Portable Document Format (PDF) is an well-known computer file format. Find here a list of best freeware PDF creator applications. The .PDF file format denotes documents which can be exchanged and viewed independent of the environment they were created. Invented by Adobe Systems, PDF today is an open standard for electronic documents (ISO 32000-1:2008). There are many software which support creation and editing of PDF documents. But only a few of those PDF creators are free. Read on to find some of the best freeware PDF creator or PDF writer applications.
Free PDF Creators or PDF Writers:
CutePDF:
An extremely popular, yet simple PDF writer for Windows platform. CutePDF adds a virtual printer in your system, which you can use to create (print) PDF documents from virtually any application that has print option. Only additional requirement of this freeware is a PostScript to PDF converter such as Ghostscript. Supported operating systems include: Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP, Vista, 7 and Windows 8. CutePDF is free for both personal and commercial use.
BullZip PDF Printer:
The Bullzip PDF printer is a powerful freeware PDF creator. It adds a virtual printer to your computer, which can be used to print PDF documents. Just like CutePDF, it requires GhostScript. But Bullzip PDF printer has many advanced features such as 128/40 bit encryption, password protect PDF documents, watermark, user interface control, quality settings etc. It also features option to save output in other popular formats such as JPEG, BMP, PCX, PNG and TIFF. Bullzip PDF printer is free for personal use and allows commercial use up to 10 users. Supported operating systems include all Windows versions up to Windows 8. Translated versions are available in several international languages.
doPDF:
doPDF is a free and lite version of commercial PDF creator NovaPDF. This application works as a virtual printer and converts any type of printable document into quality PDF files. doPDF doesn’t require any third party program such as GhostScript. Other features of this freeware PDF creator include predefined page size, custom page size, 72 – 2400 dpi resolution, searchable PDF output, etc. doPDF is available in multiple languages and same setup supports both 32-bit and 64-bit. You can use this application for personal and commercial use.
PDFproducer:
If you are looking for a tool to convert plain text into PDF documents, try PDFproducer. The PDFproducer is a tiny application but does it’s job pretty well. It creates PDF from plain text files (TXT format). There are not much features in PDFproducer. But it will let you change page size, orientation, fonts and PDF metadata. PDFproducer is portable and is not dependent on any third party component or tools. So, you can carry it in a flash drive and run directly from there.
PrimoPDF:
PrimoPDF is a free tool for PDF creation. It supports quality PDF generation via virtual printer method. The generated documents are in standard format and works with all PDF readers. The PrimoPDF can create PDF files from more than 300 different file types. Other notable features include 40/128-bit encryption, non-TrueType font support, ability to add document information, etc.
PDF24 Creator:
A free PDF Creator and PDF Converter. The PDF24 Creator application adds a virtual printer, which users can use to convert documents into Adobe PDF files. It can create portable document format files from almost any Windows application. PDF24 Creator supports merging, splitting and re-ordering of pages. It can protect your documents with password. This free PDF creator works on Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems.
Doro PDF Writer:
Another free PDF creator application. It is easy to use. After installation, Doro PDF Writer adds a new virtual printer to your system. Whenever you want a PDF, just print your document using the printer named “Doro PDF Writer”. This freeware PDF maker application comes with options like 128-bit encryption, allow/prevent printing, allow/prevent copy & paste and master password for full control. Doro PDF Writer works on all available Windows operating system. The interface is available in multiple languages such as English, French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish and Traditional Chinese.
Suggestions?
This is not a definitive list. There are some more free PDF creator applications. But problem is several of them comes loaded with spyware and/or advertisements. I rejected those applications. Also there are some different applications such as browser add-on and online PDF converter. I’m not including them in this article. Still there may be some more freeware PDF writers. Ever used a freeware PDF creator which is not in the above list? Don’t hesitate to submit your suggestions.