# Plain Note vs Document Scanner

Plain Note and Document Scanner both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 80% of Document Scanner's written reviews are positive against 62% of Plain Note's. Document Scanner also leads on iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). Plain Note's advantage is ratings volume (1.1K vs 108) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Plain Note sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Document Scanner sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Plain Note against 4.5 for Document Scanner. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Plain Note has 1.1K ratings behind it against 108, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 62% of Plain Note's written reviews are positive against 80% of Document Scanner's.

Plain Note ships an update every 9 days, Document Scanner every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Plain Note | Document Scanner |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (1.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plain-note-notes-widget/id1478542921/reviews)** | [4.5 (108 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/document-scanner-scan-to-pdf/id1521638402/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.1K** | 108 |
| Positive reviews | 62.3% of reviews | **80.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Every 10 days |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 31 MB | 14 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **17.6** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Monelyze Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1086641918) | [Sujal Adhia](https://appshunter.io/developer/1475334795) |

## What reviewers say

### Plain Note

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plain-note-notes-widget/id1478542921)

This app allows you to create and organize notes with customizable tags and icons. It offers lock screen and home screen widgets for quick access and supports character/line counting. Personalize your experience with themes, app icons, and fonts.

**Highlights:** Organize notes with tags, Customizable tag icons and colors, Character and line counting, Lock screen and home screen widgets, Customizable themes, app icons, and fonts, Archive and organize notes

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium - Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Premium - Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Premium - Lifetime | $29.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and clean design
- 💡 One-time payment model
- 🚀 Beautifully designed notes app
- 🚀 Intuitive and easy to use
- 👍 Customizable tags and icons

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Notes sometimes don't save properly
- 🐛 Slow and unreliable synchronization
- ❌ No text formatting options (bold, italics, etc.)
- ❌ No ability to insert photos or videos
- ❌ No option to export notes

**Reported bugs**

- Notes sometimes get deleted after updates
- Widget not working as expected, showing wrong note

**Requested features**

- Ability to swipe widget to display another note
- Subfolders for better organization
- Export function to backup notes
- Option to change app colors
- Support for multiple notes in one widget


### Document Scanner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/document-scanner-scan-to-pdf/id1521638402)

Easily capture, edit, and organize high-quality scans of documents, receipts, and more directly from your mobile device. Advanced image processing ensures clear, sharp results with smart cropping and auto-enhancement. Organize scans into folders and share them as PDFs or print directly.

**Highlights:** High-quality document scanning, Advanced image processing, Smart cropping and auto-enhancement, Folder organization, PDF sharing and direct printing, Import images from gallery, Offline scanning

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ads free version | $1.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Plain Note free?

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

### Is Document Scanner free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Plain Note or Document Scanner?

Plain Note is rated higher. Plain Note averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while Document Scanner averages 4.5 from 108 ratings.

### Do Plain Note or Document Scanner have ads?

Neither Plain Note nor Document Scanner shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Plain Note or Document Scanner?

Plain Note ships an update every 9 days, and Document Scanner every 10 days. Most recently, Plain Note was updated on October 1, 2026 and Document Scanner on September 19, 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.*