PDFluent vs Apryse

Apryse is a mature, full-featured SDK. It requires a C++ or C# runtime, ships DLL dependencies, and keeps its price behind a sales call.

Apryse (formerly PDFTron) is a long-established commercial PDF SDK. It has broad feature coverage but ships a native C++ core that must be distributed as DLLs or shared libraries. Its price requires contacting sales. PDFluent is a pure Rust library: no DLL, no C++ runtime, a single static binary, and a price you can read and buy on the page.

Side-by-side

PDFluent
Rust
use pdfluent::PdfDocument;

fn main() -> pdfluent::Result<()> {
    let mut doc = PdfDocument::open("invoice.pdf")?;

    // Extract text from page 1
    let text = doc.page(1)?.text()?;
    println!("{}", text);

    // Fill a form field
    doc.form_mut().set_text("invoice_number", "INV-2024-001")?;

    doc.save("invoice_filled.pdf")?;
    Ok(())
}
Apryse (PDFTron)
C#
using Apryse;

class Program {
    static void Main(string[] args) {
        // Requires PDFNetC DLL in PATH or next to the executable
        PDFNet.Initialize("YOUR_LICENSE_KEY");

        using var doc = new PDFDoc("invoice.pdf");
        doc.InitSecurityHandler();

        // Extract text from page 1
        var page = doc.GetPage(1);
        var txt = new TextExtractor();
        txt.Begin(page);
        Console.WriteLine(txt.GetAsText());

        // Fill a form field
        var field = doc.GetField("invoice_number");
        field.SetValue("INV-2024-001");

        doc.Save("invoice_filled.pdf", SDFDoc.SaveOptions.e_linearized);
        PDFNet.Terminate();
    }
}

Feature comparison

FeaturePDFluentApryse (PDFTron)
Language / runtimeRust, no runtimeC++ core, C#/.NET/Java wrappers
DLL / shared library required
WASM / browser SDKPartial (JS viewer product, separate from SDK)
PDF/A validation
XFA forms
Serverless without native DLL
Price published, bought with a card
Published pricing

Pros and cons

PDFluent

  • No DLL to deploy — ships as a Rust crate
  • Published price, bought with a card — no sales call
  • Runs in WASM for browser-side processing
  • Transparent published pricing
  • Zero native dependencies for serverless / Lambda
  • Younger codebase — less production history than Apryse
  • No viewer product — PDFluent is an SDK only
  • Fewer language bindings currently (Rust, Python, Node)

Apryse (PDFTron)

  • Mature SDK with many years of production use
  • Wide language support (C#, Java, Python, Go, others)
  • JavaScript viewer product (WebViewer) for browser display
  • Dedicated enterprise support team
  • Requires native DLL deployed with your application
  • Trial requires contacting their sales team
  • Pricing not published — requires a custom quote
  • Difficult to run in pure serverless environments without bundling native libraries
  • Ships native libraries that must be deployed alongside your application

When to use each

Choose PDFluent

PDFluent fits if you are writing a Rust service, deploying to Lambda or Cloudflare Workers, building a WASM-based browser application, or evaluating quickly without a sales process. The no-dependency nature makes it straightforward to containerize and deploy anywhere.

Choose Apryse (PDFTron)

Apryse is a reasonable choice if you already have a large .NET or Java codebase and need a single vendor for both server-side processing and a browser PDF viewer. Their WebViewer is a mature product that PDFluent does not have an equivalent for.

Bottom line

Apryse covers a wide surface area and has years of production use. If you are already in a C# or C++ shop and need a one-stop SDK with enterprise support, it is a reasonable choice. If you are on Rust, need WASM, deploy to serverless, or want to evaluate without a sales call, PDFluent fits better.

Frequently asked questions

Does Apryse work in the browser?
Apryse sells WebViewer for the browser; check Apryse's WebViewer documentation for what it runs client-side. PDFluent runs in the browser through its WASM package: @pdfluent/sdk-wasm 1.0.0 is 3.8 MB with Brotli (measured 2026-09-16).
What DLLs does Apryse require?
Apryse ships PDFNetC.dll (Windows) or libPDFNetC.so (Linux) which must be deployed alongside your application. That library has to go into your Docker image, built for the right platform.
Can I try PDFluent without contacting sales?
Yes. Add the crate to Cargo.toml and start. Under the AGPL every feature works, with no watermark and no time limit, so there is nothing to request and no form to fill in. A paid licence is only about not publishing your own source.
How does pricing compare?
Apryse pricing is not published and requires contacting their sales team. PDFluent publishes its price: €999 a year for one organisation, or €2,499 and €9,999 a year per product for OEM use, bought with a card on the pricing page.
SDK · Install

Try it on your own files.

Free under the AGPLv3, or a commercial licence if you would rather not publish your own source.