Comparison

PDF Reader vs PDF Only

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

Head to head
About

PDF Reader

Edit, convert, and manage PDF documents on your mobile device. This app allows you to directly edit text, scan documents, fill out forms, and secure your files with passwords and watermarks. It also supports OCR to extract text from scans and convert PDFs to various formats.

Highlights
  • Edit PDF text directly
  • Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT, images
  • OCR for text extraction from scans
  • Fill and sign PDF forms
  • Secure PDFs with passwords and watermarks
  • Annotate PDFs with highlights and notes
  • Merge and split PDF files
Features
Read full description

KDAN PDF, formerly KDAN PDF Reader, is a mobile PDF editor and reader for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Edit text directly on your device. Then scan, organize, convert, sign, and share your PDFs in one simple and powerful app. Trusted by millions, KDAN PDF connects your workflow across iPhone, iPad, and Mac, making it easy to review, annotate, and finalize documents anywhere. Who Recommends Us? - Featured as “10 Essentials” in Utility on iTunes - Featured in “10 Best PDF Reader Apps For iPhone & iPad 2019” by FOSSBYTES - Featured as “Best Utility App” in App Store Rewind KEY FEATURES PDF EDITOR • Edit and correct any typos directly on PDFs • Merge multiple files into one PDF • Split a large PDF into several small PDFs • Rotate, delete, add, and rearrange pages • Extract pages or images from PDFs • Change PDF background color PDF CONVERTER • Online & Offline PDF converter • Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT & image conversions (docx, xlsx, pptx, jpg, png, gif & bmp). • Save webpages and images as PDFs OCR (Optical Character Recognition) • Recognize and extract text from scans • Export OCR results as text or searchable PDFs • Support 50+ languages SIGN, FORM FILLING, SHARE • Fill out & edit PDF forms • Sign on PDFs • Customize and manage signatures SHARE FILES • Get files from KDAN Cloud, iCloud Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, Evernote, FTP, or WebDAV client • Compress PDFs • Share flatten PDFs • Send faxes directly from within the app PDF SECURITY • Add passwords to lock PDFs • Remove passwords & restrictions from PDFs • Add & remove PDF watermarks • Validate certificates & signatures in PDF documents VIEW FILES • Supports all mainstream file formats, including Vitrium* PDF format (Like University of Phoenix Ebooks) • Text Reflow & Auto Flow • Present a PDF as a slideshow • View multiple PDFs as tabs • Dark mode supported (only for iOS13 & macOS Mojave and later) • Convert text to spoken audio (text-to-speech) ANNOTATE & REVIEW PDF • Annotate PDFs with highlights, underlines, strikeout text, shapes, sticky notes & text boxes • Add pre-designed stamps, including Approved, Sign Here, Confidential, and more • Add custom stamps with time and date information • Insert hyperlinks to external websites, target pages, and email address • Attach audio notes & insert images to PDFs • Turn handwriting into text with Scribble (Available for iPad) • Add handwritten notes to PDFs MANAGE ANNOTATIONS • Save annotations in XFDF format • Remove all annotations in one tap - Recommended by Techradar, Techworm & Softsonic UPGRADE OPTIONS DOCUMENT 365 • Try for $0.00 for 7 days • Access KDAN PDF on Mac, iPhone, iPad, and other platforms. • Annual plan: billed at USD 59.99/year after the 7-day free trial ends • Quarterly plan: billed at USD 19.99/quarter after 3-day free trial ends • Monthly plan: billed at USD 9.99/month after 3-day free trial ends Subscriptions will be charged to your Apple account upon purchase and will auto-renew 24 hours before the current period ends at the same price and duration. Cancellation during the active period is not allowed. Manage your trial and subscription in your Apple account. Terms of service: https://pdf-reader.kdandoc.com/terms-of-service Privacy Policy: https://pdf-reader.kdandoc.com/privacy-policy Got a question? Contact us at helpdesk@kdanmobile.com or check out https://support.kdanmobile.com

About

PDF Only

This utility app allows users to sign, protect with passwords, and remove passwords from PDF documents. It offers essential PDF editing functionalities for everyday use.

Highlights
  • Sign PDF documents
  • Protect PDFs with passwords
  • Remove PDF passwords
  • Create PDF documents
  • Modify PDF documents
Features
Read full description

PDF Only is the all‑in‑one PDF toolkit for iPhone and iPad. Everything happens on your device — your documents never leave it, and the tools work offline. Whether you need to scan a contract, sign a form, merge reports, shrink a file for email, or pull the text out of a scanned page, PDF Only has a simple, dedicated tool for it. VIEW & ORGANIZE - Built‑in PDF viewer - Merge multiple PDFs into one - Reorder, rotate and delete pages - Split a PDF into separate files CONVERT - Images → PDF - Scan documents with your camera - Convert documents to PDF - PDF → Images - PDF → Text - OCR — make scanned PDFs searchable EDIT & MARKUP - Sign PDFs with your finger or Apple Pencil - Annotate: draw, highlight, add shapes and erase — with a full color palette - Add watermarks OPTIMIZE - Compress PDFs to reduce file size SECURITY - Lock PDFs with a password - Unlock password‑protected PDFs SHARE FROM ANYWHERE - Open PDFs and images straight from Mail, Files, Photos and other apps with the share sheet. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your files are processed locally on your device. No accounts, and no uploads to a server just to edit a file. Terms of Use (EULA): https://faacil.com/terms-conditions Questions or feedback? Visit faacil.com/support

Screenshots

PDF Reader4 screens
PDF Only4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PDF Reader at Free against PDF Only's $1.99. PDF Reader also leads on rating (4.6 vs 1.0) and ratings volume (3.8K vs 1). On update cadence, 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

PDF Reader is free to download; PDF Only costs $1.99 up front. PDF Reader sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and PDF Only sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.8K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, PDF Only monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
PDF Reader versus PDF Only: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF ReaderPDF Only
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.6 (3.8K ratings) — better1.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews80.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings3.8K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size190 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKdan Mobile Software LTDJuan Camilo Marin Ochoa

Customer experience

PDF Reader

All ratings3,542 ratings
Positive89.2%
Neutral2.7%
Negative8.2%
Written reviews2,196 reviews
Positive80.8%
Neutral4.8%
Negative14.4%

PDF Only

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

PDF Reader

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Unable to open or access saved files
  • Syncing and backup issues
  • Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved file management and organization
  • Better integration with cloud storage services
  • More customization options
  • Enhanced accessibility features

PDF Only

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

PDF Reader

Subscriptions9
  • KDAN Cloud$2.991 Month
  • Deluxe Business Pack$5.991 Month
  • Creativity 3653 Days trial$9.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • Document 365 (Month)3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Deluxe PDF Pack for iPhone$12.993 Months
  • Creativity 365 - 3 Months3 Days trial$19.993 Months
  • Document 365 (Quarter)3 Days trial$19.993 Months
  • Deluxe PDF Pack for iPhone$39.991 Year
  • Document 3657 Days trial$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • Upgrade to Premium$2.99
2 purchases

PDF Only

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly payment$1.991 Month
  • Annual payments$14.991 Year

Questions

Is PDF Reader free?
PDF Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PDF Only free?
PDF Only costs $1.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PDF Only?
PDF Reader is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.8K ratings, while PDF Only averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.
Do PDF Reader or PDF Only have ads?
Neither PDF Reader nor PDF Only shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or PDF Only?
PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and PDF Only monthly. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on November 13, 2026 and PDF Only on November 4, 2026.

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