When you need hassle-free editing of a document.

This is most noticeable when you use fonts that other users do not have installed on their computers.

There is no guarantee that formatting will be preserved when sharing DOCX documents.

Older DOC files can only be read by Microsoft Word or other compatible word-processing software.

DOCX files enable real-time collaboration.

DOCX files are smaller in size than PDFs.

Moreover, DOCX documents can be opened and used in Google Docs and Office 365, facilitating real-time collaboration with other team members or clients. They are an XML-based document file format that is designed to be easy to read and write, so they can be easily opened in Microsoft Word and other word processors such as OpenOffice and LibreOffice. DOCX files are used by Microsoft Word 2007 and later.

PDF files are usually bigger in size than DOC format since they need to store a lot of data for proper viewing.Ī DOCX file is a Microsoft Word Open XML Format Document file.

PDFs were not designed for real-time collaboration.

PDF documents created in portrait orientation and A4 sheet size can be challenging to view on small screens.

Due to the above, they can be a good option for exchanging documents that need to be printed on paper.

PDFs can be password protected for security.

PDFs preserve the formatting of the original document.

PDFs are cross-platform, meaning they can be viewed on any device or operating system.

Additionally, the PDF format is intentionally difficult to edit unless you use specialized software. On top of the features mentioned, PDFs also offer the possibility of being password protected, something valuable in cases when you want to add an additional layer of security to prevent changes to the original document.

Typical use cases for PDF are eBooks, brochures, legal documents, and documents you want to print or display while preserving a specific style and format. This ensures that said document is displayed the way you want regardless of the device it is opened on. This is why PDFs are often used when sending a document electronically since they preserve the original document's formatting, including links, images, fonts, and styles. Simply put, PDF is device and OS-agnostic. PDF, or Portable Document Format, is a popular file format as it allows documents to be exchanged regardless of the end user's software, hardware, or operating system. Both have pros and cons, and under certain situations, no doubt that one may be better than the other.

When it comes to document formats, there are two that are widely used: PDF and DOC.

Pdf to word maker