Comparison

PDF Reader vs PDF Editor

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 Editor

Edit, annotate, sign, and summarize documents on your iPhone. This app uses AI to generate quick summaries of long PDFs, saving you time. It's ideal for students and professionals who manage documents on the go.

Highlights
  • AI-powered PDF summarization
  • Annotate and highlight documents
  • Sign and comment on PDFs
  • Add drawings and notes
  • Reader mode for comfortable viewing
Features
Read full description

PDF Editor — AI-powered PDF Tools Take full control of your PDFs with PDF Editor — the ultimate all-in-one app for editing, annotating, signing, and summarizing documents on your iPhone. With AI-powered summaries, you can instantly understand long PDFs without wasting time. Perfect for students, professionals, and anyone who works with documents on the go! Key Features: • Annotate & Highlight – Mark important sections and add notes for better organization. • Sign & Comment – Add digital signatures and provide feedback effortlessly. • AI Summarize – Generate quick, concise summaries of any PDF to save time. • Draw & Notes – Sketch, write notes, and make your PDFs interactive. • Reader Mode – Comfortable reading on the go. Perfect for students, professionals, and anyone who works with documents daily. Stay organized, work faster, and simplify PDF management with PDF Editor. Privacy Policy: https://xpdfeditor.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://xpdfeditor.com/terms

Screenshots

PDF Reader4 screens
PDF Editor4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: PDF Editor at 5.0 against PDF Reader's 4.3. PDF Editor also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months). PDF Reader's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 9) and ratings volume (3.9K vs 1). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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 Editor sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. PDF Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Editor 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 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, PDF Editor every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
PDF Reader versus PDF Editor: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF ReaderPDF Editor
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (3.9K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings3.9K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better16
Further details — not scored
Size173 MB32 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWondershare Technology (Hunan) Co.,Ltd.NOVA APPS TEKNOLOJI LIMITED SIRKETI

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 Editor

All ratings1 ratings
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 Editor

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

PDF Reader

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

PDF Editor

Subscriptions9
  • Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Weekly + Trial3 Days trial$3.997 Days
  • Weekly$9.997 Days
Show 6 more
  • Weekly + Trial3 Days trial$9.997 Days
  • Weekly + Trial7 Days trial$9.997 Days
  • Monthly$15.991 Month
  • Monthly + Trial3 Days trial$15.991 Month
  • Annual$39.991 Year
  • Annual + Trial3 Days trial$39.991 Year

Questions

Is PDF Reader free?
PDF Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is PDF Editor free?
PDF Editor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PDF Editor?
PDF Editor is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3.9K ratings, while PDF Editor averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do PDF Reader or PDF Editor have ads?
Neither PDF Reader nor PDF Editor shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or PDF Editor?
PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and PDF Editor every 2 days. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on October 17, 2026 and PDF Editor on September 30, 2026.

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