Comparison

PDF Viewer by Nutrient vs Polaris PDF Viewer

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

PDF Viewer by Nutrient

Easily view, search, and annotate PDF documents on your iPhone and iPad. Import files from cloud services, fill out forms, add signatures, and organize your documents. Advanced features like redaction and combining documents are available with a Pro subscription.

Highlights
  • View and search PDFs
  • Annotate with highlights and notes
  • Sign documents digitally
  • Fill out PDF forms
  • Organize and share documents
  • Import from cloud services
Features
Read full description

PDF Viewer is a fast and beautiful app, allowing you to view, search, and annotate PDF documents with ease on your iPhone and iPad. Access your files from iCloud, Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, Google Drive or any other cloud solution via Apple's familiar Document Browser interface. +++ Listed as “Productivity lifesaver” on the App Store +++ "A streamlined interface packed with powerful features - it’s like having a desktop-quality PDF toolkit wherever we go" – App Store Editor Notes “I'm impressed by how the folks at PSPDFKit have been able to fine-tune the document browser to the app's needs.” – MacStories.net "If you want a PDF viewer that is designed for reading PDF books, this is it." – App Review VIEW DOCUMENTS ON THE GO • Easily import a PDF from your favorite cloud service provider, email, or directly off a website. • Supports Open In Place, Drag & Drop and features the familiar Apple Document Browser interface from the Files app. • Search for the exact text you are looking for within the document. • Double tap on the screen to Smart Zoom directly to the text you want to read. • Annotate images (JPEG, PNG) non-destructive, just like PDF documents. (PRO) ANNOTATE WITH EASE • While reviewing a document, use your finger or Apple Pencil to highlight and markup text. • Leave comments by adding a note, text, or drawing directly on the PDF. • Add images or audio. • Reply to notes. (PRO) SIGN DOCUMENTS ANYWHERE • Add your signature to any document using your finger or Apple Pencil. • Move and resize your signature as needed. • Flatten a document to ensure the signature doesn’t change. CREATE AND EDIT PDFs • Create new documents from existing documents by moving, rotating, deleting, or adding new pages. • Combine multiple documents into a single one. (PRO) • Add bookmarks to easily return to certain pages in large documents. FILL OUT FORMS • Quickly fill out PDF Forms by adding text to the fields. • Flatten and secure the form once you’re done to ensure the document doesn’t change. • Add a signature to any Form. STORE, ORGANIZE AND SHARE • Store documents, create folders and organize your documents. • Share documents by printing, emailing or saving your edits back any cloud service. PASSWORD PROTECT DOCUMENTS • Read document metadata, title and keywords. • Protect documents with user and owner passwords and limit permissions. (PRO) AND SO MUCH MORE • Conveniently switch to night mode when viewing your documents at night. • Present on external screens without the distraction of toolbars. (PRO) • Have the text from a PDF read out loud to you with text-to-speech. • PDF Viewer remembers where you were down to the page/position where you left off - even across devices. PRICING PDF Viewer comes with a large feature set, completely free. Some advanced features require the purchase of PDF Viewer Pro, available as a subscription. We offer 3-monthly and yearly subscription plans. There’s also a fully functional 7-day trial, so you can test PDF Viewer Pro (including document merging and password editing) before you commit. All plans unlock the app on iPhone and iPad. TRUSTED BY COMPANIES YOU KNOW PDF Viewer is built on top of and powered by PSPDFKit, the same PDF engine trusted around the world by companies like Dropbox, Box, IBM, Atlassian, SAP, and Lufthansa. BE PART OF THE PDF VIEWER COMMUNITY pdfviewer.io twitter.com/pdfviewerapp LEGAL Duration and price of each subscription are displayed in PDF Viewers’ storefront, updated at the time of purchase. Payment will be charged to iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off no later than 24 hours before the end of the current period. Subscriptions and auto-renewal can be managed/turned off in the iTunes account settings. Any unused portion of a free trial period is forfeited as soon as a subscription is purchased. Terms of Use: https://pdfviewer.io/terms Privacy Policy: https://pdfviewer.io/privacy

About

Polaris PDF Viewer

View and manage PDF documents on your mobile device with a stable and optimized viewer. Offers features like text-to-speech, annotation tools, and cloud integration for efficient document handling.

Highlights
  • Mobile-optimized PDF viewer
  • Text-to-speech function
  • Annotation and drawing tools
  • Cloud service integration
  • Night mode and screen dimming
  • Print PDF documents
Features
Read full description

Polaris Office, selected by 90 million users across the world, provides mobile optimized PDF document viewer at the requests of numerous users. ■ Supporting Languages ■ • Supporting 18 global languages including English, French, Arabic, Japanese, Russian, German, Italian, Spanish, etc ■ Main functions ■ Mobile optimized PDF document viewer : Supporting must-have functions to easily view the PDF documents in Mobile. • Landscape mode / Portrait mode / Multi window mode • View per page • Supporting text to speech function (Reading all / Reading from here) • Able to dim the screen and choose background (Providing Night mode and Paper texture) • Annotation List / Drawing Pencil • Able to print PDF documents with multiple options • Supporting text copy function in document Smart managing : Supporting the functions for managing various PDF documents more efficiently. • Able to check all the documents in My device storage & other cloud service (Supporting iCloud, Google Drive, Dropbox) • Able to manage main PDF documents separately through bookmark settings. • Support various sorting methods. (Name order / Date order / Size order etc) • Able to search document you need through search function. ■ Note ■ • Homepage : Polarisoffice.com • Facebook : facebook.com/polarisoffice • Youtube : youtube.com/user/infrawareinc • Inquiry : support@polarisoffice.com • Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy : www.polarisoffice.com/privacy

Screenshots

PDF Viewer by Nutrient4 screens
Polaris PDF Viewer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: PDF Viewer by Nutrient at 73% against Polaris PDF Viewer's 0%. PDF Viewer by Nutrient also leads on ratings volume (9.1K vs 49) and rating (4.6 vs 4.4). Polaris PDF Viewer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PDF Viewer by Nutrient sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per 3 months. Polaris PDF Viewer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Viewer by Nutrient holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Viewer by Nutrient has 9.1K ratings behind it against 49, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of PDF Viewer by Nutrient's written reviews are positive against 0% of Polaris PDF Viewer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Viewer by Nutrient ships an update monthly, Polaris PDF Viewer every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
PDF Viewer by Nutrient versus Polaris PDF Viewer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF Viewer by NutrientPolaris PDF Viewer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (9.1K ratings) — better4.4 (49 ratings)
Positive reviews73.2% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings9.1K — better49
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS17.010.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size109 MB94 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPSPDFKit GmbHPolaris Office Corp.

Customer experience

PDF Viewer by Nutrient

All ratings9,101 ratings
Positive90.8%
Neutral3.7%
Negative5.4%
Written reviews1,095 reviews
Positive73.2%
Neutral9.8%
Negative17.1%

Polaris PDF Viewer

All ratings47 ratings
Positive87.2%
Neutral2.1%
Negative10.6%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral33.3%
Negative66.7%

Bugs and requests

PDF Viewer by Nutrient

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Annotations randomly disappearing or not saving
  • Incompatibility issues with certain PDF files
  • Scrolling and panning problems on large PDFs
  • Unexpected crashes after iOS updates

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add a rubber/eraser tool for annotations
  • Implement a side-by-side PDF view mode
  • Improve palm rejection and gesture support
  • Allow customization of toolbar and shortcuts
  • Provide better options for PDF file management

Polaris PDF Viewer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

PDF Viewer by Nutrient

Subscriptions2
  • PDF Viewer Pro 3 Months7 Days trial$6.993 Months
  • PDF Viewer Pro Yearly7 Days trial$19.991 Year
None

Polaris PDF Viewer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PDF Viewer by Nutrient free?
PDF Viewer by Nutrient is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Polaris PDF Viewer free?
Polaris PDF Viewer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PDF Viewer by Nutrient or Polaris PDF Viewer?
PDF Viewer by Nutrient is rated higher. PDF Viewer by Nutrient averages 4.6 out of 5 from 9.1K ratings, while Polaris PDF Viewer averages 4.4 from 49 ratings.
Do PDF Viewer by Nutrient or Polaris PDF Viewer have ads?
Neither PDF Viewer by Nutrient nor Polaris PDF Viewer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Viewer by Nutrient or Polaris PDF Viewer?
PDF Viewer by Nutrient ships an update monthly, and Polaris PDF Viewer every 5 weeks. Most recently, PDF Viewer by Nutrient was updated on November 4, 2026 and Polaris PDF Viewer on November 3, 2026.

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