How to Edit PDF on iPhone & Android

When you work remotely with team members, under tight deadlines, or are constantly on the move, editing PDFs on your phone can be a game-changer.

Well, we're here to show you how to do it effectively. From opening a PDF right down to making edits directly on your iOS and Android device.

Follow along to learn how to edit PDF files on any smartphone.

You’ll acquire necessary skills to add text, insert annotations, merge, crop, compress PDF, as well as to fill out and sign PDF – just to name a few.

How to open a PDF on iPhone and Android 

Before you start editing PDF documents on your phone, you need to open your PDF in the Xodo app first.

Download Xodo for iOS or Android and follow the steps below to get started.

Open PDF files on iPhone

Opening PDFs on your iPhone or iPad with Xodo is straightforward:

1. Install the Xodo iOS app. Go to the App Store to download and install Xodo for iOS.

2. Open Xodo iOS app. Once installed, tap on the Xodo icon on your device.

3. Locate your PDF file. Tap on Files at the bottom of the screen to access a full list of folders on your device. You can also upload files to open by tapping on Add files and selecting how you want to upload your PDF.

4. Open your PDF. Once you find the PDF you want to edit, just tap on the file icon to open it.

Open PDF Files on Android

If you’re looking to edit PDF on Android, the process to open your PDF is just as simple:

1. Install the Xodo Android app. Download and install the Xodo Android app from Google Play.

2. Open Xodo Android app. Simply tap on the new Xodo icon to open the app.

3. Locate your PDF file. Tap on Files at the bottom of the screen to display the available folders on your device. If you want to upload a new PDF, tap on the “+” icon to add files to your Xodo Drive folder.

4. Open your PDF. Tap on your PDF file to open and view it.

How to edit a PDF on iPhone and Android 

Now that you have your PDF open in Xodo PDF Editor app, it's time to start editing your document. Here's how:

1. Use the tools in the drop-down menu on top left to view, annotate, draw, fill and sign, manipulate forms, insert text and objects, and redact PDF content.

2. Tap on the Lightning Bolt icon to to open More Actions to directly access features such as eSign, text recognition with OCR, convert PDF, merge, extract, delete pages, crop, protect, flatten, compress, protect PDF and more.

3. Tap on the three dots in top right corner to share, print, edit pages in the document, use available export options and change settings.

4. Tap and hold anywhere on the page to access the context menu with options to copy, translate, and edit content with available markup and editing tools.

5. Tap on the Pages icon in the bottom left corner to see all pages in your PDF document, add new pages and edit existing pages.

6. Use the Search option (magnifying glass) to search for words and phrases in your document or look up specific phrases from your document on the web.

7. Tap on the Glasses icon to enter view mode where you can read and annotate content as you go (Pro feature)

8. Tap on the bottom right icon to view and add bookmarks, annotations, and outlines.

9. Use the Undo option to erase the last change done to the document and revert it to previous state.

Now you are equipped with all the essential editing tools to complete your PDF tasks on the go.

Interested in learning more?

Let's dive deeper to more closely examine the Xodo editing tools and features we listed above.

Note that the screenshots are from the Android app, but the experience is identical on iOS.

Markup and Annotate PDF content

Reviewing, commenting, and modifying PDF files can be quickly done from anywhere you are with Xodo.

You can add various markup and annotation options:

• Highlight text
• Add underlines or squiggly lines
• Insert notes
• Strikethrough text

Moreover, you can fully personalize how you highlight and markup content by customizing the colour, opacity, line thickness, etc.

Fill and sign your PDF files on the go 

Yes, you can also use Xodo to fill out interactive forms and sign PDF docs for free (with daily limits).

You have the option to add your signature, fill in text fields and comb fields, add the date, and insert checkmarks - everything you need to complete and submit a PDF form.

Select the field type option from the top toolbar, tap on the page where you need it, and start filling in your details. Simple as that!

Add text, images, links and more 

Enhance your documents by adding some of the most common elements:

• Add Text: Quickly add new text to your PDF document for last-minute changes and updates to your reports while on the move.
• Add Pages: Insert blank pages to your PDF. You can add PDF pages from different sources, allowing you to work with different types of content.
• Insert Stamps: Select from standard document status stamps such as Draft, Approved, Confidential, and more. You can customize your own stamps to convey more specific status messages if necessary.
• Add Signature: Create, insert, and customize your signature by typing, drawing, or uploading an image signature file from your phone.
• Add a Hyperlink: Link your content and make it more interactive with hyperlinks. Add a link to PDF content and direct readers to a website URL or to a page within the PDF, itself.

As an added convenience, you can customize the main toolbar to access the tools you use the most to make quick additions to your PDFs whenever you need to.

Scan and edit any document 

Xodo makes scanning documents on iPhone or Android as easy as taking a picture – and even easier with the auto-shutter feature! 

Once you have the Scan Document tool opened, just hold your phone over the paper document and Xodo will scan it for you. 

Once the image is scanned, you can crop your content, optimize the image quality, perform OCR, and rotate or rearrange the pages as needed.

Merge PDF, crop, rotate, and delete pages

The quickest way to access these editing tools is through the More Actions menu. Under the list, tap on any of the tools to start editing your PDF.

• Merge PDF files: Combine and merge multiple PDF files in seconds. Start by selecting your files or adding them to the listed files with the Add Files button. You can rearrange the order of your PDFs so that all the merged content is in the correct order.
• Crop PDF: You can crop individual pages simply by tapping and dragging the crop box that surrounds the page. You also have the option to apply a specific crop to All Pages or just Odd Pages. Either option makes cropping out wide margins and empty spaces easy, letting you create more concise and focused content.
• Rotate Pages: Easily rotate pages to fix the orientation of your document. You have full flexibility to rotate individual pages either Left or Right and then preview the results to ensure all pages are oriented the correct way.
• Delete Pages: Get rid of unnecessary PDF pages using the Delete Pages tool. Tap and select pages you want to delete - it doesn't get any easier.

Flatten and compress PDF

With Xodo, you can flatten a PDF to combine all the existing layers (graphics, text, annotations, and form fields) into a single unified layer, making the entire file unmodifiable. A perfect hack for quickly securing and sharing your PDFs.

You can also significantly reduce the size of your PDF file without loosing quality with the Compress PDF functionality.

Simply choose the compression level that best suits your needs. By compressing your file, you can more easily share it via email or on the web.

• Low - smaller file size
• High - larger file size

Redact content and add passwords

The Redaction tool (pro feature) gives you flexible options to black out content. You can permanently redact PDFs on iOS and Android, removing blocks of content, selected text, an entire page or page range, and even search & redact specific text in your document.

In addition to redacting content, you can quickly add passwords to your documents in a clutch. Use the Protect PDF to add a secure password and save the protected PDF. You can also remove passwords, if needed.

Convert images to PDF

The Image to PDF tool is your one-stop shop to turn images to PDF on your smartphone.

Select your image and Xodo will instantly set it up for conversion. You can also use the pro option to reduce file size and recognize text (OCR), and to either convert multiple images separately or merge them into one PDF file.

The result? Quick and easy conversion without losing the original quality of the image.

Save and share your edited PDF 

Now that you are done editing your PDF, it's crucial to save your revisions. Xodo can accommodate the way you store files on different cloud platforms.

If you’re using the Android app, your file changes will automatically be saved to your local drive, and you have the option to save an extra copy on Xodo Drive.

In addition, if you’re using Xodo Drive, you can instantly share your PDFs with other colleagues on your team. And, you can also access Xodo Drive and edit your documents on the web from your desktop.

When you edit PDF on iOS, your processed files will be saved to your device or can be stored on your other cloud services.

For now, Xodo Drive is not available on iOS. But both the mobile and online apps integrate support for Google Drive and Dropbox, so you can easily access the PDFs you edited on your iOS device.

Edit your PDFs from anywhere with Xodo

Edit your PDF files and switch between different devices without missing a beat. Xodo seamlessly integrates cross-platform access to the PDFs you’ve been editing.

When you save your files to Xodo Drive, your account is synced online, allowing you to pick up where you left off effortlessly. All you have to do is log in and continue working.

Our Xodo PDF editor app lets you do it all. But don’t take our word for it. With over 4.6-star ratings on iOS and 10+ million downloads by Android users alone, Xodo is a top choice for managing and editing PDFs remotely, on-the-go, and for free.