Many Pathfinder 1e hardcovers are out of print. The Mythic Adventures hardcover sells for $100+ on eBay. PDFs keep these rules accessible to the public without price gouging.
Perhaps the most profound impact of the Pathfinder 1e PDF is its role in archiving a massive era of gaming history. Pathfinder 1e amassed a library of content over a decade that is staggering in its scale. If these were restricted solely to physical media, vast swaths of lore and mechanics would inevitably be lost to time. pathfinder 1e pdfs
Adventure paths (APs) are 6-part serialized campaigns. Paizo sold each 96-page part as a $14.99 PDF ($89.94 per AP). Pirated complete AP collections were organized by volume. Interviews with post-2019 GMs (n=45) revealed: Many Pathfinder 1e hardcovers are out of print
The foundational PDFs provide the mechanics needed to play any campaign. Core Rulebook (OGL) PDF Perhaps the most profound impact of the Pathfinder