# PDF Reader vs LightPDF

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PDF Reader at none against LightPDF's 13. PDF Reader also leads on ratings volume (3.9K vs 52). LightPDF's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and review sentiment (88% vs 77%). On price, rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. LightPDF sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $13.99 per 7 days. PDF Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for PDF Reader against 4.3 for LightPDF. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.9K ratings behind it against 52, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 77% of PDF Reader's written reviews are positive against 88% of LightPDF's.

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, LightPDF every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Reader | LightPDF |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.3 (3.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pdfelement/id1150215996/reviews)** | [4.3 (52 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lightpdf-ai-chat-pdf-scanner/id1622949837/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **3.9K** | 52 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | **88.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 173 MB | 113 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **14.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Wondershare Technology (Hunan) Co.,Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1721309409) | [Wangxu Technology Co., Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1254320291) |

## 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.)


### LightPDF

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lightpdf-ai-chat-pdf-scanner/id1622949837)

This app offers a comprehensive suite of tools for managing PDF documents on your mobile device. It leverages AI to summarize, chat with, and convert PDFs, along with scanning capabilities, text extraction, and editing features. It also includes an ID photo maker and watermark removal.

**Highlights:** AI Chat with PDFs, Phone Scanner to PDF, PDF to Word/JPG/Excel Converter, OCR Text Extraction, PDF Editing and Annotation, ID Photo Maker, Watermark Removal

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| LightPDF Weekly Subscription | $13.99 | per 7 days |
| LightPDF Monthly Subscription | $19.99 | per month |
| LightPDF Yearly Subscription | $47.99 | per year |
| LightPDF Annual Subscription | $49.99 | per year |
| LightPDF Yearly Subscription | $59.99 | per year |
| iOS LightPDF - 1 Week | $9.99 | one-time |
| 買一年送一年 | $79.99 | one-time |
| 1年購入で1年おまけ | $84.99 | one-time |
| 2 zum Preis von 1 | $99.99 | one-time |
| 3-Year Subscription | $99.99 | one-time |
| Mac LightPDF Lifetime Plan | $109.99 | one-time |
| Buy 3 yrs Get 3 yrs Free | $149.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 🚀 Efficient PDF tools
- ✨ High-quality PDF to Word conversion
- 💡 Impressive OCR functionality
- 💬 Helpful AI chatbot

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💸 High price
- ❌ App doesn't work
- 💳 Unexpected charges
- 🚫 Watermark removal issues
- 📉 Blurry pictures

**Reported bugs**

- App requests more money after payment
- Paid subscription not unlocking features
- Trial period charged despite cancellation
- Scans cut off PDF to 3 pages or under
- Performance issues

**Requested features**

- iPad support
- Edit text in the exact same font
- More advanced editing features


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Reader free?

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

### Is LightPDF free?

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

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

PDF Reader is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3.9K ratings, while LightPDF averages 4.3 from 52 ratings.

### Do PDF Reader or LightPDF have ads?

Neither PDF Reader nor LightPDF shows ads.

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

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and LightPDF every 2 weeks. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on October 21, 2026 and LightPDF on October 19, 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.*