Does PDF Insight upload my client files to a server?

No. In the default local tier, PDF Insight runs entirely on your own computer and never uploads files to any server. An optional, clearly-labelled paid cloud speed lane powered by Cerebras exists for near-instant processing, but it is off by default and only activated when you turn it on.

What does PDF Insight cost?

Pricing is $49 CAD once for Solo (personal use), $290/year for Individual (one preparer), $25/seat/month for Firm (3+ seats billed annually), or $399 once for Founder Lifetime (first 100 customers only). A 14-day free trial requires no credit card.

Can I use PDF Insight offline?

Yes. The local tier works fully offline; the AI model runs on-device via Ollama and OCR runs on-device via Tesseract, so it can organize and merge documents with no internet connection.

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PDF Insight sorts tax documents locally on your computer

Hacker News6h ago4 min read

Key takeaway

PDF Insight is a local-first document organization tool for tax preparers and self-employed people that sorts and merges PDFs entirely on your computer without uploading to any cloud. It reads and classifies Canadian and Quebec tax slips (T4, T4A, T5, RL-1, RL-3, RL-31), handles scanned pages with on-device OCR, and works offline — so client files stay private and never breach-vulnerable.

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3 Key Points

What happened
A new tool called PDF Insight lets accountants, bookkeepers, and self-employed people drop a folder of tax documents into their computer, set sorting rules once, and get back a single merged PDF — all processed on-device without uploading anything to a server.
Why it matters
Unlike cloud-based competitors such as TaxDome, SmartVault, Canopy and Dext, PDF Insight keeps client files entirely local, so sensitive tax documents (T4, T4A, T5, RL-1, RL-3, RL-31 slips) never leave your machine and are never at risk of a third-party breach. The tool includes on-device OCR for scanned pages and works fully offline, which matters during tax season on air-gapped machines.
What to watch
Pricing starts at $49 CAD once for personal use, $290/year for individual preparers, or $25/seat/month for firms; the first 100 customers can buy a Founder Lifetime plan for $399 once instead of subscribing. A 14-day free trial requires no credit card, and the tool runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

FAQ

Does PDF Insight upload my client files to a server?: No. In the default local tier, PDF Insight runs entirely on your own computer and never uploads files to any server. An optional, clearly-labelled paid cloud speed lane powered by Cerebras exists for near-instant processing, but it is off by default and only activated when you turn it on.
What does PDF Insight cost?: Pricing is $49 CAD once for Solo (personal use), $290/year for Individual (one preparer), $25/seat/month for Firm (3+ seats billed annually), or $399 once for Founder Lifetime (first 100 customers only). A 14-day free trial requires no credit card.
Can I use PDF Insight offline?: Yes. The local tier works fully offline; the AI model runs on-device via Ollama and OCR runs on-device via Tesseract, so it can organize and merge documents with no internet connection.

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