# Adobe Scan vs Simple Scan

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Adobe Scan at 83% against Simple Scan's 22%. Adobe Scan also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.4) and ratings volume (1.6M vs 245). Simple Scan's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Adobe Scan sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Simple Scan sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 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 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Adobe Scan has 1.6M ratings behind it against 245, 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 Simple Scan's.

Adobe Scan ships an update fortnightly, Simple Scan every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Adobe Scan | Simple Scan |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (1.6M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/adobe-scan-pdf-and-ocr-scanner/id1199564834/reviews)** | [4.4 (245 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-scan-docs-pdf-ocr/id1510561254/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.6M** | 245 |
| Positive reviews | **82.6% of reviews** | 22.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#11** | — |
| Size | 398 MB | 82 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Adobe Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/331646274) | [Daneco Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/418615960) |

## What reviewers say

### Adobe Scan

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

**Currently charting:** #11 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


### Simple Scan

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-scan-docs-pdf-ocr/id1510561254)

Transform your device into a powerful mobile scanner. Digitize documents, receipts, and IDs. Convert images and handwritten notes to text with OCR. Sign and mark up PDFs with a custom editor.

**Highlights:** Document scanning, OCR text recognition, PDF signing, Document markup, Batch scanning, Automatic border detection, Document organization

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 3-Day Trial On Weekly Plan | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| 3-Day Trial On Monthly Plan | $14.99 | per month |
| 3-Day Trial On Yearly Plan | $49.99 | per year |
| SimpleScan Pro Yearly Plan | $49.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Adobe Scan free?

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

### Is Simple Scan free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Adobe Scan or Simple Scan?

Adobe Scan is rated higher. Adobe Scan averages 4.9 out of 5 from 1.6M ratings, while Simple Scan averages 4.4 from 245 ratings.

### Do Adobe Scan or Simple Scan have ads?

Both Adobe Scan and Simple Scan show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Adobe Scan or Simple Scan?

Adobe Scan ships an update fortnightly, and Simple Scan every 3 months. Most recently, Adobe Scan was updated on September 24, 2026 and Simple Scan on September 18, 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.*