Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup vs UPDF
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup
Enhance your PDF workflow with powerful annotation and markup tools. This app offers a dynamic and intuitive experience for editing, drawing, and adding text to your documents. Access your work across multiple devices and collaborate in real-time.
- Dynamic PDF annotation tools
- Cross-platform access and cloud sync
- Real-time collaboration
- Insert text, images, lines, and shapes
- Convert images to PDF
- Redact sensitive information (Pro)
- Measurement tools (Pro)
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Powerful PDF tools at your fingertips. The latest PDF technology and software for a better experience. With an intuitive UI designed for delight – there’s a better way to PDF! Do your best work with Drawboard. - Dynamic PDF tools that feel good to use - Multi-platform access and storage. Where you are, your work is. - Paperless. A way of working for a sustainable future TOOLS FOR EVERY JOB Fast, responsive, and accurate markup tools. Draw with best-in-class ink for flawless Apple Pencil hand-feel and finally replace pen and paper. CROSS-PLATFORM ACCESS ON ANY DEVICE Upload your annotated PDFs to the cloud and mark up with others in real time with instant sync. Go Pro in-app for additional storage capacity and advanced features. WORK YOUR WAY Customize your workspace by docking your favorite tools and build a toolbar that works for you! MORE - Text review markup - freehand highlighter, text highlighter, underline, strikeout, squiggly on PDF. - Insert lines and shapes - cloud tool, rectangle, ellipse, line, arrow, polygon and polyline on PDF. - Add text with a range of fonts and text styling options - Insert images and camera photos onto PDFs. - Convert JPG and PNG image files to PDF. - Write, annotate, ink and draw on PDFs. - Customize and edit annotation colors, stroke widths, and opacities. - Create new blank PDF documents of different size, color, orientation and page count. - Insert, rotate and delete PDF pages. - Open, read, mark up and save large and complex PDF documents. GET MORE WITH PRO - Redact text and sections of your PDF documents - Measure elements on your page with length and area measurement tools and smart page calibration - Add callouts, hyperlinks and audio notes to your documents - On-page ruler - measure objects on your page with the ease of using a tape measure
UPDF
This app is a powerful PDF editor for mobile devices, offering AI-powered features for summarizing, translating, and chatting with documents. It allows users to read, edit, annotate, convert, and sign PDFs, as well as scan paper documents into editable files. Manage all your PDF files and protect them with security features.
- AI-powered summarization and translation
- Edit text, images, and watermarks in PDFs
- Annotate with various markup tools
- Convert PDFs to Word, Excel, and PPT
- Scan documents to editable PDFs
- Sign and fill PDF forms
- Organize and protect PDF files
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UPDF for iOS is an AI-powered PDF editor for iPhone and iPad. Read, edit, annotate, convert, sign, and AI chat with your PDFs — all from your iOS device. Summarize lengthy documents, translate full PDFs, scan paper to PDF, and manage all your files in one place. Amazing features of UPDF for iOS: Edit PDF - Edit text in PDF (change color, font style, font size) - Edit images in PDF (rotate, extract, replace, and crop images) - Edit watermark in PDF (add, edit, delete and favor watermark) - Edit links in PDF (add, edit, copy, and delete) AI Assistant - Summarize, translate, explain, and rephrase lengthy PDFs in minutes. - Engage in a chat with UPDF AI and ask it any questions you have. - Summarize or translate PDF by pages. - Export conversations to Markdown or TXT files. - NEW AI Bookmark Agent: Auto-generate bookmarks and get instant section summaries for any PDF. - NEW AI Semantic Search: Search your PDF by meaning, not just exact words. - NEW AI Editing Suite: Rewrite, refine tone, or correct grammar directly. Read PDF - Flexible reading: vertical and horizontal scrolling, single page or two-page view - Dark mode to protect your eyes - Add and manage bookmarks with AI Bookmark Agent's help - Search text in PDF - Present PDF as a slideshow - Text-to-speech support Annotate PDF - Annotate PDFs using markup tools: pencil, highlight, underline, strikethrough, squiggly line - Add text boxes, text comments, callouts, sticky notes - Add shapes, stamps, and stickers to PDFs - Free-hand drawing on PDF pages OCR PDF - Convert scanned documents and images into searchable and editable PDFs - Recognize text in 38 languages Scan to PDF - Scan physical documents to PDF with your camera - Scan ID cards onto one page - Crop, rotate, and filter scanned images Convert PDF - Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT, and images Organize PDF Pages - Insert, replace, extract, split, rotate, remove, and reorder pages in PDFs - Merge multiple PDFs into one file - Copy, paste, and share specific pages in a PDF Sign PDF & Fill PDF Form - Create handwritten signatures - Import and add image signatures - Fill PDF form and add e-signatures - Save signatures to cloud for cross-platform use Create PDF - Create PDF with blank, lined, dotted, grid, and graph papers - Combine multiple files/images into one PDF Protect PDF - Password-protect PDFs to restrict opening, editing, and printing - Add or remove watermarks - Add digital signatures Manage Files - Upload, create, rename, move, copy, duplicate, and organize files or folders - Unzip files by simply tapping .zip files - Search for files - Supports two-finger multiple selections and operations - Move files or folders to trash, and find deleted items in the trash - Protect PDF files with a password or unlock protected PDF files - Compress one or multiple files into a zip file Security Space - Protect your privacy by moving files or folders to Security Space - Enable Face ID & Passcode to access your Security Space Import File - Import files from Photos albums - Import files from the Files App - Transfer files from a computer over the same Wi-Fi View files in All Formats - Browse dozens of different file formats including PDFs, Office documents (.doc, .docx, .ppt, .pptx, .xls, .xlsx), Pages, Keynotes, and Numbers with a single app - Open other formats such as text, HTML, XML, Web Archive, Images (JPG, JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, SVG, BMP), video, audio *** Pro Features of In-App Purchase *** - Use UPDF across all platforms including desktops and mobiles - Free Users will get 1 GB of Cloud Storage; Paid users will get 10 GB of Cloud Storage for free - Advanced PDF features such as Convert PDF with OCR, batch process, etc. are available on the desktop - Unlimited use of Scan to PDF (Free trial only scans up to 5 pages) - Unlimited use of Security Space (Trial version stores up to 10 items) - Secure App with passcode/TouchID/FaceID Need help? Email us at support@superace.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: UPDF at 84% against Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup's 64%. UPDF also leads on iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and UPDF sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2K and 697 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 64% of Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup's written reviews are positive against 84% of UPDF's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup ships an update weekly, UPDF fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup | UPDF |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (2K ratings) — better | 4.6 (697 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 64.2% of reviews | 84.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2K — better | 697 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 98 MB | 195 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Drawboard Pty Ltd | Superace Software Technology Co., Ltd. |
Customer experience
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup
UPDF
User reviews
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup
From 2K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent PDF annotation tools
- 👍 Convenient cross-platform sync
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 👍 Great for students and professionals
- 🚀 Smooth writing experience with Apple Pencil
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Cloud storage limitations
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 🔍 Missing search and bookmark features
- 🔧 Inconsistent functionality between platforms
UPDF
From 697 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent PDF editor
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 🔒 Secure file management
- 💡 Powerful features like AI-powered summarization
- 🚀 Fast and responsive performance
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes or stability issues
- 💡 Need for more customization options
- 💡 Lack of integration with third-party cloud storage
- 🐛 Issues with handwriting recognition and annotation
Bugs and requests
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup
Reported bugs
5 issues- Annotations not syncing properly between devices
- Unexpected loss of work and unsaved changes
- Scrolling and page navigation issues
- Compatibility problems with certain PDF files
- Text input box disappearing after scrolling
Requested features
5 requests- Add page flattening and form filling options
- Improve eraser tool and precision
- Implement a dark mode
- Provide better organization and folder support
- Add more customization options for tools and UI
UPDF
Reported bugs
3 issues- Inability to edit text directly in PDF files
- Inconsistent behavior when switching between devices
- Occasional loss of editing progress when app is minimized
Requested features
5 requests- Add password protection for PDF files
- Improve file organization and folder management
- Implement keyboard shortcuts for power users
- Expand OCR capabilities and text extraction
- Allow custom signature and stamp imports
In-app purchases
Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup
- Pro Lite7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Pro Plus7 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Pro Unlimited7 Days trial$18.991 Month
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- Pro Lite7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Pro Plus7 Days trial$83.901 Year
- Pro Unlimited7 Days trial$159.991 Year
- Pro Plus$10.00
- Pro Unlimited$20.00
UPDF
- Monthly Subscription$9.991 Month
- UPDF AI Unlimited$15.001 Month
- UPDF AI Standard$15.001 Month
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- UPDF Pro + AI Unlimited$18.991 Month
- Quarterly Subscription$19.003 Months
- Annual Subscription$49.991 Year
- UPDF AI Standard$69.001 Year
- UPDF AI Unlimited$79.001 Year
- UPDF Pro + AI Standard$98.991 Year
- UPDF Pro + AI Unlimited$118.991 Year
- Perpetual License$79.99
- Perpetual License$128.99
- UPDF & AI Add-on for iOS$148.99
Questions
Is Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup free?
Is UPDF free?
Which has better reviews, Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup or UPDF?
Do Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup or UPDF have ads?
Which is updated more often, Drawboard PDF Annotate, Markup or UPDF?
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