Reader vs Scanner
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Reader
This app provides a distraction-free reading and annotation experience for PDF documents on iOS. Seamlessly sync your annotated files with your Mac for further editing and workflow integration via iCloud.
- Distraction-free reading
- PDF annotation
- iCloud sync with Mac
- Companion to macOS app
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The iOS companion to the macOS Reader PDF viewer. Here you can read with no distractions and annotated, then work further with your documents back on your Mac using iCloud.
Scanner
This app offers fast document scanning and accurate OCR text recognition. It supports converting various important documents into PDF or JPG formats and allows adding watermarks for security.
- Fast document scanning
- Accurate OCR text recognition
- Convert to PDF or JPG
- Scan ID cards and bank cards
- Add watermarks to documents
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Fast scanning, all-around recognition! 1. Unlimited functions, free to use, no ads 2. Accurate algorithm, fast OCR text recognition! 3. Support the scanning of important documents such as ID cards, bank cards, real estate certificates, contracts, and support the generation of PDF or JPG 4. Add a watermark to the contract to prevent abuse
Screenshots
Verdict
Reader and Scanner both sit at 5.0 stars, but that hides the real split: 96% of Scanner's written reviews are positive against 57% of Reader's. Scanner also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and ratings volume (13 vs 3). Reader's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 8 months) and device support (5 vs 3). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Scanner sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Reader against 4.9 for Scanner. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 13 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 57% of Reader's written reviews are positive against 96% of Scanner's.
Reader ships an update weekly, Scanner every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 10, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Reader | Scanner |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | 4.9 (13 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 57.1% of reviews | 95.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 13 — better |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Vision Pro — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | 14.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 26 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | The Augmented Text Company LTD | 传胜 贾 |
Customer experience
Reader
Scanner
In-app purchases
Reader
- Ask AI Subscription$1.99
Scanner
- 20 Processing counts$0.99
- 5 Processing counts$0.99
- Permanent VIP$3.99
