What’s the Best and Cheapest Option for Editing PDFs Without Adobe’s Full Suite?

If you're open to alternatives, try Kofax PowerPDF. It's reportedly way better than Acrobat and has the benefit of being non-Adobe. We found it worked well for our team, especially for compliance needs. Just a heads up, the learning curve can be a bit steep for those used to Adobe, but it's worth it for the performance and lower resource usage.

There are also cheaper tools like PDF-XChange Editor and PDF Gear that you might want to check out. PDF Gear is free and could meet your needs without breaking the bank.

If you decide you really need Adobe, Acrobat Standard is what you're after, but just so you know, they don't offer one-time purchases anymore; subscriptions are the way to go now. Also, check places like Dell or other vendors for potential perpetual licenses, but I'm not sure about their transferability.

If you want to avoid a subscription altogether, consider using free PDF editors like LibreOffice Draw or even online options, although I get your worries about handling sensitive documents online.

Adobe Acrobat Standard is a more budget-friendly option compared to the full Creative Cloud suite. Also, look into Foxit PDF Editor – it's significantly cheaper and effective for basic editing. People have had great experiences with it.