Pandoc vs XnConvert

Pandoc is a command-line document converter and Haskell library, offered for free under the GPL. It converts among markup and word-processing formats including Markdown, HTML, LaTeX, Word DOCX, EPUB, and Jupyter notebooks. Readers parse a source into an abstract syntax tree, which writers then turn into the selected output format. Templates and Lua filters let users adjust processing, and Lua can also be used to create custom readers and writers. Pandoc formats citations and can produce bibliographies with hundreds of CSL styles. PDF output uses LaTeX by default, though users can specify another PDF engine. Installers or binaries are provided for Windows, macOS, and Linux, with package-manager and source installation also documented. It can be run through GitHub Actions or GitLab CI/CD, and official Docker images are available. The official Linux executable is statically linked without dynamic dependencies or external data-file dependencies. Pandoc has no graphical interface; conversions from more expressive formats can lose information, and complex tables may not fit its document model.

XnConvert is a batch image converter for automating edits to photo collections on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It supports more than 500 formats and exports to about 70 file formats. Its more than 80 operations include metadata editing, transformations, adjustments, filters, and effects. Users can save presets for later batches or set watched folders to apply custom edits automatically when images are added or updated. Other listed capabilities include RAW processing, bulk resizing and renaming, color management, metadata viewing, contact sheets, and side-by-side comparison. XnConvert can export to NConvert for command-line use, and its interface includes drag-and-drop. The product page lists more than 20 translations. Private, educational, and non-profit use is free; company use requires a license. A single company license is listed at €15 as a one-time purchase, with per-license prices decreasing for larger quantities, down to €6.50, paid once for 100 or more licenses.