Best Chrome Extensions for PDF in 2024
A roundup of the top Chrome extensions for working with PDF files — from webpage converters to editors, viewers, and annotators.
PDF files are everywhere — invoices, research papers, eBooks, and archived articles. Chrome handles PDFs natively, but for anything beyond basic viewing, extensions dramatically expand what you can do. Here are the best Chrome extensions for PDF in 2024.
1. Webpage to PDF Converter — Best for Saving Webpages
Free · 70,000+ users · Chrome Web Store
The top choice for converting any webpage directly to a high-quality PDF. With a single click, you can save, merge multiple pages, and even edit the PDF before downloading. No data is collected and it is completely free.
Best for: Archiving articles, saving research, creating offline reading libraries, merging multi-page content.
2. Adobe Acrobat: PDF Edit, Convert, Sign — Best All-in-One
Free (some features require subscription) · Adobe
Adobe's own extension lets you view, annotate, sign, and edit PDFs directly in Chrome. It integrates with Adobe Document Cloud and is the most feature-complete option — but the best features are locked behind a subscription.
Best for: Professional PDF editing, e-signatures, annotating documents.
3. Kami — Best for Students and Education
Free plan available · Kami
Kami is a powerful PDF and document annotation tool popular in schools and universities. It allows highlighting, commenting, drawing, and text insertion on PDFs. The Google Classroom integration makes it a favourite for educators.
Best for: Students, teachers, annotation, collaborative document review.
4. PDF Viewer — Best Lightweight Viewer
Free · Open source
A minimal, fast PDF viewer built on Mozilla's PDF.js. It replaces Chrome's default PDF viewer with a cleaner interface and better controls. No extra features, but rock-solid reliability.
Best for: Anyone who wants a better PDF viewing experience without extra bloat.
5. Smallpdf — Best for Quick Online PDF Tasks
Free (limited) · Smallpdf
Smallpdf's extension connects Chrome to their online PDF toolkit: compress, split, merge, convert Word/Excel to PDF, and more. It requires uploading files to their servers, so consider privacy before using it for sensitive documents.
Best for: Occasional PDF merging, compressing, or format conversion.
Comparison Table
| Extension | Convert Webpage | Edit PDF | Annotate | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Webpage to PDF Converter | ✅ | ✅ Basic | ❌ | Free |
| Adobe Acrobat | ⚠️ Limited | ✅ Full | ✅ | Free/Paid |
| Kami | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | Free/Paid |
| PDF Viewer | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | Free |
| Smallpdf | ❌ | ✅ | ⚠️ | Free/Paid |
How to Choose
- Want to save webpages as PDF? → Webpage to PDF Converter
- Need full professional PDF editing? → Adobe Acrobat
- Studying or annotating documents? → Kami
- Just want a better viewer? → PDF Viewer
- Need to merge/compress PDFs occasionally? → Smallpdf
For most users, combining Webpage to PDF Converter (for saving pages) with one annotation tool (Kami or Adobe) covers 95% of PDF-related needs in Chrome — completely free.
If you specifically need a deeper comparison of web-to-PDF extensions — GoFullPage, PrintFriendly, Nimbus, SingleFile — the best web-to-PDF extensions for Chrome covers the full landscape. For capturing pages that extend beyond the viewport, capturing an entire webpage as PDF explains the techniques that work reliably.