# PDF Maker & Reader Pro vs PDFelement

The clearest difference is price: PDFelement at Free against PDF Maker & Reader Pro's $1.99. PDFelement also leads on review sentiment (76% vs 40%) and ratings volume (7.6K vs 12). PDF Maker & Reader Pro's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 20) and ads (none vs shown). On device support there is nothing between them.

PDFelement is free to download; PDF Maker & Reader Pro costs $1.99 up front. PDFelement sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. PDF Maker & Reader Pro asks for nothing beyond the download.

PDFelement holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDFelement has 7.6K ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of PDF Maker & Reader Pro's written reviews are positive against 76% of PDFelement's.

PDF Maker & Reader Pro ships an update every 3 weeks, PDFelement every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Maker & Reader Pro | PDFelement |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $1.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.3 (12 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-maker-and-reader-pro/id1344475663/reviews) | **[4.6 (7.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfelement-pdf-editor-viewer/id1516765045/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 12 | **7.6K** |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | **75.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 10 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Size | 14 MB | 196 MB |
| Requires iOS | **10.3** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [NAOAKI SEKIGUCHI](https://appshunter.io/developer/1146328819) | [Wondershare Technology Group Co.,LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/298647757) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Maker & Reader Pro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-maker-and-reader-pro/id1344475663)

Create and edit PDF documents on your iPhone and iPad. Add text, photos, maps, and diagrams to new or existing PDFs. Easily share your creations via email or cloud storage.

**Highlights:** Create new PDF documents, Edit existing PDFs, Add text, photos, and maps, Input manually or with keyboard, Support for Apple Pencil, Share via email and cloud storage

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### PDFelement

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfelement-pdf-editor-viewer/id1516765045)

This application offers comprehensive PDF management, including advanced editing, AI-powered summarization and translation, and efficient scanning with OCR. It helps organize, convert, and secure documents for work, study, and personal use.

**Highlights:** AI Chat with PDF, Scan and OCR, PDF to Office Conversion, Edit PDF like Word, Password Protection, Compress PDF

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

**In-app purchases (18)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription (AI) | $3.99 | per month |
| PDF Editor& Converter& Scanner | $6.99 | per month |
| PDF Editor & Scanner Pro（iOS） | $6.99 | per month |
| Weekly Subscription (iOS) | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Quarterly Subscription (iOS) | $9.99 | per 3 months |
| Weekly Subscription (iOS) | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly Subscription (iOS) | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| Monthly Subscription (All) | $19.99 | per month |
| Annual Subscription (iOS) | $24.99 | per year |
| PDF Editor & Scanner Pro | $29.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription (iOS) | $29.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription (iOS) | $29.99 | per year |
| Quarterly Subscription (All) | $39.99 | per 3 months |
| Annual Subscription (iOS+Win) | $99.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription (iOS+Mac) | $99.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription (All) | $109.99 | per year |
| PDF Editor & Scanner Pro | $39.99 | one-time |
| iOS | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Efficient PDF editing
- 💡 Comprehensive feature set
- 🔒 Secure document handling
- 👍 Intuitive interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or glitches
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🔒 Mandatory account required
- 🔒 Unclear licensing and subscription model
- 🐛 Syncing issues between devices

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues and inability to restore purchases
- Corrupted scanned files or loss of progress
- Inconsistent behavior when editing PDF text
- Compatibility problems with older devices or OS versions

**Requested features**

- Add dark mode option
- Improve cloud integration and file management
- Enhance OCR accuracy and capabilities
- Introduce multi-tab support for better workflow
- Add more customization options for toolbars and UI


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Maker & Reader Pro free?

PDF Maker & Reader Pro costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is PDFelement free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Maker & Reader Pro or PDFelement?

PDFelement is rated higher. PDF Maker & Reader Pro averages 4.3 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while PDFelement averages 4.6 from 7.6K ratings.

### Do PDF Maker & Reader Pro or PDFelement have ads?

PDFelement shows ads; PDF Maker & Reader Pro does not.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Maker & Reader Pro or PDFelement?

PDF Maker & Reader Pro ships an update every 3 weeks, and PDFelement every 10 days. Most recently, PDF Maker & Reader Pro was updated on September 18, 2026 and PDFelement on September 30, 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.*