, such as SoFi Automated or Fidelity Go, also tend to offer low-cost ETFs as the main investment vehicles. Most free stock trading apps suited for beginners will offer pre-set or customizable ETF portfolios based on your risk tolerance, time horizon, and investment goals. 

If you're more interested in active investing, platforms like Robinhood offer commission-free trades with an easy-to-navigate trading platform suitable for beginners. These brokerages also offer educational resources, staking rewards, human advisor access, and active investing strategies. 

Why You Should Trust Us: Our Expert Panel on The Best Stock Trading Apps

We consulted financial planners, investing experts, and our (now former) wealth-building reporter to inform our picks for the best online brokers for free stock trading.

We're focusing on what makes an online brokerage account most useful. When comparing an app, it's best to consider fees, account types, investment choices, and investment research and education resources.

We interviewed the following three investing experts to see what they had to say about investment apps:

• Brian Fry, CFP, founder at Safe Landing Financial
• Charlotte Geletka, CFP, CRPC, managing partner at Silver Penny Financial Planning
• Kaysian Gordon, MBA, CFP, CDFA, CPA, wealth manager at Clarus Group

What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of using an online broker for free stock trading?

Brian Fry, CFP:

Online brokers offering free stock trading offer greater savings for investors. There are several options to choose from which is great for DIY investors.

It's important to consider how financial companies are making money, which may not always provide as transparent of an investing experience. Not to say this is always the case, but free trades encourage more trading instead of long-term investing.

Charlotte Geletka, CFP, CRPC:

Online brokerages are great for DIY, and they are typically very low cost. However, you will not receive the same financial advice as you would working with a financial advisor. 

Kaysian Gordon, MBA, CFP, CDFA, CPA:

There are lots of advantages. As long as [the brokerage] has the guidance you need and the research capabilities, you're able to start investing for little to no cost.

Who should consider using a broker that offers free stock trading?

Investors that have the time and interest to manage investments along with the discipline and experience of riding out volatile markets are a good fit for using an online broker for free stock trading.

This is a great place for what I call "fun money," so you can trade without risking your retirement or serious investment dollars.

Any other advice you'd offer someone who's considering opening a commission-free brokerage account?

When considering opening a commission-free online brokerage account, proceed with caution. Free isn't always best. Consider the importance of investing long-term over short-term trading.

Do the comparisons. There are lots of great companies out there.

Other Brokers We Considered for Free Stock Trading

• Vanguard: Vanguard is a free stock trading platform that offers a vast collection of wealth-building products, including brokerage accounts, automated and advisor-assisted accounts, IRAs, cash management accounts, and more. It also provides commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, and options.
• Ally Invest : Ally Invest is a free stock trading app that is best for all types of investors. The online brokerage provides active trading, automated investing, IRAs, forex trading, and more. You can also use Ally to open checking, savings, or other bank accounts. 
• Merrill Edge: Merrill Edge is a free stock trading app that caters to all types of investors. The brokerage offers commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, and options. And due to its affiliation with Bank of America, BOA users can integrate personal bank accounts with any Merrill Edge investing accounts (including its automated portfolios). The biggest thing to keep in mind is that you won't be able to buy investments like precious metals or cryptocurrencies.
• M1 Finance: M1 Finance is a free stock trading platform and money management investment app offers a wide array of account types and features. Though it only allows you to trade stocks or ETFs, M1 Finance also offers an automated investing option for hands-off investors.
• TD Ameritrade: TD Ameritrade is a free stock trading app now owned by Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade offers interactive trading platforms, commission-free trading, automated investing, investment research resources, and more.
• tastytrade: Previously called tastyworks, tastytrade is an online trading platform that offers commission-free trades for stocks and ETFs. But this platform is more focused toward options and futures trading. 

Methodology: How we Reviewed the Best Stock Trading Apps

When narrowing down our list of the best brokerages, we used Insider's rating methodology for investing platforms to examine fees, investment selection, account types, investment research availability, and customer support. We also included information on each broker's Better Business Bureau rating. Investment platforms are given a rating between 0 and 5.

Each brokerage listed in this review offers unique features, but they all provide $0 or low account minimums and commission-free trading. 

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

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Early 2024 Best Ball Running Back Sleepers

In Best Ball, we want to focus our attention on guys that have big potential. No, that's not AJ Dillon or Khalil Herbert , sorry to crush your dreams. Instead, it's guys that have juice and/or a nice opportunity in front of them. When opportunity knocks, these guys should be able to take full advantage.

In 2023, Kyren Williams , Rachaad White , and Raheem Mostert all fit the bill as running back sleepers. This season, I've identified four new backs that are currently extremely undervalued. That's just my opinion, but I feel really good about these four guys far out-producing their current average draft position (ADP) on Underdog. Here they are, my 2024 Best Ball Running Back Sleepers.

2024 Best Ball Running Back Sleepers

Tyjae Spears , Tennessee Titans

Spears is electric. As a rookie, he was 5th among running backs in yards created per touch (4.58) and breakaway run rate (7.0%), per PlayerProfiler. A breakaway run is any rush of 15 yards or longer, so Tyjae was consistently breaking long ones despite a below-average offensive line. The consensus has Tennessee taking an offensive lineman with their first-round pick, which should make it even easier for Spears to operate in 2024.

"But Adam, what about Tony Pollard who the Titans signed to a three-year, $21.75M contract, isn't he the guy you want?" Did you see Pollard try to operate as the bell-cow in Dallas last season without Ezekiel Elliott ? His efficiency took a nosedive with the heavier workload. The Titans are most definitely going to scale that back. But how will the roles be defined between Pollard and Spears? Here's head coach Brian Callahan referring to his backs as "interchangeable" on multiple occasions:

If they're truly interchangeable, give me the younger guy who looked electric last season vs. the guy coming off a season with 300+ touches who couldn't handle a heavy workload. Pollard was so much better in 2022 when he played between 40% and 55% of the snaps. Spears also had 70 targets as a rookie, a sign the team trusts him in high-value situations.

Spears has a current ADP of 103.5 (RB31), while Pollard has an ADP of 80.9 (RB21). Give me that sweet discount every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Zack Moss , Cincinnati Bengals

Opportunity knocks for Mr. Moss in 2024. His first couple of years in the NFL were a bit rough. Despite what many people saw as an opportune landing spot in Buffalo, he never really took off.

But then he landed in Indianapolis and got those opportunities in 2022 and 2023 with injuries to Jonathan Taylor . He more than made the most of those opportunities, even showcasing his abilities as a three-down back. It clearly caught Zac Taylor's attention as he called Moss "a great fit for what we're doing on offense" and mentioned his ability to play on all three downs at the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Orlando, FL.

It's possible Chase Brown eats into the pie a little more than he did last season with Joe Mixon operating as the primary back. But, it's also possible this Bengals coaching staff likes a veteran as the primary back, like with Mixon last season. The 27-year-old was 3rd among all running backs in opportunity share (78.9%) and 7th in weighted opportunities per game (15).

Moss is entering his 5th year in the league and is a high-IQ player. He'll likely get the first crack at the "starting" job and could legitimately run with it and never look back. You'll recall Mixon had over 1,400 total yards and 12 total touchdowns a season ago en route to a back-end RB1 finish. Moss is currently being drafted as RB34 with an ADP of 108.4. Maybe the Bengals draft somebody and crush this dream, but why? Moss is more than capable of shouldering the load (with some Brown sprinkled in).

Jaleel McLaughlin , Denver Broncos

Draft good running backs! Often, teams will eventually have no choice but to play them more because they're good, if not better than, the team's "starter." That sentiment rings extremely true for Broncos 2nd-year back Jaleel McLaughlin. Just check out this chart for a minute.

McLaughlin was one of the most elusive backs last season, while "starter" Javonte Williams was actually one of the least elusive backs last season. Many will point to Williams coming off a significant knee injury, and while that's true, it's no guarantee he ever gets back to what he once was either.

Yes, it's true that McLaughlin only had 107 touches as a rookie to Javonte's 264, so in all likelihood, that elusiveness is a little skewed. However, it says something that the gap is as large as it is between him and Williams.

And with his ability as a pass-catcher, it's quite possible McLaughlin can become what Sean Payton had in New Orleans with Alvin Kamara or Darren Sproles. At the end of last season, Payton mentioned that " periodically, he'll come up and he wants to expand his role as a receiver in that, if you will, Joker' category. " Let's see if his elusiveness can get him those extra touches this season. With an ADP of 151.2 (RB45), I'm willing to take that gamble. This kid is electric.

Kendre Miller , New Orleans Saints

You'll notice somewhat of a theme here with these sleeper running backs. They are guys who haven't shouldered a big workload before and have declining incumbents in front of them. Kendre Miller fits a similar bill heading into the 2024 season.

Miller was highly productive at TCU and was the 4th running back off the board in the 2023 NFL Draft as the 71st pick overall. But it was an injury-riddled rookie season for Kendre and he never really found his footing. That could all change this season, especially as Alvin Kamara continues to decline as a productive rusher. Check this out:

https://twitter.com/RyanJ_Heath/status/1774445866771685554?s=20

Kamara regressed in a big way last season. With Jamaal Williams ' struggles (career-low 2.89 yards per carry) and Miller being injured on and off throughout the season, the Saints had no choice but to feed Kamara. But that could all change in 2024 with a fully healthy Miller heading into training camp.

Both Kamara and Williams are 28 years old and showed signs of regression in 2023. Miller is just 21 years old and is just two years removed from an extremely productive 2022 season at TCU. With an Underdog ADP of 153.4 (RB46), there's not much risk with a very high reward should he take on a bigger piece of the pie in the Saints' backfield in 2024.

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What is Good Friday? What the holy day means for Christians around the world

Christians around the world observe Good Friday two days before Easter, but what is it, and why do they commemorate the holy day?

The holiday is part of Holy Week, which leads up to Easter Sunday. Palm Sunday kicks off the series of Christian holy days that commemorate the Crucifixion and celebrate Jesus Christ's resurrection.

"Good Friday has been, for centuries now, the heart of the Christian message because it is through the death of Jesus Christ that Christians believe that we have been forgiven of our sins," Daniel Alvarez, an associate teaching professor of religious studies at Florida International University, told USA TODAY.

What is Holy Saturday? What the day before Easter means for Christians around the world

When is Good Friday?

Good Friday is always the Friday before Easter. It's the second-to-last day of Holy Week.

In 2024, Good Friday will fall on March 29.

What is Good Friday?

Good Friday is the day Christ was sacrificed on the cross. According to Britannica , it is a day for "sorrow, penance, and fasting."

"Good Friday is part of something else," Gabriel Radle, an assistant professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame, previously told USA TODAY. "It's its own thing, but it's also part of something bigger."

Are Good Friday and Passover related?

Alvarez says that Good Friday is directly related to the Jewish holiday, Passover.

Passover , or Pesach, is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt.

"The whole Christian idea of atoning for sin, that Jesus is our atonement, is strictly derived from the Jewish Passover tradition," said Alvarez.

How is that possible?

According to the professor, Passover celebrates the day the "Angel of Death" passed over the homes of Israelites who were enslaved by the Egyptians. He said that the Bible states when the exodus happened, families were told to paint their doors with lamb's blood so that God would spare the lives of their firstborn sons.

Alvarez says this is why Christians call Jesus the "lamb of God." He adds that the symbolism of the "blood of the lamb" ties the two stories together and is why Christians believe God sacrificed his firstborn son. Because, through his blood, humanity is protected from the "wrath of a righteous God that cannot tolerate sin."

He adds that the stories of the exodus and the Crucifixion not only further tie the stories together but also emphasize just how powerful the sacrifice of the firstborn and the shedding of blood are in religion.

"Jesus is the firstborn, so the whole idea of the death of the firstborn is crucial," said Alvarez.

He adds that the sacrifice of the firstborn, specifically a firstborn son, comes from an ancient and "primitive" idea that the sacrifice unleashes "tremendous power that is able to fend off any kind of force, including the wrath of God."

Why Is Good Friday so somber?

Alavarez says people might think this holiday is more depressing or sad than others because of how Catholics commemorate the Crucifixion.

"I think [it's] to a level that some people might think is morbid," said Alvarez.

He said Catholics not only meditate on Jesus' death, but primarily focus on the suffering he faced in the events that led up to his Crucifixion. That's what makes it such a mournful day for people.

But, the professor says that Jesus' suffering in crucial to Christianity as a whole.

"The suffering of Christ is central to the four Gospels," said Alvarez. "Everything else is incidental."

According to the professor, statues that use blood to emphasize the way Jesus and Catholic saints suffered is very common in Spanish and Hispanic Countries, but not as prevalent in American churches.

Do you fast on Good Friday?

Father Dustin Dought, the executive director of the Secretariat of Divine Worship of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, previously told USA TODAY that Good Friday and Ash Wednesday are the two days in the year that Roman Catholics are obliged to fast.

"This practice is a way of emptying ourselves so that we can be filled with God," said Dought.

What do you eat on Good Friday?

Many Catholics do not eat meat on any Friday during Lent. Anything with flesh is off-limits. Dought says this practice is to honor the way Jesus sacrificed his flesh on Good Friday.

Meat that is off limits includes:

Instead, many Catholics will eat fish. According to the Marine Stewardship Council , this is allowed because fish is considered to be a different type of flesh.

Contributing: Jordan Mendoza ; USA TODAY