Trial
Free14 days
Evaluate the full engine.
- Every Enterprise feature unlocked
- No production use
- Converts to a paid plan by key swap
- ionCube · watermarked — included
- Signed source — not in this plan
Pricing
Simple, annual pricing.
NextPDF Core and Connect are free under Apache-2.0. Pro and Enterprise are commercial, billed annually, with a free 14-day trial. No usage metering on the self-hosted engine.
Pricing plans
Same engine · different licence
Solo
$190/ yr
One app — you are the end user.
- Specialty barcodes, charts, templates
- PAdES B-T, DocMDP, KMS signing
- Redaction, diff, flow layout
- ionCube — included
- Signed source — not in this plan
Pro
$490/ yr$890/ yr
Your whole organization — unlimited internal projects.
- Specialty barcodes, charts, templates
- PAdES B-T, DocMDP, KMS signing
- Redaction, diff, flow layout
- ionCube — included
- Signed source — included
Enterprise
$3,490/ yr$3,990/ yr
Regulated, high-assurance teams.
- PAdES B-LTA, HSM, FIPS support
- PDF/A-4, ZUGFeRD, forensics
- Priority support + SLA
- ionCube — included
- Signed source — included
Solo and Pro are the same engine — identical features. They differ only by licence scope (one application vs your whole organization) and delivery (ionCube, plus readable signed source on Pro). The capability table below is the per-edition breakdown.
Compare
What each edition can do
| Capability | Core | Pro | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Generation | |||
| ISO 32000-2 (PDF 2.0) output | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| HTML & CSS to PDF | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| PDF/UA-2 tagged structure | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| Charts & specialty barcodes | Not in this edition | Supported | Supported |
| Templates & streaming flow layout | Not in this edition | Supported | Supported |
| Signing & trust | |||
| PAdES baseline | B-B | B-T | B-LT / B-LTA |
| DocMDP, KMS & remote signing | Not in this edition | Supported | Supported |
| HSM / PKCS#11 hardware signing | Not in this edition | Not in this edition | Supported |
| FIPS algorithm support | Not in this edition | Not in this edition | Supported |
| Compliance & ops | |||
| PDF/A-4 archival | Not in this edition | Not in this edition | Supported |
| ZUGFeRD / Factur-X e-invoicing | Not in this edition | Not in this edition | Supported |
| PII masking & redaction | Not in this edition | Supported | Supported |
| Forensics & batch compliance | Not in this edition | Not in this edition | Supported |
| Access | |||
| MCP / REST / gRPC server | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| Framework integrations | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| Delivery | Composer | ionCube / source | Signed source |
Connect is the access surface, not a separate capability tier — it exposes these editions' tools over MCP, REST, and gRPC.
Solo licenses the Pro feature set for a single Application — read it as the Pro column above, scoped to one app you own. Enterprise is the only edition that adds B-LTA / HSM, PDF/A-4, and e-invoicing.
Delivery
ionCube or signed source — identical rights
ionCube-encoded
An encoded build that runs with the free ionCube Loader PHP extension at runtime (and in CI). Protects the artifact.
Signed source
Plain PHP you can read and audit — for environments that can't run encoded code or need to inspect it.
Both carry identical licence rights; encoding is artifact protection, not a rights change. Solo ships ionCube; Pro and Enterprise offer either channel.
For B2B
Perpetual licences & OEM
Annual subscription is the standard. A perpetual ("buyout") licence covering the current major version, and OEM / redistribution licensing for products you ship to third parties, are available on request — scope and terms are fixed by your order Schedule.
What the licences mean
Plain English, with the terms that control.
“Application”
A single, functionally-distinct software system. Development, staging, and production of thesame codebase count as one Application.
Solo
Licenses one Application; you are the end user, for your own internal business use. Not for a SaaS, multi-tenant, or service-bureau offering.
Pro & Enterprise
Pro is licensed per organization (unlimited internal projects). Enterprise is licensed per project or per organization, as named in your order Schedule.
The bright line
Producing PDFs that are the output of your own app — including documents you send your own customers — is permitted. Running a multi-tenant SaaS, exposing PDF generate/render/convert/sign functionality as a service, or producing documentsfor third parties as the service you offer each need a Schedule that authorizes it.
Delivery: ionCube or signed source
Both carry identical licence rights. Encoding is artifact protection only — it does not change what you are allowed to do.
These are plain-English summaries. The EULA and your order Schedule are the binding terms; where they differ from this page, they control.
Not sure which?
Which edition is right for you?
- 1
- 2
Solo
One app, you’re the end user, and you want the Pro feature set?
Solo — $190/yr.
- 3
Pro
Across your organization’s projects — B-T signing, redaction, charts, templates?
Pro — from $490/yr.
- 4
Enterprise
Regulated — B-LTA, HSM, PDF/A-4, ZUGFeRD / Factur-X, forensics?
Enterprise — from $3,490/yr.
- 5
Custom
Exposing PDF functionality as a service to third parties?
Talk to us — that needs an authorizing Schedule.
FAQ
Pricing & licensing questions
What’s the difference between Solo and Pro?
Features are identical — same engine, same capabilities. They differ in licence scope and delivery: Solo covers one Application and you must be the end user (ionCube delivery); Pro covers your whole organization’s internal projects (ionCube or signed source).
What counts as “one app” for Solo?
A single, functionally-distinct system. Its development, staging, and production deployments are one Application. A separate, unrelated product is a separate Application.
Can I use NextPDF in my SaaS?
To produce your own app’s documents — including documents your app sends its own customers — yes. But operating a multi-tenant SaaS, exposing PDF generate/render/convert/sign functionality as a service, or producing documentsfor third parties as your offering each need a Pro or Enterprise Schedule that authorizes hosted / service use. Ask us if you’re unsure.
ionCube vs signed source — what’s the difference?
Identical licence rights either way. ionCube-encoded builds require the free ionCube Loader PHP extension at runtime (and in CI); signed source ships plain PHP for environments that can’t run encoded code or need to read it. Encoding is artifact protection, not a rights change.
Do you offer refunds?
All sales are final. Your non-waivable statutory consumer rights always apply, and our Merchant of Record may issue a refund at its own discretion under its buyer terms. EU/EEA and UK consumers keep the 14-day right of withdrawal where it has not been validly waived. We do not give discretionary or change-of-mind refunds — evaluate the full engine free for 14 days before you buy. Full terms: Refund Policy.
Is there a perpetual buyout?
Where offered, a perpetual (“buyout”) licence covers the current major version only; a future major version is a new purchase. Availability is fixed by your order Schedule — just ask. See the EULA §8 for how updates and maintenance work.
Is trial output watermarked?
Yes. The 14-day trial unlocks every Enterprise feature; output you build while evaluating is watermarked so it isn’t shipped to production. Activate a licence to remove it — no code change.
How do I buy?
Core is free to install today. Start the full trial at /try. For a paid licence, pick a plan above and check out securely — payment, invoicing, tax, and refunds are handled by Paddle, our Merchant of Record. You'll set up your NextPDF account right after payment.