SumatraPDF vs FastStone Image Viewer

SumatraPDF8.8Visit FastStone Image Viewer8.3Visit

Higher score SumatraPDF #4 in File Viewer Software 8.8/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit Sumatra PDF

vs

FastStone Image Viewer #7 in File Viewer Software 8.3/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit FastStone

• SumatraPDF fits best

  Portable Windows document viewing

• FastStone Image Viewer fits best

  Windows image browsing and editing

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Side by side

Feature	SumatraPDF 8.8/10 Visit ↗	FastStone Image Viewer 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.8	8.3
Ranking	#4 in File Viewer Software	#7 in File Viewer Software
Best for	Portable Windows document viewing	Windows image browsing and editing
Pricing model	Free	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Free plan	—
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows	Windows
Support	Docs, Community	Email, Docs
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Enterprise
Features SumatraPDF 0/4 · FastStone Image Viewer 0/4
Archive preview	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Office file preview	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Code file preview	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
In-file search	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Specs
Listed formats	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Primary access	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Maximum file size	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Free and open source with installer and portable Windows builds Opens PDF, ebook, comic-book, DjVu, XPS, CHM and image files Adds annotations, form filling, search and Windows text-to-speech	Supports camera RAW formats and EXIF metadata viewing Compares up to four images and creates configurable contact sheets Combines editing, batch conversion, scanning, and portable use
Cons	Windows-only desktop support limits cross-platform use No OCR support is provided Some capabilities are documented for the 3.7 pre-release	Commercial use requires a $34.95 one-time license Designed for Windows desktop use Its broad feature set may exceed basic viewing needs
Our verdict	Sumatra PDF is a free, open-source desktop reader for Windows users who need more than basic PDF viewing. It opens PDF, EPUB, MOBI, comic-book, DjVu, XPS, CHM, image and other document formats. Core PDF tools cover text search, navigation… Read the review →	FastStone Image Viewer is a Windows desktop application for browsing, viewing, organizing, comparing, editing, converting, and presenting digital images. It suits photographers, image-heavy teams, and Windows users who want more than a… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• SumatraPDF — where it wins

  • Free and open source with installer and portable Windows builds
  • Opens PDF, ebook, comic-book, DjVu, XPS, CHM and image files
  • Adds annotations, form filling, search and Windows text-to-speech

  Where it doesn't

  • Windows-only desktop support limits cross-platform use
  • No OCR support is provided
  • Some capabilities are documented for the 3.7 pre-release

• FastStone Image Viewer — where it wins

  • Supports camera RAW formats and EXIF metadata viewing
  • Compares up to four images and creates configurable contact sheets
  • Combines editing, batch conversion, scanning, and portable use

  Where it doesn't

  • Commercial use requires a $34.95 one-time license
  • Designed for Windows desktop use
  • Its broad feature set may exceed basic viewing needs

• SumatraPDF8.8/10 · Free plan

  A portable Windows reader with broad format support, annotations, forms and text-to-speech.

  Visit Sumatra PDFFull verdict →
• FastStone Image Viewer8.3/10 · Free plan

  A capable Windows image viewer with RAW support, batch tools, editing, and a portable version.

  Visit FastStoneFull verdict →