generated: '2026-08-13'
method: searched
source: >-
  https://developer.adobe.com/document-services/docs/overview/limits/,
  https://developer.adobe.com/document-services/docs/overview/pdf-services-api/dcserviceslicensing/,
  https://developer.adobe.com/console/
scope: Adobe PDF Services / Acrobat Services and Adobe Experience Platform
description: >-
  Adobe does not ship a test-mode API with magic values. There are no test card numbers, no
  test-vs-live key prefixes and no time simulation. What Adobe provides instead is a metered FREE
  TIER against the real production endpoints, and — separately, in Experience Platform — named
  sandbox environments that are real isolated tenants rather than a mock.

test_live_separation:
  model: none
  key_prefixes: null
  note: >-
    Free Tier and paid credentials are the SAME credential shape (client_id + client_secret from the
    Adobe Developer Console) hitting the SAME production hosts. There is no prefix or flag that lets
    a caller tell from the credential whether it is operating against a trial quota. The only
    observable difference is the rate ceiling (25 RPM vs 100 RPM) and the quota error
    (INSUFFICIENT_QUOTA at 500 Document Transactions/month).

free_tier:
  available: true
  cost: 0
  quota: 500 Document Transactions per month
  quota_reset: first of each month
  rate_limit: 25 RPM
  credentials_url: https://acrobatservices.adobe.com/dc-integration-creation-app-cdn/main.html
  console_url: https://developer.adobe.com/console/
  signup_required: true
  card_required: false
  description: >-
    "The PDF Services API has a Free Tier so that you can take a deep dive into its cool features at
    zero cost. Free Tier users get free credentials that enable the processing of 500 Document
    Transactions per month."
  worked_example: >-
    "On March 20, you convert a ten-page Word document into PDF. This consumes 1 Document
    Transaction of the Free Tier quota, leaving you with 499 Document Transactions available for
    consumption through March 31."
  gotcha: >-
    Accessibility Auto-Tag bills 10 Document Transactions PER PAGE. A single 50-page auto-tag job
    consumes the entire monthly free allowance. Extract bills 1 per 5 pages. Check the operation's
    metering before submitting on a free credential.

test_values:
  published: false
  note: >-
    No test card numbers, test IBANs, magic identifiers or fixture tokens — the API processes real
    documents and there is nothing to simulate. This is a correct absence for a document-processing
    API, not a gap.

time_simulation:
  supported: false

fixtures:
  sample_files:
  - url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/AdobeDocs/pdfservices-api-documentation/main/static/receipt.json
    description: Sample JSON data file used by the Document Generation quickstarts
  - url: https://www.adobe.com/go/pdftoolsapi_java_samples
    description: Official Java samples repository
  - url: https://www.adobe.com/go/pdftoolsapi_node_sample
    description: Official Node.js samples repository
  - url: https://www.adobe.com/go/pdftoolsapi_net_samples
    description: Official .NET samples repository
  postman:
    url: https://www.postman.com/kinlaneapi/adobe/overview
    local: postman/adobe-pdf-services-api.postman_collection.json
    note: >-
      Adobe publishes an Acrobat Services Postman collection (referenced in the 2024-08-23 release
      note); the copy in this repo is the API Evangelist mirror.

other_sandboxes:
- product: Adobe Experience Platform
  model: named sandbox environments
  docs: https://experienceleague.adobe.com/en/docs/experience-platform/sandbox/home
  note: >-
    AEP sandboxes are real isolated tenant partitions selected by the `x-sandbox-name` header, not
    a mock or test-data mode. Every AEP API call is sandbox-scoped.
- product: Adobe Commerce
  model: cloud staging environment
  note: Provisioned per project through Cloud Manager, not a shared public sandbox.
- product: Adobe Acrobat Sign
  model: developer account
  docs: https://opensource.adobe.com/acrobat-sign/developer_guide/gstarted.html
  note: >-
    Adobe offers a free Acrobat Sign developer account for building and testing integrations, on
    real infrastructure rather than a simulator.