PDF Pals

PDF Pals is a native AI PDF assistant for Mac. It allows opening one or more PDFs, asking questions in plain language, and getting answers with references to the relevant source pages. The tool keeps documents on the user’s Mac, with no file upload or cloud vector database required. It supports scanned PDFs and complex forms using an OCR engine and can use local models or a user’s API key for various providers. The app emphasizes privacy and local data handling rather than cloud processing.

PDF Pals operates as a fast, native macOS application rather than a large Electron-based tool. It stresses that there is no file size limit and that data remains on the device. Users can choose to use internal local models or connect their own API key for providers like OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others, with additional options such as Ollama and LM Studio.

The tool highlights capabilities including multi-PDF interaction, a local library with tags and cited pages, and the option to store everything in a local SQLite database. It emphasizes privacy, with no documents uploaded, and keys stored securely in the Apple Keychain. It offers a variety of file types and supports indexing, search, and customizable prompts.

PDF Pals specifies platform and licensing details, including macOS version requirements, availability on Setapp and the Mac App Store, and different license tiers with one year of updates or lifetime updates. It also notes that Windows or Linux versions are not available and that v2 introduces more file types and local models.

Use cases

• Researchers summarize papers, extract arguments, and verify findings against cited pages
• Legal professionals review contracts and case files with source-backed answers
• Developers learn from technical PDFs and specifications with page citations