# Documents vs PDF Reader Pro

The clearest difference is price: PDF Reader Pro at Free against Documents's $4.99. Documents's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and ads (none vs shown). On rating, update cadence, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

PDF Reader Pro is free to download; Documents costs $4.99 up front. PDF Reader Pro sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $39.99 per year. Documents asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Documents against 4.4 for PDF Reader Pro. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Documents has 4.5K ratings behind it against 437, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 72% of Documents's written reviews are positive against 64% of PDF Reader Pro's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Documents | PDF Reader Pro |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $4.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.5 (4.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/documents/id295798315/reviews)** | [4.4 (437 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pro-lite-edition/id919472509/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **4.5K** | 437 |
| Positive reviews | **71.9% of reviews** | 63.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#148** | — |
| Size | 41 MB | 194 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 13.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Savy Soda Pty Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/295726257) | [PDF Technologies, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1263126485) |

## What reviewers say

### Documents

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/documents/id295798315)

**Currently charting:** #148 Top Paid · Business (US App Store)

This mobile office suite and file manager allows users to edit and manage spreadsheets, text, and image files on their iPhone and iPad. It offers online and offline functionality, with seamless integration for transferring files between cloud storage services and computers.

**Highlights:** Edit spreadsheets, text, and image files, File management, Cloud storage integration (iCloud, Google Docs, Dropbox), File transfer via USB and WiFi, Works online and offline, Create, view, and manage photos

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Efficient document management
- 🔒 Secure storage of important files
- 💡 Convenient for on-the-go access to documents
- 👍 Reliable and dependable app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezes
- 🐛 Issues with font/formatting changes
- 🐛 Problems opening certain file types
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🐛 Inconsistent behavior after updates

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to open or edit certain documents
- Unexpected loss of data or documents
- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Auto-save feature
- Improved file transfer and syncing capabilities
- Better organization and search tools
- Enhanced editing and formatting options
- Support for more file types and cloud services


### PDF Reader Pro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-pro-lite-edition/id919472509)

This app offers comprehensive tools for managing PDF documents on mobile devices. It allows users to read, edit text and images, annotate, fill forms, convert to various formats, compress files, and perform OCR. Organize, protect, and share your PDFs with ease.

**Highlights:** Read PDFs with multiple viewing options, Edit PDF text and images, Annotate with highlights, notes, and drawings, Fill out PDF forms, Convert PDFs to Word, Excel, and other formats, Perform OCR on PDFs, Compress PDF file sizes

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

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Add 2-Device · Advanced Annual | $39.99 | per year |
| Add Devices · Advanced Annual | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Pro · Advanced Annual | $79.99 | per year |
| PDF Pro · AI Annual | $79.99 | per year |
| Permanent License | $24.99 | one-time |
| PDF Pro · Advanced Permanent | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 💡 Useful features like highlighting and annotating
- 👍 Great for reading and studying PDFs

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Security issues with locked files
- 💰 Expensive upgrade to unlock full functionality
- 🤖 Poor customer support and unresponsive developers

**Reported bugs**

- Annotations not saving or displaying correctly
- App crashing when trying to convert or edit PDFs
- Syncing issues between devices
- Unexpected password locks on files

**Requested features**

- Undo/redo functionality for annotations
- More font and theme options
- Improved compatibility with cloud storage services
- Better support for older devices


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Documents free?

Documents costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is PDF Reader Pro free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Documents or PDF Reader Pro?

Documents is rated higher. Documents averages 4.5 out of 5 from 4.5K ratings, while PDF Reader Pro averages 4.4 from 437 ratings.

### Do Documents or PDF Reader Pro have ads?

PDF Reader Pro shows ads; Documents does not.

### Which is updated more often, Documents or PDF Reader Pro?

Documents ships an update every 2 months, and PDF Reader Pro every 2 months. Most recently, Documents was updated on September 24, 2026 and PDF Reader Pro on September 22, 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.*