Annotate & mark up PDF

Annotate PDF

Reviewing a document used to mean printing it, attacking it with a pen, and scanning it back. Paperly keeps the markup digital: highlight the clause, drop the note, send the PDF on its way.

Paperly PDF editor with a drawn signature being placed on a document

What it is

PDF annotation means adding marks on top of a document — highlights, notes, underlines, stamps — without changing the original text. Paperly's markup tools work on any document in the library and are saved with it, locally.

When you reach for it

  • Reviewing a contract and flagging the clauses that need changes
  • Studying from a PDF and highlighting as you read
  • Approving a draft with a stamp or a dated note
  • Returning a form with corrections marked instead of a long email

How Paperly does it

  1. 01

    Open and read

    Any PDF in the library opens in the editor, where annotation tools sit next to the page.

  2. 02

    Highlight and note

    Drag highlights across the passages that matter and pin notes where a reader should stop and look.

  3. 03

    Export with the markup

    Annotations travel with the exported PDF, so the recipient sees exactly the marks you made.

Questions people ask

Yes. Highlights, notes, and stamps are written into the exported PDF, so they appear in standard readers — no Paperly required on the other end.

Yes. Markup and signatures live in the same editor, so a reviewed document can be annotated, signed, compressed, and sent in one pass.

Annotations stay editable inside Paperly until you export. Adjust or delete them in the editor; exported copies keep whatever markup was in place.

Related features

Try pdf annotation where it runs best.

Paperly for iPhone — private, on-device, and free to download.