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Stirling-PDF: Edit PDFs Anywhere

Name: Stirling-PDF: Edit PDFs Anywhere
Author: Stirling-Tools

Edit PDFs on any device with Stirling-PDF, a tool for startup founders, backed by 80k+ GitHub stars

intermediate⏱ 30 minutes💵 Free (self-hosted)

87,697 stars7,760 forksTypeScriptHealth Score 9/10Updated 7/22/2026100% free · open source

What it is

Edit PDFs online on any device using your browser

What you can make with it

Custom, interactive PDFs for your business presentations and documents

How it helps

It provides flexibility to edit PDFs anywhere, and offers basic features without the need for specialized software downloads.

Real use case example

"A marketing manager needs to update the PDF version of their company's brochure to include a new product release. They can sign in to the Stirling-PDF application, upload the current brochure, edit the PDF to add the new product details, and then download the updated version for distribution to sales teams and partners."

If you're new

Beginners can use this to edit basic PDFs for small projects and presentations.

If you're senior

Senior engineers and professionals will reach for this for its ease of use and flexibility to integrate with existing workflows.

Common confusion cleared up

The confusion is whether it can edit scanned PDFs, but it's best used for PDFs that can be edited by text, images, or other editable content.

Best inside these AI tools

Claude DesktopCursor

Pairs with

Stripe webhookNotion databaseClaude Desktop

Why we list it on WorkflowStacks: It's included in this marketplace because it's a popular, free, open-source tool that simplifies PDF editing.

What it does

Stirling-PDF is a TypeScript-based application that allows users to edit PDFs on any device, anywhere, making it a versatile tool for managing and modifying PDF documents.

Install / run

git clone https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF.git

When to use it

•When you need to make changes to a PDF document on a device without a traditional PDF editor
•When collaborating with others and need to edit PDFs in real-time, regardless of the device or location
•When you want a free, open-source solution for editing PDFs without relying on proprietary software

Quick start

1Clone the Stirling-PDF repository using the command 'git clone https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF.git'
2Navigate to the cloned repository using 'cd Stirling-PDF'
3Install required dependencies by running 'npm install' or 'yarn install' depending on your package manager
4Start the application using 'npm start' or 'yarn start'
5Open a web browser and navigate to 'http://localhost:3000' to access the Stirling-PDF interface

Ready-to-paste prompt

To edit a sample PDF, navigate to the Stirling-PDF interface, click on 'Open PDF', and select a sample PDF file from your device, such as 'sample.pdf', to begin editing.

Heads up: Before running the application, ensure you have Node.js (version 14 or higher) and a compatible package manager (npm or yarn) installed on your system, as Stirling-PDF relies on these dependencies to function properly.

Saves to your device

Topics

docker

hacktoberfest

java

pdf

pdf-converter

pdf-editor

pdf-manipulation

pdf-merger

pdf-ocr

pdf-tools

pdf-web-apps

pdfmerger

self-hosted

How Stirling-PDF: Edit PDFs Anywhere works

Codeflow

Free to inspect

Stirling-PDF: Edit PDFs Anywhere is a very large Java project (~551k lines across 4243 code files, plus 1013 test files). It is a full software project: use it through its install path rather than reading it end to end. Last commit this month, Other license, has a test suite.

Size

Very large codebase

~551k lines · 4243 code files · days to read — use, don't read

Setup

Developer setup

A real software project. Use it via its install path; don't expect to read it all.

Runs on

Java/JVM

No API keys detected

Java 49%TypeScript 42%Python 4%CSS 2%Shell 1%

What happens, step by step

Edit PDFs anywhere

You give

PDF file

1Load PDF

Open PDF file

2Edit Tools

Use 50+ PDF tools

app/proprietary/src/test/resources/db-migration-fixtures/README.md

3Save PDF

Save edited PDF

4Automation

Use no-code pipelines

Taskfile.yml

You get

Edited PDF

Where to start reading

1
README.md
Start here — what it does and how to install it
2
AGENTS.md
The instructions the AI actually follows
3
app/proprietary/src/test/resources/db-migration-fixtures/README.md
Inside app/ — the main logic begins here

What's in each folder

app/Core code — the actual logic2818 files

frontend/Frontend / UI3366 files

docs/Documentation7 files

engine/Folder146 files

scripts/Helper scripts42 files

docker/Deployment / infrastructure27 files

devGuide/Folder8 files

buildSrc/Folder4 files

READMEHas testsDocumentedCI checksOther licenseUpdated this month

Quick Actions

Details