Adobe Acrobat vs. Dropbox

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Adobe Acrobat
Score 8.8 out of 10
N/A
Adobe Acrobat DC is the current version of the well-established document / PDF management solution, part of the Adobe Document Cloud (the other part being Adobe's eSign services based on technology acquired with EchoSign in 2011).
$29.99
per month per seat
Dropbox
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Dropbox is a cloud storage solution, equipped with features that help users to save time, improve productivity, and collaborate with others. Users can edit PDFs, share videos, sign documents, and collaborate with stakeholders without leaving Dropbox.
$9.99
per month
Pricing
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
Editions & Modules
Acrobat Pro for Individuals
$19.99
per month
Acrobat Pro for Teams
$23.99
per month per user
Acrobat Studio for Individuals
$24.99
per month
Plus
$9.99
per month
Essentials
$18
per month
Business
$20
per month per user
Business Plus
$26
per month per user
Basic
Free
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
Considered Both Products
Adobe Acrobat
Chose Adobe Acrobat
We have also used Dropbox, but the features are very different and the capabilities for edits are different. With Dropbox, there is still some wait time and I have to switch to a separate program to make edits to documents. Which makes its ease of use no comparison to Adobe …
Chose Adobe Acrobat
This isn't really a good comparison, but Adobe Acrobat is more of a program that works among all of these, and I'll keep using it as long as it's a part of Adobe CC. Otherwise, I see DocuSign as suitable for secure/private documents, and Dropbox file previews allows a pretty …
Chose Adobe Acrobat
We settle on Adobe Acrobat because it is the defacto application when utilizing .pdf files.
Chose Adobe Acrobat
It's secure and easy to use for the user.
Chose Adobe Acrobat
This is a feature I personally have had to use a lot as we have to contact inventors for their signatures on a lot of documents. The ability for them to sign digitally is extremely helpful. A manual signature is harder to get and contacting these individuals can be hit or miss …
Chose Adobe Acrobat
I can't recall any specific software, but prior to having Adobe Acrobat DC, I experienced frustrations trying to work with PDF documents, spending a lot of time searching online for alternative software I could use without an Acrobat DC license.
Chose Adobe Acrobat
I did not evaluate any other pdf management programs other than Adobe Acrobat DC. I was familiar with other Adobe pdf products and never thought to explore any others. I have been very pleased with Adobe Acrobat DC and have not seen the need to look at other pdf management …
Chose Adobe Acrobat
Adobe works for so many other clients who may or may not have Windows or MACs, etc. When I send a Word document I never know who can open it and who can't. That's not the case for Adobe.
Chose Adobe Acrobat
I have tried using some online versions of .pdf readers and document extractors, but having the full desktop software is far less clunky and infinitely more secure.
Chose Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat uses the standard of the best PDF solution we know. It provides the necessary tools to create, edit and sign PDF files anywhere. Get the necessary tools to speed up the installation and manage the updates. You can be sure that the PDF files of the company will be …
Dropbox
Chose Dropbox
Because it has more valuable support and increase free and i use only one paid cloud storage subscription.

The reason I only use one is becuase to keep track my cost. I may use another paid but it absolutely depends. I do not want to get over comprimised and too much of the …
Chose Dropbox
It is frustrating to have to use a separate program
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox is more expensive; but is easier to use and more intuitive for our staff
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox offers fast, reliable syncing across devices, whereas Google Drive is reliable but not as fast with large files. Dropbox offers 2GB free storage whereas Google Drive offers 15GB free storage.

Dropbox allows the sharing of all types of documents whereas OneDrive only …
Chose Dropbox
At the time, a few suppliers used Dropbox, which made it easy to collaborate and share files. The costs were also comparable. I wasn't a fan of OneDrive, and Google was expensive, including Google Docs, which I didn't need. Dropbox is simple and gives me what I want - storage.
Chose Dropbox
I think it is user-friendly, inexpensive, and easy to use compared to most of the others. I like that files don't expire and that it is so established.
Chose Dropbox
Different uses but I look for tools that help myself and my clients with ease and with communication and document storage. Being able to set privileges helps a lot and view before opening saves my download folder from becoming too large
Chose Dropbox
Ease of use is the main reason. The other competition requires a masters in computer science to use and understand.
Chose Dropbox
I like the convenience of having access to my Dropbox on or offline straight from my desktop.
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox has proven to be a superior system to Apple iCloud, Google Drive and OneDrive. It is far more use friendly and interfaces better with whatever system I need it to, regardless of whether it is Apple, Microsoft, or a company's internal system in every instance I have come …
Chose Dropbox
Superior. It has the best of each of these options.
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox has more capacity and the price is awesome.
Chose Dropbox
Google Drive is not as user-friendly as Dropbox in terms of the shareability of media and its speed and ability to give you certain file details. I also tried to include box.com in the list above, but it didn't find it. Box used to be better than Drobox by a lot, but I think …
Chose Dropbox
Google Drive is an excellent free product, but Dropbox is the best choice when you want to up your game and professionalism. It also offers functionality and integrations that Google Drive does not.
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox fares well against the other solutions in the market. We use various platforms across our organization, but Dropbox has been the most widely used. I think the track record and longevity have allowed us not to shop around for other solutions.

Dropbox works well in the …
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox has better features overall than these alternatives.
Chose Dropbox
speed, NO problem of synchronization (versioning conflict happening often with MS OneDrive), flexibility
Chose Dropbox
quite many more features and usability and much more space
Chose Dropbox
Prefer Dropbox to 365. I use 365 at work and it does not have as many features that operate with the ease of Dropbox. I don’t feel as protected by 365 as I do by Dropbox.
Chose Dropbox
This is the first time I use a product like this.
Features
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
File Sharing & Management
Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of Product A and Product B
Adobe Acrobat
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.4
1350 Ratings
1% above category average
Versioning00 Ratings8.51123 Ratings
Video files00 Ratings8.11102 Ratings
Audio files00 Ratings8.6998 Ratings
Document collaboration00 Ratings8.41171 Ratings
Access control00 Ratings8.91248 Ratings
File search00 Ratings7.91293 Ratings
Device sync00 Ratings8.11242 Ratings
Cloud Storage Security & Administration
Comparison of Cloud Storage Security & Administration features of Product A and Product B
Adobe Acrobat
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.8
1279 Ratings
2% above category average
User and role management00 Ratings8.81140 Ratings
File organization00 Ratings8.81260 Ratings
Device management00 Ratings8.91121 Ratings
Cloud Storage Platform
Comparison of Cloud Storage Platform features of Product A and Product B
Adobe Acrobat
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.8
1269 Ratings
2% above category average
Performance00 Ratings8.51258 Ratings
Reliability00 Ratings9.11265 Ratings
Storage Reports00 Ratings8.7965 Ratings
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Adobe AcrobatDropbox
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User Ratings
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
Likelihood to Recommend
8.8
(811 ratings)
8.6
(1348 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.1
(45 ratings)
8.2
(41 ratings)
Usability
9.2
(254 ratings)
8.1
(496 ratings)
Availability
9.1
(3 ratings)
6.8
(3 ratings)
Performance
5.6
(10 ratings)
6.0
(8 ratings)
Support Rating
9.3
(63 ratings)
6.6
(38 ratings)
Online Training
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.2
(2 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.8
(15 ratings)
7.5
(4 ratings)
Configurability
7.9
(4 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
4.5
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
8.0
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
7.0
(4 ratings)
6.6
(4 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
1.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
1.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Adobe AcrobatDropbox
Likelihood to Recommend
Adobe
If your work involves a lot of received PDFs, be it contracts, scanned docs, or multi-part files that need reorganizing before they go anywhere useful, Acrobat fits there well. It's basically what we use it for, and it does that job reliably enough. Where it gets less appropriate is anything collaborative or when you are on a tight budget: paying this much for a tool that slows down on heavy files and doesn't do real-time editing is hard to justify unless you genuinely need the OCR and format editing on the side. For a lighter use case, there are cheaper options that cover most of what people actually need.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox is well suited for sending File Requests to clients to upload documents, and for me to send File Transfers to clients with documents for them to download. I can create separate files for each client, and also create files within files, which is very convenient and useful for my business purposes. In Dropbox I can also see all of the File Requests that I have sent and it shows me how many times they've accessed it and how many files they uploaded. I can also see all of the File Transfers that I have made and whether how many times the client has accessed it and how many documents were downloaded. It also sends me notifications if the clients haven't downloaded their files yet so I can remind them. Dropbox Sign has been very easy to use, and I have already stated what could be changed with it
Read full review
Pros
Adobe
  • ISO standard PDF creation is critical for print production, so that there are no surprises on press.
  • Adobe Acrobat's security features are simple to use, and effective.
  • Most clients have no difficulty with the commenting features in Adobe Acrobat, which makes review quick and simple.
Read full review
Dropbox
  • I can share projects I need feedback on.
  • I can make projects available to editors so that they can do their work.
  • Dropbox is a place where I can store files that I can access from anywhere, even if I don't have my laptop with me at the time.
  • I have an old friend who is an acting professor in Tokyo. He loves the dialogue that I write in my novels. He converts chapters into scenework for his acting students. They get very excited when there's new material!
Read full review
Cons
Adobe
  • For as amazing as Adobe Acrobat is, a lot of the time it does feel like one of the more clunky and slow Adobe programs.
  • Ability to edit text! Adobe Acrobat sometimes struggles with fonts and editing the text ends up messing with the text in weird ways.
  • It would be cool to have multiple versions of the same preflight single fixups! I use the same single fixup but need to adjust it for multiple sizes! I'd like to be able to save another version of it with the different sizes.
Read full review
Dropbox
  • Admid Control Can feels little basic it can be improve by easy access quick tabs for important button.
  • Smart sync behaviour can be little confusing it can be improve by displaying more futuristic way
  • Pricing and storage facility can be improve for really more demanding for a tool can be imporve.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Adobe
Adobe Acrobat works seamlessly with the other Adobe products we use that are industry-standard. We will certainly continue to use Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator, meaning it will always be convenient to work seamlessly with Adobe Acrobat for our organization. We are happy with the performance of Acrobat and it's meets our expectations.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox is a user-friendly, easy tool which requires little to no skill and they offer a free version with a good amount of storage available. There are other file sharing tools available however at a cost. Dropbox free version I have used for years and it serves every purpose I need.
Read full review
Usability
Adobe
It’s a very easy app to learn and software is essential. I feel like the app could load a bit faster but overall, is one of my go to apps. Makes reading and editing pdfs easy and I enjoy the usability of the app. It is definitely something I make sure to have downloaded on any computer I’m working from
Read full review
Dropbox
It works extremely well, and we have never had any issues with connecting or sharing files. It's very easy to use, and any team member can share, add, and delete files to a virtual drive. This is extremely helpful, and it's an amazing tool to use, ensuring everyone can connect and work together effectively.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Adobe
We have not had availability issues with Adobe Acrobat, or at least none that I am personally aware of. Some may encounter crashes of the software during outages of electricity in their city or neighborhood, which no one can plan for, but with generators in our organization, we have been lucky not to have outages
Read full review
Dropbox
I really recommend the product for the Dropbox availability is a great having very very less downtimes, they errors are less I have been faced yet, due to connectivity sometimes we are getting errors. Only sometimes the limitations of some features show some errors.
Read full review
Performance
Adobe
One of the best features of Adobe Acrobat is its speed and stability. When dealing with massive multi-page files, having to reload a crashed program over and over again would slow down progress unnecessarily. And expanding on that, having the table of contents generated allows me to skip to different pages with ease, a necessary feature with exceptionally long files. word searches are even more helpful with text recognition.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox is really useful, you can access any file from anywhere and you can upload and even edit files online, but, sometimes it can be slow. Downloading, uploading, and syncing is a bit slow, it can take several minutes. Furthermore, the search engine for large amounts of data can be slow too and it is not powerful.
Read full review
Support Rating
Adobe
For a while, Acrobat DC crashed pretty frequently. I contacted Adobe Acrobat support about the problem. At first support was unable to provide a solution. After about a month Adobe's software engineers provided a fix. I just wish it had taken less than a month to solve the problem.
Read full review
Dropbox
They immediately responded like in an example that I gave where one of our staff members accidentally deleted the whole Special Hope Network Dropbox, we immediately contacted Dropbox they walked us through the steps of how to retrieve the information and luckily enough we were able to retrieve the entire Dropbox and we have had back and forth with Dropbox on what to do when an employee leaves how to remove them how to add another employee.
Read full review
In-Person Training
Adobe
No answers on this topic
Dropbox
The person for corporate product dealing and knowledge of the product explore and better and secure use are properly handover to us. Also provide full software and tool training from the basic to the pro level with each and every possible explanation. Provide many sessions regarding every doubt. Also Guide better suitable options for our business to migrate and integrate for the expansion in all places employee smoothly.
Read full review
Online Training
Adobe
Answered basic questions.
Read full review
Dropbox
I did not personally take any training for Dropbox so I am self taught but I know when our Vice President selected Dropbox, he personally did do some training modules on it and I'm assuming it was very easy and simple to understand since he now acts like he is a pro at it!
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Adobe
I was not involved with the implementation process, so I cannot answer this question. However, when it was installed on my computer system, they did so virtually. I just sat there while they took control of my computer over the network and watch them install it, lickety split
Read full review
Dropbox
I needed to stay current in improving my daily operations. Dropbox
was suggested to me by a former colleague two-years ago and I've been using it just fine ever since.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Adobe
In my opinion, both complement each other. Microsoft clearly has with Copilot the AI Edge. However, the visual dynamics of Adobe Creative are Outstanding and provide a balanced approach to creativity, utilizing both Excellent, user-friendly Tools.
Read full review
Dropbox
I prefer the layout and visual aspect of Dropbox as it mirrors my files on my computer. I feel that I am more organized, and it's easier to find my files in Dropbox than it was with Google Drive.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Adobe
I am not responsible for sales or purchasing
Read full review
Dropbox
I would recommend to this product directly to the sales team of Dropbox for the best deal provide to my referred person and provide the best service to them.
Read full review
Scalability
Adobe
I find that many users aren't aware of many features of the software they use, nor may they be comfortable with learning multiple-step processes. For the simplest of PDF purposes (scanning, downloading, exporting), it gets a thumbs-up. For anything involving electronic signatures, meh--causes eyes to glaze over, or forgetting what all is involved.
Read full review
Dropbox
It's easy to integrate with the systems of Windows and Linux, easy to have web versions accessible, which provide the web login credentials. Also, it can be installed for individuals for the best autosync features.
Read full review
Professional Services
Adobe
No answers on this topic
Dropbox
Their services are highly rated for moving massive, complex data sets from legacy on-premise servers to the cloud with minimal downtime.
Read full review
Return on Investment
Adobe
  • Adobe Acrobat has saved us time in managing documents. In this day, everything is fast, moves fast, and keeping up with that pace demands software that functions at the same level. Adobe Acrobat does that. It has streamlined the steps I need to take to edit and create documents we need to manage our customers.
  • Adobe Acrobat removes the worry and stress associated with managing a large influx of documents. Something as simple as a document featuring an image that was sent to us upside down. Using the old method, I would have to open other software, click 'Edit', find the 'Rotate Image' button, click it a couple of times, save it as a JPEG, then attach it to Word, and finally save it as a PDF. It was a grueling process that consumed a great deal of time. Now, I simply open the image, and Adobe automatically recognizes it is upside down and fixes it for me. I can save and move on; it literally takes me seconds. Amazing.
  • Adobe Acrobat is intuitive and easy to use, and the additional apps are relevant to the needs that come up. If I have an idea, I can go to the available apps and find exactly what I need. Impressive and speaks to the years of experience this company has had to fine-tune its product and make it obvious that it is aggressive in staying on top.
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Dropbox
  • When it works (usually if a client already has Dropbox, so they don't get the solicitation to sign up), it works flawlessly.
  • I've had multiple clients not see the "continue with download only" at the bottom and email me to resend the media another way because they don't have a Dropbox account.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Adobe Acrobat Screenshots

Screenshot of where to create, edit, convert, and share PDF files all from within Microsoft Teams – as part of Acrobat integrations with Microsoft 365 apps.Screenshot of Liquid Mode in Adobe Acrobat Reader mobile app, where users can read PDFs on phones and tablets without having to pinch and zoom. Navigate lengthy documents with intelligent outline and search tools, while maximizing readability and comfort with font size and line spacing that are adjustable.Screenshot of where to fill and sign PDF forms from anywhere and on any device. Here, users can collect signatures, digitally track progress, and automatically archive the signed document.Screenshot of the Adobe Scan mobile app, used to capture and convert documents into high-quality, interactive PDF documents that can be filled out, signed, and shared. This eliminates the hassle of finding a printer, filling a form by hand, and scanning it again.

Dropbox Screenshots

Screenshot of the action bar, that sits across the browser page can be used to record the screen, edit PDFs, upload files, create folders, get signatures, or send and track documents.Screenshot of Dropbox Replay, that lets collaborators leave frame-accurate feedback and markups directly on project files.Screenshot of Dropbox Capture, which can be used to take screen recordings, screenshots, and GIFs with one click and share them with a link.Screenshot of the interface where Dropbox lets users upload, edit, send, and sign PDFs in one place.