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Easy

Stirling PDF

PDF tools you host. Stirling PDF's community code is MIT — Adobe Acrobat without the seat. Skip proprietary/saas directories if you want OSS-only.

The problem

Adobe Acrobat is a PDF editor subscription. You wanted merge, split, OCR, and convert on a box you run. Stirling PDF (Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF) licenses community code as MIT; LICENSE also carves out proprietary, saas, engine, and related directories. This page is the MIT self-host image, not Acrobat's every legal-certify or Creative Cloud library. Papermark is a tracked share link — /replace/docsend — not an editor.

Replaces

Adobe Acrobat

Replace Adobe Acrobat

Estimated SaaS saved

$1,200

per year, small team, before lock-in

Start on Railway

Papermark if this is a tracked share link, not a PDF editor

Sponsor this stack Tip jar

Placeholder: Stirling PDF official image plus a volume if you persist files. Bind HTTP to 0.0.0.0:$PORT. Skip proprietary/saas dirs if you want OSS-only. No one-click template in this repo yet — Start on Railway.

The stack

Cost table

You stop payingTypical / yearSelf-host instead
Adobe Acrobat (one seat)$1,200Stirling PDF

Agent setup prompt

Replace Adobe Acrobat with Stirling PDF (https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF).

- Official community image. Bind HTTP. Merge or split one PDF you actually use. Persist a volume only if you keep files on the server.
- Do not deploy proprietary/saas/engine directories and call that the OSS path. Write AGENT_PROMPT.md.

Also as markdown: /stacks/stirling-pdf.md

FAQ

Is Stirling PDF fully MIT?
Community code is MIT as of the LICENSE checked 18 Oct 2026. LICENSE also lists proprietary, saas, engine, and related directories under other licenses. This page is the MIT self-host path.
Why not Papermark?
Papermark is a tracked link (/replace/docsend). Acrobat is edit/merge/OCR. Stirling PDF is that job.