# Pdftool vs SpeakNotes

The clearest difference is price: SpeakNotes at Free against Pdftool's $1.99. SpeakNotes also leads on rating (4.6 vs 1.0) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 6 weeks). Pdftool's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ads (none vs shown). On device support there is nothing between them.

SpeakNotes is free to download; Pdftool costs $1.99 up front. SpeakNotes sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per 7 days. Pdftool asks for nothing beyond the download.

SpeakNotes holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SpeakNotes has 39 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Pdftool ships an update every 6 weeks, SpeakNotes every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Pdftool | SpeakNotes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $1.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [1.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdftool/id1125833534/reviews) | **[4.6 (39 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speaknotes-transcribe-and-notes/id6449847831/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 1 | **39** |
| Positive reviews | — | 20.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Size | 6 MB | 85 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Zhiguang Han](https://appshunter.io/developer/994428398) | [JRL Software LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/1510525023) |

## What reviewers say

### Pdftool

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdftool/id1125833534)

Easily manage, read, and annotate PDF documents with intuitive tools. Highlight text or images, crop, merge, and export pages. Optimized for large collections and supports keyboard shortcuts for efficient navigation.

**Highlights:** Manage PDFs with tags and lists, Crop, erase, and merge pages, Highlight text and images, Export PDF pages, Batch operations, Keyboard shortcuts support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### SpeakNotes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speaknotes-transcribe-and-notes/id6449847831)

This app uses advanced AI to transform audio and video into concise, actionable notes. It supports over 50 languages and offers 14 different output formats for meetings, lectures, podcasts, and more. Easily process any source, from recordings to YouTube links, to gain insights quickly.

**Highlights:** AI transcription with high accuracy, 14 unique summary formats, Summarize YouTube links, Process PDFs and documents, Direct audio/video recording, Support for 50+ languages, Export and share options

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro (Weekly) | $7.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro (Weekly) | $7.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro (Weekly) | $14.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro (Monthly) | $24.99 | per month |
| Pro (Monthly) | $24.99 | per month |
| Pro (Monthly) | $29.99 | per month |
| Pro (Annual) | $74.99 | per year |
| Pro (Annual) | $149.99 | per year |
| Pro (Annual) | $149.99 | per year |
| Pro (Lifetime) | $99.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Pdftool free?

Pdftool costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SpeakNotes free?

SpeakNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Pdftool or SpeakNotes?

SpeakNotes is rated higher. Pdftool averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while SpeakNotes averages 4.6 from 39 ratings.

### Do Pdftool or SpeakNotes have ads?

SpeakNotes shows ads; Pdftool does not.

### Which is updated more often, Pdftool or SpeakNotes?

Pdftool ships an update every 6 weeks, and SpeakNotes every 5 days. Most recently, Pdftool was updated on November 2, 2026 and SpeakNotes on November 3, 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.*