# PDF Reader vs PDFr

The clearest difference is rating: PDFr at 5.0 against PDF Reader's 4.5. PDFr also leads on review sentiment (93% vs 81%). PDF Reader's advantage is ratings volume (3.5K vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. PDF Reader sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and PDFr sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

PDFr holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 3.5K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 81% of PDF Reader's written reviews are positive against 93% of PDFr's.

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, PDFr every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Reader | PDFr |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (3.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-editor-and-viewer/id368377690/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfr-pdf-editor-converter/id6474760302/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **3.5K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 80.9% of reviews | **92.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 190 MB | 86 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Kdan Mobile Software LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/318936474) | [KARINA ROZITE](https://appshunter.io/developer/1815266833) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-editor-and-viewer/id368377690)

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:** macOS Compatibility, iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| KDAN Cloud | $2.99 | per month |
| Deluxe Business Pack | $5.99 | per month |
| Creativity 365 | $9.99 | per month |
| Document 365 (Month) | $9.99 | per month |
| Deluxe PDF Pack for iPhone | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Creativity 365 - 3 Months | $19.99 | per 3 months |
| Document 365 (Quarter) | $19.99 | per 3 months |
| Deluxe PDF Pack for iPhone | $39.99 | per year |
| Document 365 | $59.99 | per year |
| Upgrade to Premium | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Good app
- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 📚 Useful for reading PDFs
- 🔒 Secure file storage
- 💡 Helpful features like highlighting and annotation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🔐 Locked files behind paywall
- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 📢 Intrusive ads
- 🤯 Confusing and unintuitive UI

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

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


### PDFr

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdfr-pdf-editor-converter/id6474760302)

This app allows you to scan documents, convert them to PDF, and edit existing PDF files. You can also add watermarks, signatures, and annotations, as well as manage pages and merge files.

**Highlights:** Scan and convert documents to PDF, Edit PDF files, Add watermarks and signatures, Annotate PDFs, Manage pages and files, Compress and merge PDFs

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly trial | $3.99 | per 7 days |
| Week | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| 3-day Trial | $5.99 | per 7 days |
| Month | $9.99 | per month |
| Offer | $19.99 | per year |
| pdf editor | $29.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Reader free?

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

### Is PDFr free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PDFr?

PDFr is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.5 out of 5 from 3.5K ratings, while PDFr averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do PDF Reader or PDFr have ads?

Neither PDF Reader nor PDFr shows ads.

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

PDF Reader ships an update every 2 months, and PDFr every 3 months. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on September 24, 2026 and PDFr on June 5, 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.*