Comparison

PDF Reader vs PDF Scanner

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

Head to head
About

PDF Reader

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
Read full description

PDFelement - PDF Reader is a PDF reader using the latest technology. The newly connected Liquid Mode function allows you to enjoy the best reading experience. In addition, there are various annotation tools, file management, signature, Various functions such as cloud services can meet your PDF needs in work and study. PDF VIEWER • Liquid Mode gives you the best PDF reading experience • Star files to find them quickly • Easily locate recently accessed files in the "Recent" list. • Enter the page number to navigate to the desired page for viewing LIQUID MODE • Get the best PDF Reading experience with Liquid Mode • PDF document fully fits the mobile phone screen, no need to zoom in and out repeatedly. • Easily adjust brightness, font size,style, and spacing. ANNOTATE • Using Pencil to annotate like writing on the paper • Add text annotations, freely modify the text and background, border colors, choose the appropriate font and font size. • Supports many annotating tools like highlighting, underlining, squiggly lines, or strikethroughs. MANAGE • Move, merge, copy or delete files SIGNATURE • Enables handwritten signatures to be inserted anywhere within the document, while also offering the ability to zoom in and out for greater flexibility. • Built-in commonly used stamps CREATE • Quickly create completely blank PDF documents • Creat blank folders. SHARE • Sharing document content with others is just a click away with capture feature. • Select sentence(s) or pragraph(s) to share CLOUD SERVICE • PDF Reader supports uploading or downloading docs via computer, Wondershare document cloud and iCloud. Please note that this app only supports editing native PDF files. It does not support editing scanned or raster PDF. If you find you cannot edit text in PDF, please check if it is scanned PDF. Thank you! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Need HELP? Please contact us! We'll feedback to you ASAP. Email: pdfelement@wondershare.com Support Center: http://support.wondershare.com Forum: http://forum.pdf.wondershare.com Official Website: https://pdf.wondershare.com If you think this App helps you, your positive review in the App Store would be much appreciated.

About

PDF Scanner

Transform your mobile device into a powerful document scanner. Easily digitize paper documents into high-quality PDF files with automatic detection, perspective correction, and color enhancements. Organize and share your scans with ease.

Highlights
  • Convert paper to multi-page PDFs
  • Automatic document detection
  • Perspective correction
  • Organize scans with tags
  • Share documents easily
  • High-resolution scans up to 300 dpi
  • Import photos from gallery
Read full description

Transform your iPhone and iPad into powerful document scanners with PDF Scanner. In just a few taps, digitize your paper documents into sharp, clean PDF files. PDF Scanner automatically detects and captures documents, applying perspective correction and color enhancements for high-quality results. Key Features At A Glance: • CREATE PDFs: ∙ Easily convert paper documents into multi-page PDF files. ∙ Automatic document detection. ∙ Enhanced with perspective correction. • FILE MANAGEMENT: ∙ Organize your scans and label them with colorful tags. • SHARE YOUR SCANS: ∙ Easily share documents with friends or co-workers. • AND MUCH MORE... Premium Features: • UNLIMITED PAGES: ∙ No limit on pages and file size of your scans. • DOCUMENT FORMAT: ∙ Choose from document sizes like US Letter, US Legal, A3, A4, A5, and more. • HIGH-RESOLUTION SCANS: ∙ Create up to 300 dpi high-resolution documents. • AUTO-ENHANCE: ∙ Automatically enhance scan quality and color. • COLOR FILTERS: ∙ Apply Black & White or grayscale filters to your scans. • PHOTO IMPORT: ∙ Import images from the Photos app. • AUTOMATIC CAPTURE: ∙ Automatically detects and scans a document. A monthly or annual subscription is required to get access to all premium features. --- Subscribe monthly or annually to access all premium features. Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Monthly plans at $0.99 USD and yearly at $9.99 USD (prices may vary outside the U.S.). Charges apply to your AppStore Account at purchase confirmation. Manage or cancel your subscription anytime in your AppStore Account Settings. Terms of Use: https://pdf-pro.net/terms-of-service/ Privacy Policy: https://pdf-pro.net/privacy-policy/

Screenshots

PDF Reader4 screens
PDF Scanner4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PDF Reader at none against PDF Scanner's 4. PDF Reader also leads on ratings volume (3.9K vs 45). PDF Scanner's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 77%) and rating (4.6 vs 4.3). 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 Scanner sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. PDF Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Scanner holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.9K ratings behind it against 45, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of PDF Reader's written reviews are positive against 100% of PDF Scanner's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. Both last shipped on September 23, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
PDF Reader versus PDF Scanner: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF ReaderPDF Scanner
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (3.9K ratings)4.6 (45 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.9K — better45
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size173 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWondershare Technology (Hunan) Co.,Ltd.Dominic Rodemer

Customer experience

PDF Reader

All ratings3,923 ratings
Positive83.1%
Neutral3.2%
Negative13.7%
Written reviews1,582 reviews
Positive76.7%
Neutral6.1%
Negative17.2%

PDF Scanner

All ratings45 ratings
Positive86.7%
Neutral6.7%
Negative6.7%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

PDF Reader

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • 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

5 requests
  • 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.)

PDF Scanner

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

PDF Reader

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

PDF Scanner

Subscriptions4
  • PDF Scanner Offer - Monthly3 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • PDF Scanner - Monthly3 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • PDF Scanner Offer - Annual3 Days trial$8.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • PDF Scanner - Annual3 Days trial$14.991 Year

Questions

Is PDF Reader free?
PDF Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is PDF Scanner free?
PDF Scanner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PDF Scanner?
PDF Scanner is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3.9K ratings, while PDF Scanner averages 4.6 from 45 ratings.
Do PDF Reader or PDF Scanner have ads?
Neither PDF Reader nor PDF Scanner shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or PDF Scanner?
PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and PDF Scanner every 2 months. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on September 23, 2026 and PDF Scanner on September 23, 2026.

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