PDF Chain
What PDF Chain is
PDF Chain is a free graphical interface for PDF Toolkit (PDFtk) on Linux and other Unix-like systems. It converts settings chosen in its interface into PDFtk commands and executes them. The program can combine selected pages from multiple PDF files, including ranges, even or odd pages, rotation, and shuffling, or burst one PDF into separate pages. Other actions include adding backgrounds or stamps, attaching files, and setting permissions, passwords, and encryption. Listed tools also cover attachment extraction, compression and decompression, data and form-field output, document-information updates, FDF generation, form filling, flattening, and dropping XFA. PDF Chain does not edit text and requires PDFtk installed separately. Linux installation is documented through an Ubuntu PPA, Arch User Repository, or source compilation. It is GPLv3-licensed, marked Alpha, and provided without warranty.
Who it suits
It suits Linux or Unix-like-system users who want a graphical front end for PDFtk operations. It is useful when PDFtk is already installed or can be installed separately.
What it does well
- Free download
- Combines selected PDF pages
- Splits PDFs into single pages
- Offers password and encryption controls
- Supports form and attachment tools
What to know first
- Requires PDFtk separately
- No text editing
- Project status is Alpha
- Maker provides no warranty
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free download · requires PDFtk installed separately | Free |
As pdfchain.sourceforge.io lists them, read 12 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Verdict
PDF Chain provides many PDFtk operations through a graphical interface at no software cost. Its separate PDFtk dependency, Alpha status, and lack of warranty matter when choosing it.
Facts from PDF Chain's own pages
- Additional tools
- Listed tools include extracting attachments, compression and decompression, dumping data and form fields, updating document info, generating FDF, filling forms, flattening, and dropping XFA. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Compatibility
- The installation page maps PDF Chain versions 0.55–0.123 to PDFtk 1.40–1.43, versions 0.3.1–0.3.5 to PDFtk 1.44, and versions from 0.4.0 to PDFtk 1.45. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Dependency
- PDF Chain requires PDFtk to be installed on the system to generate and execute its commands. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Free plan
- Yes · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 20 Sept 2026
- Latest listed release
- The SourceForge files page lists pdfchain-0.4.4.tar.gz as the latest version and dates the 0.4.4.2 directory to 2015-12-18. · sourceforge.net, 12 Oct 2026
- License
- The maker says the source code is released under the GNU General Public License version 3 (GPLv3). · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Linux installation
- The maker documents installation through Ubuntu PPA and Arch User Repository, as well as compiling from source. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Merge PDFs
- It can concatenate selected pages from multiple PDF documents, including page ranges, even or odd pages, rotation, and shuffling. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Other PDF actions
- It can add a background or stamp, attach files, and set output permissions, passwords, and encryption. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Project status
- The SourceForge project listing labels PDF Chain status Alpha and lists its latest update as 2022-11-27. · sourceforge.net, 12 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- PDF Chain is a graphical interface for PDF Toolkit (PDFtk) that generates and executes PDFtk commands from GUI settings. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Security controls
- PDF output permissions can include user and/or owner passwords, no encryption or 40-bit or 128-bit encryption, and allowing or restricting features. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Split PDFs
- It can burst a PDF document into single pages. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Support and warranty
- The maker states that PDF Chain comes without any warranty. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Supported platforms
- Linux · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 20 Sept 2026
- Supported system family
- The maker describes PDF Chain as a program for Unix-like systems. · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 12 Oct 2026
- Text editing
- No · pdfchain.sourceforge.io, 20 Sept 2026
Where PDF Chain stands on Freedom251
- PDF editors#76 of 102