Comparison

Highlights vs UnivNote

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Highlights

This app is a fast and lightweight PDF reader designed for research. It allows users to read, highlight, and annotate documents, and then extract this information into organized notes. Advanced features include table data extraction, text recognition, and smart copying of annotations into various formats.

Highlights
  • Read and browse PDF documents
  • Highlight, underline, and strikethrough text
  • Add comments and sticky notes
  • Extract annotations into organized notes
  • Convert table data and recognize text
  • Smart copy annotations to various formats (CSV, BibTex)
  • Lookup citation metadata and DOI links
Features
Read full description

"... an app that students, academics, and anyone who does substantial amounts of PDF-based research should try" - Macstories.net "It’s the novel approach to PDF annotation that makes this app a cut above the rest"- TapSmart.com *** "App of the Day" - App Store, US *** USE HIGHLIGHTS FOR FREE Highlights is a fast and lightweight PDF reader (under 10MB) packed with features to help you do your best research. Free users have access to standard PDF reader features including document browsing, reading and annotating. There are NO ADS, time limits or tracking. READ PDF DOCUMENTS • Open PDF documents from anywhere • Browse files using the familiar document browser • Open PDFs in Single Page or Two Page scroll mode • Double tap to Smart Zoom in on a paragraph or figure • Scrub smoothly to the desired page • Search the entire document in an instant • Navigate using any connected keyboard or mouse STORE YOUR FILES WHERE YOU WANT • Full support for "Open In Place" lets you make edits to the file where it is • Access your files from iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive or Box using the document browser • Or keep them privately on device only HIGHLIGHT AND ANNOTATE FASTER • Select text with your finger, Apple Pencil or mouse pointer • Highlight, underline, strikethrough text and make image selections • Add comments to annotations or as individual sticky notes • Annotate with fewer taps using context aware popovers • Default annotation colors prevents you from having to repeatedly setting the color for the same type of annotation every time TURN ANNOTATIONS INTO NOTES • As you markup text and images the contents are extracted and sorted into notes • Customize the formatting and contents of your notes • Sort the annotations chronologically or create your own color coding EXTRACT TABLE DATA AND RECOGNIZE TEXT • Convert images containing text or tables to actual text and tables using machine learning - letting you get to the underlying data with a single tap SMART COPY Copy annotations to the desired format with one tap: • Text markup as text • Image selections as images • Tables as CSV • Citations as BibTex LOOKUP CITATIONS • Highlights will fetch DOI-links and metadata • Markup any reference and tap the link icon to look it up • If you have read the work already or have it in your reference manager library, Highlights will link you to it EXPORT ANYWHERE • Save or share your notes as portable files: Markdown, TextBundle, HTML, WebArchive or PDF • Share them to your favorite notes app: Apple Notes, Bear, Craft, Evernote, DEVONThink, Keep It, MindNode, Notion, Obsidian, Roam Research or Ulysses • Or send them to a colleague via mail. It's your notes, you decide where they go MUCH MORE • Dark mode • Multi-window support on iPadOS • Keyboard shortcuts and navigation • Support for system Copy and Undo gestures • Alternative app icons • Custom accent colors • Apple Pencil double-tap gestures • Power annotation tools For a full list of features see: highlightsapp.net/features HIGHLIGHTS PRO The Highlights Pro subscription unlocks advanced features on your iPhone, iPad and Mac: • Export options for other apps and easily editable formats • Extract information using table and text recognition • Customize accent colors and alternative app icons • Power annotation tools • Citation lookups • Smart Copy Highlights Pro includes a 14-day free trial. You can cancel your subscription at any time. The subscription will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off within 24-hour prior to the end of of the current period. Payments will be charged to your iTunes account and your account will be charged within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Any unused portion of a free trial period will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription. For more information about Highlights Pro: highlightsapp.net/pro Privacy Policy: highlightsapp.net/privacy Terms of Use: highlightsapp.net/terms

About

UnivNote

Features
Read full description

UnivNote — Smooth PDF Note App UnivNote makes the fundamentals — writing, reading, and organizing on PDFs — fast and reliable, instead of leading with AI. Write on textbooks, slides, papers, and books with iPad and Apple Pencil — open your notes on iPhone and Mac. Recent updates added layers, shapes, memorization tests, exam countdowns, and study time tracking while improving speed, heat, and battery on stroke-heavy pages. ▶ What Makes UnivNote Different · A simple writing tool without AI clutter Responsive pen, fast lasso, easy copy and paste, and a stable PDF reader come first. · Layers — keep the original and your notes apart Keep handwriting, answers, and corrections on 5 layers per note. One tap hides or shows the answer layer everywhere; lock layers to protect originals, move lassoed ink between them. Unused, they tuck behind one button. · Study tools for memorization and review Cover answers with the masking highlighter, tap to reveal. Hide or show all masks, self-grade right/wrong tests, move down the mask list — flow never breaks. Each subject folder shows an exam countdown and logs study time. · Shapes you can re-edit anytime 30+ shapes — lines, arrows, polygons, cylinders, cones, spheres. Drag handles after inserting to tune an ellipse's flatness or a cylinder's shell thickness — great for math and science. · Fast writing with lower heat Input stays responsive as strokes pile up; eraser, paste, undo, and lasso stay smooth. Heat and battery keep improving under load — Split View, screen recording. · Built for lectures and class notes Laser pointer, reading mode, gesture shortcuts, recording, handwriting-synced playback. Recordings survive crashes and continue in the background. · Extend PDF margins on all four sides Add the mm you want per side for problem solving and notes. · Word-aware highlighting on PDF text Long-press and highlights snap to words; text stays black, never washed out. ▶ Main Features · Pen, highlighter, eraser, fountain pen — widths, colors, line styles · Layers — 5 per note, hide, lock, rename, move via lasso · Shape insertion — 30+ flat and 3D shapes, re-edit with handles · Masking highlighter — masks, right/wrong tests, mask list · Exam countdowns + auto study time per subject · Lasso selection — move, resize, rotate, copy, cut, duplicate, delete · Eraser capture delete — wipe all ink inside a closed area · Paste images — photos, screenshots, crop · Share sheet import — PDFs and photos from any app · Audio synced to handwriting — tap a stroke to jump there, up to 3x · Backlinks — all links pointing to this note · Text boxes with text style presets · Favorite pens + per-note tool memory · No-Pencil mode — finger writing, two-finger scroll · Page manager — add, delete, duplicate, rotate, multi-select · Sidebar table of contents — detects and edits PDF Outline · Unified search — PDF text, text boxes, note titles · Reading mode, laser pointer, gesture shortcuts · Design templates — study, planner, journal, creator · Folder library — nested folders, colors, favorites · iCloud sync — notes stay on device when off · WebDAV — import and full backup upload · 27 languages — 한국어/English/日本語/简体中文/繁體中文/Español/Deutsch/Français/Italiano/Português/Nederlands/Svenska/Dansk/Norsk/Suomi/Polski/Čeština/Magyar/Română/Ελληνικά/Русский/Українська/Türkçe/Tiếng Việt/ไทย/Bahasa Indonesia/Bahasa Melayu ▶ Pricing · Free for up to 20 notes · Unlimited Notes is a one-time lifetime purchase · No subscription · No ads · Family Sharing supported · Early Supporters automatically get Unlimited Notes ▶ Privacy · No note data is sent externally · Notes stay on your device or your own iCloud ▶ Recommended Setup · iPad + Apple Pencil recommended; iPhone and Mac supported · iPadOS 18 or later, optimized for 13" and 11" iPad Pro / iPad Air

Screenshots

Highlights4 screens
UnivNote4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: UnivNote at daily against Highlights's fortnightly. Highlights's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Highlights sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and UnivNote sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Highlights ships an update fortnightly, UnivNote daily. Both last shipped on October 17, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Highlights versus UnivNote: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHighlightsUnivNote
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (1.6K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews53.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.6K — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB51 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJonas Myren RibeJeonghwan Ryu

Bugs and requests

Highlights

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Highlights and annotations randomly disappearing
  • Text selection issues, especially with footnotes
  • Compatibility problems with certain PDF files
  • Syncing issues across devices
  • Export functionality not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add handwriting and freeform annotation support
  • Implement a table of contents or bookmarking feature
  • Allow editing of notes directly in the app
  • Provide a one-time purchase option instead of subscription
  • Improve search capabilities with visual results and navigation

UnivNote

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Highlights

Subscriptions3
  • Highlights Pro: Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Highlights Pro14 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Highlights Pro: Legacy Upgrade1 Year trial$29.991 Year
1 purchases

UnivNote

One-time1
  • Unlimited Notes$9.99

Questions

Is Highlights free?
Highlights is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is UnivNote free?
UnivNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Highlights or UnivNote have ads?
Neither Highlights nor UnivNote shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Highlights or UnivNote?
Highlights ships an update fortnightly, and UnivNote daily. Most recently, Highlights was updated on October 17, 2026 and UnivNote on October 17, 2026.

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