Utilities macOS
Skim for macOS
Read and annotate PDFs on your Mac with Skim, a free PDF reader and note-taker with highlights, reference snapshots and tools for scientific papers.
- Operating system
- macOS 10.13 or later
- Architecture
- Not specified in the inspected publisher page
- Download package
- DMG disk image
This link is for Skim 1.7.17. The publisher lists an older 1.6.21 download separately for Sierra. CPU architecture was not established.
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What is Skim?
Skim is a Mac PDF reader and note-taker designed for reading and annotating scientific papers, with support for general PDF viewing too. Add notes and highlight passages as you read, then use the notes list to return to your annotations. Reference snapshots let you keep parts of a document available while working elsewhere in it.
For longer documents, Skim offers table-of-contents and thumbnail navigation, a visual navigation history and a reading bar for following text. Full-screen reading and presentation tools provide alternatives to the standard document window. You can export notes as text, and the publisher lists integration with LaTeX, SyncTeX, PDFSync and BibDesk for research workflows.
The linked download is the publisher's Skim 1.7.17 DMG for macOS 10.13 or later. The 1.7 series does not support macOS 10.12 Sierra or earlier; the publisher lists a separate older Sierra version. The screenshot illustrates a legacy Mac interface and should not be treated as a capture of version 1.7.17.
What it offers
- Add and edit PDF notes, highlight passages and review annotations in a notes list.
- Create snapshots of document sections for reference.
- Navigate with a table of contents, page thumbnails and visual history.
- Use a reading bar, full-screen reading or presentation tools.
- Export notes as text and connect research workflows through LaTeX, SyncTeX, PDFSync and BibDesk integration.
Good to know
- Skim 1.7 requires macOS 10.13 or later; macOS 10.12 Sierra and earlier are not supported by this series.
Product images

Sources
References used for this listing. Retrieval dates do not indicate hands-on testing.