# PDF Scanner App vs ScanMate

The clearest difference is ads: ScanMate at none against PDF Scanner App's shown. ScanMate also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). PDF Scanner App's advantage is review sentiment (28% vs 0%) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. PDF Scanner App sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and ScanMate sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for PDF Scanner App against 4.6 for ScanMate. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Scanner App has 6.3K ratings behind it against 351, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 28% of PDF Scanner App's written reviews are positive against 0% of ScanMate's.

PDF Scanner App ships an update every 3 weeks, ScanMate every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Scanner App | ScanMate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (6.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-scanner-app-scan-document/id1414756292/reviews) | **[4.6 (351 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/scanmate-mobile-doc-scanner/id1609070507/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **6.3K** | 351 |
| Positive reviews | **27.8% of reviews** | 0.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 92 MB | 78 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.2 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Smart Tool Studio](https://appshunter.io/developer/1080080426) | [Adel Hulayyil](https://appshunter.io/developer/1454724998) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Scanner App

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-scanner-app-scan-document/id1414756292)

Transform your phone into a powerful mobile scanner. Quickly scan, sign, and share documents in various formats. Features OCR, QR code scanning, and robust editing tools for professional document management.

**Highlights:** Scan documents to PDF, JPEG, TXT, OCR for text recognition, QR code and barcode scanning, Electronic signature addition, Document editing and cropping, Cloud storage integration, File management with PIN protection

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Fax Premium (One Month) | $4.99 | per month |
| Premium (One Week) | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Premium (One Month) | $7.99 | per month |
| One Month -PDFScanner Premium | $9.99 | per month |
| One Month -eScanner Premium | $9.99 | per month |
| Promotion PDF subscription | $19.99 | per year |
| Fax Premium (One Year) | $47.99 | per year |
| Scanner APP Premium | $59.99 | per year |
| One Year -PDFScanner Premium | $59.99 | per year |
| Lifetime-PDFScanner Purchase | $69.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- ⭐ Excellent scanning quality
- 📝 Useful text recognition
- 🔍 Convenient document management

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 📢 Intrusive ads and popups
- 🤯 Buggy and unreliable performance
- 🤔 Confusing and unintuitive UI

**Reported bugs**

- Scans not saving properly
- Subscription issues and billing problems
- Compatibility problems with older devices

**Requested features**

- Add ability to edit scanned documents
- Improve OCR accuracy
- Provide more customization options


### ScanMate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/scanmate-mobile-doc-scanner/id1609070507)

Transform your phone into a portable scanner to capture high-quality images of documents, forms, and IDs. Easily convert scans to PDF or other formats, add signatures and text, and share them via various cloud services or direct links. Protect your sensitive documents with password protection.

**Highlights:** High-quality document scanning, Automatic border detection, Perspective distortion correction, Image filters for brightness and shadow removal, Text editing and annotation, Password protection for folders, Convert JPG to PDF and PDF to JPG

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Annual | $29.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Scanner App free?

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

### Is ScanMate free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Scanner App or ScanMate?

ScanMate is rated higher. PDF Scanner App averages 4.5 out of 5 from 6.3K ratings, while ScanMate averages 4.6 from 351 ratings.

### Do PDF Scanner App or ScanMate have ads?

PDF Scanner App shows ads; ScanMate does not.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Scanner App or ScanMate?

PDF Scanner App ships an update every 3 weeks, and ScanMate every 3 months. Most recently, PDF Scanner App was updated on October 17, 2026 and ScanMate on October 16, 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.*