5 Best PDF Eraser for Mac: Top Tools to Remove Data

Finding the right PDF eraser for Mac devices is essential for users who need to edit documents. Adopting a reliable solution to correct mistakes or remove sensitive information from a file makes sure that you maintain the document's integrity. However, not all PDF editors provide comprehensive erasing capabilities, which makes it crucial to choose a tool that offers precise corrections.

This article explores the top PDF erasers for Mac devices, highlighting their key features and effectiveness. We will review 5 leading options for this purpose: UPDF, Adobe Acrobat, PDF Expert, PDFgear, and Preview. These tools will help you find the best solution for editing and managing PDFs on macOS.

Part 1. Top 5 PDF Erasers for Mac

To begin with, let us take a look at the top 5 PDF erasers that are present for Mac users. This section will discuss each tool to give you a better idea of which one best matches your requirements.

1. UPDF

UPDF is a multipurpose and affordable tool that offers various ways to remove unwanted content while preserving the PDF's original format. This tool provides a seamless experience to delete text, images, entire pages, or watermarks from PDFs. This Mac PDF eraser has an intuitive interface that allows users to erase elements with precision to maintain a clean and professional final result.

Unlike some PDF editors, UPDF maintains the structures after deleting text/images/others from a PDF, making its mark as a reliable tool for personal and professional use. Moreover, it is a comprehensive cross-platform PDF editor that supports editing, annotating, converting, and AI chatting with PDFs. While this tool makes itself available for free, you can also use its affordable pricing plans to manage your PDFs.

So, download UPDF today to experience a smarter and more efficient way to erase something from your PDF on Mac devices. For detailed steps of how to erase content from a PDF using UPDF, read Part 2.

Pricing Plans

• UPDF Pro: $39.99/year
• UPDF Pro: $69.99 (Lifetime)

User Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (G2)

User Reviews

1. Gloria De Zen: "I bought a perpetual license month ago and couldn't be happier! I use to convert scanned PDFs into editable ones, to correct my students' homework and in general to sort my PDFs (split/unit functions)."
2. Audrey J Williams: "I decided to give it a go. And I'm glad I did...it just keeps getting better and better with great annotation and markup tools, which is what I need for my work. The addition of redaction just added even more value. It's a great product, and I'm glad I have it in my toolbelt!"

You can also watch the following video to learn more about UPDF's features and see how it can help you manage PDFs on your Mac.

2. Adobe Acrobat

This PDF editor sets its position as a comprehensive PDF eraser for Mac, offering precise tools to delete text, images, pages, and other elements. The advanced editing features allow users to remove unwanted content with accuracy while maintaining the document's structure. You can find enhanced capabilities in Adobe, making it a great choice among businesses and individuals.

While excelling in its functionality, you can find a high-subscription cost across it which is not suitable for all users. Furthermore, the complex interface can become overwhelming for beginners who need a smooth learning curve to understand PDF tools. Despite these drawbacks, Adobe Acrobat remains a leading option in the industry for those who need a comprehensive PDF eraser.

Also Read: UPDF vs. Adobe Acrobat >>

Pricing Plans

• Acrobat Standard: $12.99/month or $155.88/year
• Acrobat Pro: $19.99/month or $239.88/year

User Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (Gartner)

User Reviews

1. Sanjay K.: "This is the best PDF reader software. This is the best software to edit, delete, and modify any PDF files. Here, many PDF files can be merged together." 
2. Ramon M.: "I dislike that you cannot change parts of a PDF document with Adobe Acrobat Reader. You can rotate the pages, but you cannot rearrange the pages in a PDF document, or add extra pages or delete pages."

3. PDF Expert

PDF Expert is a Mac PDF eraser that allows users to ensure smooth modifications without compromising the document's structure. With the help of selection tools, you can quickly remove unwanted content with the delete key on your keypad while you maintain the format of the file. Additionally, it integrates seamlessly with Apple's ecosystem for a more intuitive experience. However, as PDF Expert provides extensive features, its free features are limited and require a subscription.

It also lacks batch processing functionality, which can slow down the processing speed of users. Despite its high cost, PDF Expert is recommended for those who need a fast, reliable, and Apple-optimized PDF erasing solution.

Also Read: UPDF vs. PDF Expert >>

Pricing Plans

• Yearly: $6.67/month
• Lifetime: $139.99 (Lifetime)

User Ratings: 4.5 out of 5 (TechRadar)

User Reviews

1. Cluadia L.: "I can edit any type of PDF document: the text, images, and add/remove signatures."
2. Pack Your Pets A.: "On some documents, the formatting of the document can take some extra time to make the edited text fit appropriately."  

4. PDFgear

Its efficient editing tools allow for smooth and precise modifications, ensuring that changes do not disrupt the document's original layout. As a PDF eraser for Mac, it gives you the ability to delete text, images, pages, and other elements by simply hitting the delete key.

PDFgear offers powerful editing capabilities for free, making it an attractive option for users on a budget. However, its integrated AI technology is not as advanced as most PDF editors like UPDF is. This lack of AI capabilities restricts users from understating their content in-depth.

Pricing Plans

• Free

User Ratings: 4.0 out of 5 (TechRadar)

User Reviews

1. Andrew Y.: "It's super reliable and easy to use. Whether I need to edit, convert, or merge pdf files. it works without any hassle. The quality is great, even when I'm working with large files." 
2. Jonayed M.: "Lacks the option for page orientation or viewport height width change." 

5. Preview

Preview is a default macOS application that offers basic viewing capabilities to users; however, it does not offer direct features as in other PDF erasers. The simple interface makes it easy to make quick edits without additional software. It supports essential page management features and does not support OCR technology, making it difficult to edit scanned PDFs.

As the PDF eraser for Mac, this tool does not erase the elements, and you have to either redact it or draw a triangle and hide it. Moreover, users are also restricted from deleting multiple pages in one go, which slows their overall speed.

Pricing Plans

• Free

User Ratings: 4.0 out of 5 (Macworld)

User Reviews

1. Emily R.: "Preview is a simple and convenient tool for quick PDF edits. I love that it's built into macOS, so there's no need to install extra software."
2. Mark Timothy: "While Preview is useful for basic edits, it lacks advanced features like text deletion and bulk processing. It's frustrating when I need more precise control over my PDFs,"

Part 2. How to Erase a PDF on a Mac with UPDF?

Get UPDF today and effortlessly erase text, images, pages, and more from your PDFs. Follow the guide below to remove unwanted elements with precision and make UPDF the go-to PDF eraser for Mac.

1. How to Delete an Image With UPDF

Step 1. To initiate the process, download UPDF's latest version and launch it on your Mac. At the main interface, select the "Open File" tab to import the PDF and begin working on it.

Step 2. Navigate to the "Edit" mode from the "Tools" and pick the "Image" option.

Step 3. Click on the picture you want to remove and hit the "Backspace" key or click "Delete" to remove it.

2. How to Remove Highlight in PDF With UPDF

To highlight an important text on a PDF is essential but sometimes, you may need to remove it. Depending on how the highlight was added, there are different methods to erase it from a PDF, which are discussed as follows:

Method 1. Highlights Added Using a PDF Tool

If a highlight was applied using a PDF editing tool, it can usually be removed just as easily as it was added.

Instructions. Upon adding your PDF file to UPDF, locate the highlighted text you want to remove. Click on the highlight and hit the "Clear" icon at the floating menu bar to remove the highlight.

Method 2. Delete Highlights from Comments List

Manually searching for highlighted sections in a document is time-consuming, especially for multi-page files where locating highlights becomes even more challenging. However, UPDF simplifies this process by automatically recording all highlighted areas in the comment list. Simply open the comment list to view and delete them—no need to hunt through the document for highlights.

Instructions. At the editing interface of this Mac PDF Eraser, select the "Comments" icon at the left corner. From the sidebar, choose the highlighted statement and click on the "Three-Dots" on it to select the "Delete" option instead of finding across every annotation.

Method 3. Highlights Added Before PDF Was Created

When highlights are part of the original scanned document, removing them needs a different approach. You have to use a PDF tool with OCR capabilities which first converts it to editable text for easy removal.

Step 1. Once the PDF document is imported, Click the ​​"OCR"​​ icon in the ​Tools​ menu at the top left.

Step 2. Customize the settings: select Editable PDF and choose the document language. Then, hit the "Convert" option. This will open up an OCR version of your scanned PDF in a new tab where you can carry out the next few steps on.

Step 3. In the newly opened document page, you'll see that all text from the scanned document has been converted into editable format. To confirm whether the text and highlight layers have been properly separated, go to the "Tools" toolbar at the top-left corner and enter "Edit" mode. Try selecting and dragging some text - you'll find that the text moves independently from the highlight layer, indicating successful separation. Then, you can press Command+Z to undo the text movement and return it to its original position before proceeding with further edits.

Step 4. Now, the highlight layer has merged with the original scanned paper color to form the image background. You can click on any area outside the text boxes to select this layer, then tap the "Delete" button in the floating toolbar to remove it.

Step 5. The highlights in the scanned text have now been completely removed, leaving you with a clean, editable document. You can continue using UPDF for further editing.

3. How to Remove PDF Metadata (Sanitize Document)?

PDF metadata includes details like the document's author and editing history, which might not always be necessary or desirable to keep. As you remove the metadata, it can enhance privacy and security to ensure that sensitive information is not shared unintentionally.

Step 1. At the main interface, click on the "Redact" tab from the "Tools" and pick the "Sanitize Document" option from the drop-down menu.

Step 2. A pop-up box will appear, notifying you that sanitizing the document will remove various elements including (but not limited to) metadata, embedded content, and attached files. Press "OK" to begin the sanitization process, then select a location to save your sanitized document.

4. How to Delete Pages from PDF?

Method 1. Through Organize Page

Many PDF tools provide an "Organize Pages" feature, allowing users to visually arrange and remove pages. The steps below are for managing large PDFs where multiple pages need to be deleted at once.

Instructions. At the editing interface of UPDF, locate the "Organize Pages" section from the left sidebar. Here, choose the page you want to remove and hit the "Delete" icon at the top to delete the page.

Method 2. Through Thumbnails

For quick removal of individual pages, using the Thumbnails panel is a convenient option. Follow the steps below to remove pages through the Thumbnails panel with the help of the best PDF eraser for Mac tools, UPDF:

Instructions. From the left sidebar, pick the "Thumbnails" icon to open up a sidebar of all the PDF pages. Now, you can right-click on each page and pick the "Delete" option from the pop-up menu.

Part 3. Comparison Table on Top 5 PDF Erasers on Mac

To sum up this discussion, here is a table to give you a proper outlook on the top PDF eraser for Mac users. This table will help you decide which tool is the best fit according to your requirements:

Metrics	UPDF	Adobe Acrobat	PDF Expert	PDFgear	Preview
Ease of Use	High	Low	Moderate	Moderate	High
Erasing Capabilities
OCR Support
Remove Original Text from PDFs
Remove Images from PDFs
Remove Links from PDFs
Delete Pages
Remove Watermarks
Remove Background from PDFs
Performance and Speed	Fast	Moderate	Slow	Moderate	Moderate
Mac Compatibility	macOS 10.14.6 or later	macOS 10.13 or later	macOS 10.12 or later	macOS 10.14 or later	Available on all Mac devices
Cloud Integration
Remove Highlights
Remove Signatures
Remove Comments

Conclusion

In conclusion, this article has discussed each of the 5 top PDF erasers for Mac tools in-depth to help you analyze which tool best matches your requirements. Adobe Acrobat provides advanced editing but comes at a high cost. PDF Expert delivers excellent performance with deep Apple integration. Plus, Preview is a free built-in tool for basic edits, while PDFgear offers a versatile, no-cost solution.

Going through these tools, we came to the conclusion that for the best balance of affordability, precision, and ease of use, the best option is UPDF. So, download UPDF today to enjoy its powerful and comprehensive PDF-erasing features.