# PDF Reader vs Add Text to PDF

The clearest difference is rating: Add Text to PDF at 5.0 against PDF Reader's 4.3. PDF Reader's advantage is ratings volume (3.9K vs 4) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

Add Text to PDF holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.9K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two.

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, Add Text to PDF every 5 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Reader | Add Text to PDF |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (3.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pdfelement/id1150215996/reviews) | **[5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/add-text-to-pdf-fill-forms/id6754977883/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **3.9K** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 5 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 173 MB | 72 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 16.4 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Wondershare Technology (Hunan) Co.,Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1721309409) | [OneRack](https://appshunter.io/developer/1792950973) |

## 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.)


### Add Text to PDF

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/add-text-to-pdf-fill-forms/id6754977883)

Effortlessly add text, notes, and signatures to PDF documents and images. Fill out forms, annotate scanned papers, and label photos with a clean, intuitive interface. All your work is automatically saved for easy access and sharing.

**Highlights:** Add text directly on PDF documents, Fill out forms and annotate files, Add text and captions to imported photos, Insert digital signatures, Automatic file saving and organization, Offline, secure, and privacy-friendly

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Reader free?

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

### Is Add Text to PDF free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or Add Text to PDF?

Add Text to PDF is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3.9K ratings, while Add Text to PDF averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do PDF Reader or Add Text to PDF have ads?

Neither PDF Reader nor Add Text to PDF shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or Add Text to PDF?

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and Add Text to PDF every 5 months. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on October 24, 2026 and Add Text to PDF on October 24, 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.*