# Documents vs Pearltrees

The clearest difference is rating: Documents at 4.8 against Pearltrees's 4.2. Documents also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (626K vs 186). Pearltrees's advantage is review sentiment (86% vs 71%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Documents sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and Pearltrees sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Documents holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Documents has 626K ratings behind it against 186, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 71% of Documents's written reviews are positive against 86% of Pearltrees's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Documents ships an update weekly, Pearltrees every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Documents | Pearltrees |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (626K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/documents-file-manager/id364901807/reviews)** | [4.2 (186 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pearltrees/id463462134/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **626K** | 186 |
| Positive reviews | 71.0% of reviews | **85.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#69** | — |
| Size | 431 MB | 96 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Readdle Technologies Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/285035419) | [Broceliand SAS](https://appshunter.io/developer/463462137) |

## What reviewers say

### Documents

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/documents-file-manager/id364901807)

**Currently charting:** #69 Top Grossing · Productivity, #106 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

This app is a comprehensive file manager and document editor for mobile devices. It allows users to organize, edit, convert, and annotate various file types, including PDFs, Office documents, and audio/video files. It also features transcription, scanning, and cloud integration.

**Highlights:** Edit PDFs directly, Convert files to PDF, Organize files and folders, Transcribe audio and video, Scan documents, Play audio and video, Transfer files via Wi-Fi

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

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Documents Plus | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Documents Plus | $9.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $9.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $9.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $9.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $12.49 | per month |
| Documents VPN | $12.49 | per month |
| Documents VPN | $12.49 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $14.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $14.99 | per month |
| Documents Plus | $49.99 | per year |
| Documents Plus | $59.99 | per year |
| Documents VPN | $89.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 💯 Excellent file management capabilities
- 🚀 Seamless integration with cloud services
- 📚 Versatile document viewer and editor
- 🎵 Reliable offline music player
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Concerns over in-app subscription model
- 🔍 Inconsistent search and file management functionality
- 🔋 High storage consumption
- 🤔 Confusing changes in recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- Disappearing downloaded files and folders
- Unreliable audio playback with skipping and pausing
- Inability to open certain file types after updates
- Syncing issues between local storage and cloud services

**Requested features**

- Customizable volume controls for audio playback
- Improved PDF annotation tools
- Option to expand/collapse all bookmarks in documents
- Ability to permanently delete files
- Faster file transfer and syncing between devices


### Pearltrees

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pearltrees/id463462134)

Organize all your digital content, from web pages to files, into visually appealing collections. Enhance your content with AI and discover new resources on topics you love. Access your organized information anytime, anywhere, and collaborate with others.

**Highlights:** Organize all content types, AI content transformation, Discover and share resources, Access collections anywhere, Collaborate on topics, Visual content collections

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| the Pearltrees Premium Personal plan | $1.99 | per month |
| the Pearltrees Premium Personal plan | $2.99 | per month |
| the Pearltrees Premium Advanced plan | $3.99 | per month |
| the Pearltrees Premium Advanced plan | $4.99 | per month |
| the Pearltrees Premium Professional plan | $9.99 | per month |
| the Pearltrees Premium Personal plan | $19.99 | per year |
| the Pearltrees Premium Personal plan | $29.99 | per year |
| the Pearltrees Premium Advanced plan | $39.99 | per year |
| the Pearltrees Premium Advanced plan | $49.99 | per year |
| month | $1.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Visually appealing and intuitive
- 💡 Excellent for organizing and sharing web content
- 👍 Seamless cross-platform experience
- 💡 Collaborative features for sharing and discovering new content

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Privacy concerns with public profiles by default
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and performance issues
- 💡 Desire for more customization options (e.g., private trees, custom icons)
- 🐛 Difficulty in navigating large collections of 'pearls'

**Reported bugs**

- Login and sign-up process can be confusing
- Syncing issues between devices
- Compatibility problems with older devices and operating systems

**Requested features**

- Add ability to take notes, annotate, and add context to 'pearls'
- Improve search and organization tools for large collections
- Provide more privacy controls and options for private content
- Integrate with more third-party services and apps


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Documents free?

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

### Is Pearltrees free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Documents or Pearltrees?

Documents is rated higher. Documents averages 4.8 out of 5 from 626K ratings, while Pearltrees averages 4.2 from 186 ratings.

### Do Documents or Pearltrees have ads?

Neither Documents nor Pearltrees shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Documents or Pearltrees?

Documents ships an update weekly, and Pearltrees every 3 months. Most recently, Documents was updated on September 25, 2026 and Pearltrees on September 24, 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.*