# PDF Reader vs PdfX

The clearest difference is rating: PDF Reader at 4.3 against PdfX's 2.0. PDF Reader also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (3.9K vs 3). PdfX's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

PDF Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.9K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, PdfX every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Reader | PdfX |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.3 (3.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pdfelement/id1150215996/reviews)** | [2.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfx/id1565422073/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **3.9K** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Ad-supported |
| Size | 173 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **11.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Wondershare Technology (Hunan) Co.,Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1721309409) | [Ipsilon Developments Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1003755058) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pdfelement/id1150215996)

This app offers a superior PDF reading experience with its innovative Liquid Mode, which optimizes documents for mobile screens. It also provides robust tools for annotating, signing, managing, and sharing your PDF files, catering to both work and study needs.

**Highlights:** Liquid Mode for optimized mobile reading, Annotation tools (pencil, text, highlighting), Handwritten signature insertion, File management (move, merge, copy, delete), Cloud service integration (Wondershare, iCloud), Create blank PDFs and folders

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Efficient PDF editing
- 💡 Useful annotation tools
- 🚀 Convenient for students/professionals
- 👍 Great value for free app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and glitches
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with account requirement
- 👎 Unintuitive user interface
- 🐛 Unreliable saving/syncing
- 👎 Limited functionality compared to paid version

**Reported bugs**

- Text boxes appearing randomly
- Inability to select/edit text in some PDFs
- Scrolling issues and page loading delays
- Incompatibility with certain PDF formats

**Requested features**

- Ability to edit text formatting (font, size, color)
- Support for multiple open documents
- Improved Apple Pencil integration
- Bookmark/favorite feature for frequently used PDFs
- Expanded cloud storage integration (OneDrive, Google Drive, etc.)


### PdfX

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfx/id1565422073)

Easily convert PDF files to various formats, edit pages, merge documents, and split PDFs. This tool requires no technical knowledge to manage all your PDF needs.

**Highlights:** Convert PDF to 5 formats, Edit PDF pages, Merge PDF files, Split PDF into documents, Rotate pages up to 360 degrees, Supports Word, JPG, PNG, HTML, TXT

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Reader free?

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

### Is PdfX free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PdfX?

PDF Reader is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3.9K ratings, while PdfX averages 2.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do PDF Reader or PdfX have ads?

PdfX shows ads; PDF Reader does not.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or PdfX?

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and PdfX every 2 weeks. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on September 30, 2026 and PdfX on September 23, 2026.

---

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