# Adobe Scan vs PDF Editor

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Adobe Scan at 83% against PDF Editor's 22%. Adobe Scan also leads on ratings volume (1.6M vs 329) and rating (4.9 vs 4.6). PDF Editor's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 days vs fortnightly). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Adobe Scan sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and PDF Editor sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Adobe Scan holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Adobe Scan has 1.6M ratings behind it against 329, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Adobe Scan's written reviews are positive against 22% of PDF Editor's.

Adobe Scan ships an update fortnightly, PDF Editor every 3 days. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Adobe Scan | PDF Editor |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (1.6M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/adobe-scan-pdf-and-ocr-scanner/id1199564834/reviews)** | [4.6 (329 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-editor-edit-everything/id1356865117/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.6M** | 329 |
| Positive reviews | **82.6% of reviews** | 22.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#12** | — |
| Size | 398 MB | 209 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Adobe Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/331646274) | [Desygner Pty Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1121127855) |

## What reviewers say

### Adobe Scan

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/adobe-scan-pdf-and-ocr-scanner/id1199564834)

**Currently charting:** #12 Top Grossing · Business, #33 Top Free · Business (US App Store)

Transform your mobile device into a powerful document scanner. Easily convert paper documents, receipts, and IDs into professional-looking PDFs or JPEGs. Enhance scans with automatic straightening, stain removal, and editable text conversion.

**Highlights:** High-speed bulk scanning, Convert paper to PDF/JPEG, Automatic straightening, Magic eraser for cleanup, Extract pages, Image to text OCR, Organize into folders

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $3.99 | per month |
| Adobe Scan Plus - Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Adobe PDF Pack | $9.99 | per month |
| Adobe Scan Premium - Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $9.99 | per month |
| Scan premium - monthly | $14.99 | per month |
| Adobe Scan Plus - Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $49.99 | per year |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $69.99 | per year |
| Adobe Scan Premium | $69.99 | per year |
| Adobe PDF Pack | $89.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Intuitive interface
- 🚀 Quick scanning
- 👍 Convenient for on-the-go
- 🚀 High-quality scans

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezes
- 🐛 Issues with auto-cropping and alignment
- 🔒 Privacy concerns around cloud storage
- 💰 Expensive premium features

**Reported bugs**

- Scans not saving properly
- Compatibility issues with older devices
- Problems with multi-page document scanning

**Requested features**

- Add option to save scans locally without cloud sync
- Improve edge detection and auto-cropping accuracy
- Implement multi-language OCR support
- Allow manual control over scan settings and adjustments


### PDF Editor

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-editor-edit-everything/id1356865117)

Edit text, images, and layout in PDF files without altering formatting. Convert PDFs to various formats, merge documents, and secure them with passwords. Offers cloud integration and user-friendly navigation for efficient document management.

**Highlights:** Edit text and images, Convert to multiple formats (Word, PPT, JPG, PNG), Resize PDFs, Merge PDF files, Secure with password encryption, Add watermarks, headers, footers, Cloud integration

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Wallet

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro+ Weekly Subscription 2 | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro+ Weekly Subscription | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Pro+ Monthly Subscription | $9.95 | per month |
| Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Pro+ Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Pro+ Annual Subscription 2 | $83.99 | per year |
| Annual | $89.99 | per year |
| Pro+ Annual Subscription | $99.99 | per year |
| Credit pack: 5 credits | $4.99 | one-time |
| Credit pack: 10 credits | $7.99 | one-time |
| Special credit pack | $7.99 | one-time |
| Credit pack: 30 credits | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- ✏️ Comprehensive PDF editing capabilities
- 🎨 Advanced image editing features (logos, backgrounds, signatures)
- ⚡ Fast processing speed for document editing
- 👍 User-friendly interface for most users
- 🔧 Multiple editing tools and options available

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Expensive subscription pricing ($7-99/month)
- 🚫 Limited free trial (3 days, not 7 as advertised)
- 📏 Output files are extremely small and illegible after export
- 🐢 Very slow file uploads and processing
- ❌ Text editing features unavailable in trial version

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when importing PDFs
- Exported PDFs render at extremely small, unreadable sizes
- Text editing causes font changes and formatting loss
- Duplicate function creates multiple unwanted copies or deletes originals
- App won't open or gets stuck on logo screen

**Requested features**

- Better zoom functionality without distorting document sections
- Ability to edit files across multiple devices with same account
- Improved text editing capabilities
- Document rotation (not just flip) functionality
- Better font compatibility and handling


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Adobe Scan free?

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

### Is PDF Editor free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Adobe Scan or PDF Editor?

Adobe Scan is rated higher. Adobe Scan averages 4.9 out of 5 from 1.6M ratings, while PDF Editor averages 4.6 from 329 ratings.

### Do Adobe Scan or PDF Editor have ads?

Adobe Scan shows ads; PDF Editor does not.

### Which is updated more often, Adobe Scan or PDF Editor?

Adobe Scan ships an update fortnightly, and PDF Editor every 3 days. Most recently, Adobe Scan was updated on September 25, 2026 and PDF Editor on September 25, 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.*