# Reader+ vs Competent Airman

The clearest difference is price: Reader+ at Free against Competent Airman's $59.99. Competent Airman's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). On in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Reader+ is free to download; Competent Airman costs $59.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Reader+ ships an update every 2 months, Competent Airman weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Reader+ | Competent Airman |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $59.99 |
| Rating | **[4.8 (1.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/reader-plus/id1052643016/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1.1K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 22.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | — |
| Size | 525 MB | 71 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Pearson Education, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/386384450) | [McMillan Study Guides, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/342283675) |

## What reviewers say

### Reader+

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/reader-plus/id1052643016)

This application allows users to read books, take notes, and save bookmarks with seamless online and offline functionality. It features an updated bookshelf, a new interface for easy navigation, and interactive multimedia to enhance the learning experience.

**Highlights:** Book navigation, Note-taking, Bookmark saving, Offline reading, Integrated multimedia, Interactive activities, Updated bookshelf

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Useful app for accessing textbooks
- 🚀 Easy to download and access books
- 💡 Helpful for studies and reading

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
- 🔒 Issues with login and account management
- 🔋 Books need to be redownloaded frequently
- 👎 Buggy and unreliable performance

**Reported bugs**

- Books not showing up in the app
- Inability to sign in or create an account
- Frequent crashes when opening or using the app

**Requested features**

- Add annotation and note-taking capabilities
- Improve offline access and caching of books
- Enhance user interface and navigation


### Competent Airman

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/competent-airman/id6737235811)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Reader+ free?

Reader+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Competent Airman free?

Competent Airman costs $59.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Reader+ or Competent Airman have ads?

Reader+ shows ads; Competent Airman does not.

### Which is updated more often, Reader+ or Competent Airman?

Reader+ ships an update every 2 months, and Competent Airman weekly. Most recently, Reader+ was updated on November 6, 2026 and Competent Airman on October 27, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*