A quick guide for marking up clear, efficient revisions on a designed PDF.*

When reviewing a designed PDF, using the correct markup tools helps your design team implement edits quickly, accurately, and with fewer back-and-forth questions. 

The Four Main Markup Tools

1. Strikethrough → Delete Text
   Use when text should be removed. Example: Delete an extra word, sentence, or punctuation mark.
   
   
2. Replace Text → Change Existing Text
   Use when replacing existing wording with new wording. Best practice: If a sentence has multiple edits, replace the entire sentence instead of making several small edits. This makes the changes easier to interpret and implement.
   
   
3. Insert Text → Add New Text
   Use when adding words without deleting existing text. Tip: Pay attention to spaces when inserting text. If needed, include the space as part of the insertion.
   
   
4. Highlight or Comment → Formatting or Layout Notes
   Use for edits that text tools cannot handle, such as italics, bolding, line breaks, layout issues, or design questions. Best practice: Use the highlight tool on the exact text first, then add the comment.
   

General Best Practice

For tools 1-3, there is no need to include additional text with directions for the action to be completed. For example, if you’re using the Insert Text tool to add a comma, instead of typing “insert comma here” in the Insert Text dialog box, simply ensure your cursor is in the right place and put a comma in the Insert Text box.

Use Markup Tools — Not “Edit PDF”

Please use Acrobat’s comment and markup tools rather than directly editing the PDF text. Direct PDF edits only affect that individual PDF and do not update the original design file.

*Full markup functionality is available with Acrobat Pro.