Stirling PDF
Stirling PDF is an open-source, Java-based PDF processing platform offering 60+ operations across three tiers (free Editor, $0.01/PDF Processor, custom Enterprise), serving individuals, mid-market teams, and regulated enterprises needing air-gapped deployment.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Stirling PDF does
Stirling PDF is an open-source PDF processing platform built on a Java-based PDF processing core that can be deployed on any infrastructure, including air-gapped environments. The platform exposes 60+ PDF operations — including OCR, redaction, conversion, extraction, and signing — across desktop applications (Windows, Mac, Linux), Docker containers, Kubernetes Helm charts, and self-hosted deployments ranging from bare metal to private cloud VPCs. It is positioned primarily for organizations that require full data sovereignty over document processing, with strong traction in regulated verticals such as Military & Defense, Government, Healthcare, Financial Services, Legal Services, Insurance, and Energy.
The company operates a three-tier commercial model. The Editor tier is free with unlimited seats and serves as the bottom-of-funnel acquisition surface; the Processor tier is priced at $0.01 per PDF and targets mid-market organizations processing between 10,000 and 1,000,000 documents annually; the Enterprise tier uses custom pricing for organizations processing over 1 million documents, with volume discounts up to 25% on annual commitments and full API, webhook, and Scalar API registry access. Distribution is product-led via GitHub, where the project has accumulated over 30 million downloads, supplemented by an emerging sales-assisted motion with a 15-minute demo booking flow for enterprise prospects.
Stirling PDF reports 55,000 companies deploying the software (per Scarf Analytics in 2026) and claims 75% of Fortune 500 organizations use it; VMware is the only specifically named customer logo. The company was founded in 2024, is headquartered in San Francisco, and operates with approximately 5 employees under CEO Matt Joseph. No funding rounds have been disclosed, suggesting a capital-light operating posture at present. AI integrations and guardrails are offered as a feature on paid tiers, and an "Ask AI" documentation assistant is available, though AI capabilities are not disclosed as core proprietary IP.
Stirling PDF firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Stirling PDF
- Legal name
- Stirling PDF, Inc.
- Website
- https://stirlingpdf.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Stirling PDF is an open-source, Java-based PDF processing platform offering 60+ operations across three tiers (free Editor, $0.01/PDF Processor, custom Enterprise), serving individuals, mid-market teams, and regulated enterprises needing air-gapped deployment.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Stirling PDF is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Stirling PDF business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Editor (Free Tier): Free forever tier providing unlimited seats, 60+ PDF editing tools, SSO, and private open-source deployment. No credit card required. Revenue driver for user acquisition and brand expansion, with trial of Processor included.
- Processor (Usage-Based): Pay-as-you-go model starting at $0.01 per document processed. Includes everything in Editor plus org-wide policy enforcement, automated workflow rules, full API & webhook access, AI integrations & guardrails. Usage-based spend limits. 500 free PDFs at signup. Revenue scales with customer usage volume.
- Enterprise (Custom Pricing): Custom pricing for high-volume processing (millions of PDFs) in regulated environments. Includes volume-discounted processing, air-gapped & on-premise deployment, advanced compliance controls, custom SLAs, and forward-deployed engineering support.
- Volume Discounts: Annual volume commitment pricing with up to 25% savings. Rates scale down as usage scales up, enabling long-term customer lock-in through volume commitments.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free PDF editor for teams |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Automated PDF processing at scale |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise-grade PDF processing for regulated environments |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Stirling PDF product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Stirling PDF is an open-source PDF processing platform that provides 60+ PDF editing, conversion, OCR, redaction, and extraction operations. It offers three deployment tiers: a free Editor for individuals and teams, a usage-based Processor ($0.01/document) with API and workflow automation, and a custom-priced Enterprise tier with air-gapped deployment for regulated environments. The Java-based core runs entirely offline and can be deployed via Docker, Kubernetes, bare metal, or as desktop applications.
Product overview
Stirling PDF is an open-source PDF processing platform offered in three deployment tiers: Editor (free), Processor (usage-based at $0.01/document), and Enterprise (custom pricing). The Editor provides 60+ free PDF editing tools with SSO and unlimited seats for teams. The Processor adds automated workflow pipelines, policy enforcement, full API/webhook access, and AI integrations for processing thousands of PDFs automatically. Enterprise extends this with air-gapped deployment, volume discounts, and forward-deployed engineering. The platform is available as desktop applications for Windows, Mac, and Linux, as Docker containers, and as Kubernetes deployments via Helm. The open-source core is publicly available on GitHub with over 30 million downloads.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Stirling PDF Editor A free PDF editor providing 60+ PDF editing tools including reading, editing, viewing, converting, signing, and processing capabilities. Available for individuals and teams with unlimited seats and single sign-on support, with no credit card required.
- Stirling PDF Processor Usage-based PDF processing tier starting at $0.01 per document, enabling pipeline automation, org-wide policy enforcement, automated workflow rules, full API and webhook access, usage-based spend limits, and AI integrations with guardrails.
- Stirling PDF Enterprise High-volume enterprise tier with volume-discounted processing, air-gapped and on-premise deployment options, advanced compliance controls, custom SLAs and support, and forward-deployed engineering.
- Stirling PDF Desktop (Windows) Standalone Windows desktop application delivered as an .exe installer for local PDF editing and processing.
- Stirling PDF Desktop (Mac) Native macOS desktop application delivered as a .dmg installer for local PDF editing and processing.
- Stirling PDF Desktop (Linux) Linux desktop application delivered as a Java .jar file for manual installation and local PDF editing and processing.
- Stirling PDF Docker Containerized deployment using the official Docker image for running Stirling PDF in Docker environments.
- Stirling PDF Kubernetes Kubernetes deployment via Helm charts for orchestrating Stirling PDF across cluster environments.
Quantifiable outcome
- 30M+ downloads
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Stirling PDF
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Stirling PDF technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
AI capability4 records
Feature5 records
Stirling PDF partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- GitHubcoreGitHub serves as the primary distribution channel for Stirling PDF's open-source repository, enabling community access to source code, releases, and contribution tools. The platform has achieved 30M+ downloads from GitHub, establishing Stirling as GitHub's #1 PDF Application.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Stirling PDF competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Soda PDF: Soda PDF offers modular PDF editing and processing tools with online, desktop, and mobile deployment. It competes with Stirling PDF's Editor tier for individual and small-team use cases.
- Apryse (formerly PDFTron): Apryse offers enterprise PDF SDKs and document processing platforms with on-premise and cloud deployment. It directly competes with Stirling PDF in the high-volume, regulated-industry PDF processing market, particularly for embedded and server-side document workflows.
- Nitro Software: Nitro provides PDF editing, e-signature, and document analytics for enterprise customers. It competes with Stirling PDF in the enterprise PDF editor and document automation market, particularly for legal, financial, and HR document workflows.
- Smallpdf: Smallpdf is a freemium SaaS PDF editor and converter serving individuals and teams with similar 60+ PDF operations. It directly competes with Stirling PDF's free and paid tiers for browser-based document workflows.
- PSPDFKit (now Nutrient): Nutrient (formerly PSPDFKit) provides enterprise-grade document SDKs for PDF processing, editing, and signing. It competes with Stirling PDF's Enterprise tier and API offering for developers embedding document workflows into applications.
- iLovePDF: iLovePDF is a freemium web-based PDF editor and processor with similar tiered monetization (free + premium). It competes directly with Stirling PDF's Editor and Processor tiers for individual and small-team PDF editing use cases.
- Foxit Software: Foxit provides PDF editor and enterprise document management solutions directly competing with Stirling PDF. It serves similar regulated-industry enterprise customers with PhantomPDF and Foxit PDF SDK offerings.
Broad incumbents
- DocuSign: DocuSign is the dominant e-signature and agreement workflow platform with adjacent PDF editing capabilities in its broader product suite. It competes with Stirling PDF's signing and contract review capabilities for enterprise legal and sales workflows.
- Adobe: Adobe is the dominant incumbent in PDF software with Acrobat and Adobe Document Services. It serves the same enterprise and individual PDF editing/processing market as Stirling PDF but as part of a much broader Creative Cloud and Document Cloud portfolio.
Emerging players
- Docparser: Docparser provides document parsing and data extraction from PDFs, focusing on automated workflows and API-based extraction. It overlaps with Stirling PDF's Processor tier for organizations needing automated PDF data extraction.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Stirling PDF social profiles
Digital presenceStirling PDF financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Stirling PDF leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Stirling PDF funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Stirling PDF M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Stirling PDF
What does Stirling PDF do?
Stirling PDF is an open-source PDF processing platform that provides 60+ PDF editing, conversion, OCR, redaction, and extraction operations. It offers three deployment tiers: a free Editor for individuals and teams, a usage-based Processor ($0.01/document) with API and workflow automation, and a custom-priced Enterprise tier with air-gapped deployment for regulated environments. The Java-based core runs entirely offline and can be deployed via Docker, Kubernetes, bare metal, or as desktop applications.
Is Stirling PDF a public or private company?
Stirling PDF is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Stirling PDF founded?
Stirling PDF was founded in -1. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Stirling PDF based?
Stirling PDF is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Stirling PDF make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Editor (Free Tier) is the primary driver. The others are processor (Usage-Based), enterprise (Custom Pricing) and volume Discounts.
Who are Stirling PDF's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Soda PDF, Apryse (formerly PDFTron), Nitro Software, Smallpdf, PSPDFKit (now Nutrient), iLovePDF and Foxit Software. Broad incumbents are DocuSign and Adobe. Docparser is listed as an emerging player.
Does Stirling PDF have an API?
Yes. Full API and webhook access is available on the Processor and Enterprise tiers. Stirling PDF provides an API for PDF processing operations. Documentation is available at the Scalar API registry. Developer documentation is at registry.scalar.com/@stirlingpdf/apis/stirling-pdf-processing-api.