# PDFelement vs PDF Reader

PDFelement and PDF Reader are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Both are free to download. PDFelement sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and PDF Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

PDFelement ships an update every 10 days, PDF Reader weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDFelement | PDF Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (7.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfelement-pdf-editor-viewer/id1516765045/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **7.6K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 76.1% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 196 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 16.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Wondershare Technology Group Co.,LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/298647757) | [Rajesh Ray](https://appshunter.io/developer/1853271111) |

## What reviewers say

### 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


### PDF Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-auto-scroll-and-scan/id6755335926)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Lifetime | $9.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDFelement free?

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

### Is PDF Reader free?

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

### Do PDFelement or PDF Reader have ads?

Both PDFelement and PDF Reader show ads.

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

PDFelement ships an update every 10 days, and PDF Reader weekly. Most recently, PDFelement was updated on October 18, 2026 and PDF Reader on October 7, 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.*