# Acrobat Reader vs PDF Maker

The clearest difference is ads: Acrobat Reader at none against PDF Maker's shown. Acrobat Reader also leads on update cadence (every 9 days vs every 5 months) and ratings volume (654K vs 85). PDF Maker's advantage is review sentiment (61% vs 49%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.3). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Acrobat Reader sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and PDF Maker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Acrobat Reader against 4.7 for PDF Maker. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Acrobat Reader has 654K ratings behind it against 85, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 49% of Acrobat Reader's written reviews are positive against 61% of PDF Maker's.

Acrobat Reader ships an update every 9 days, PDF Maker every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Acrobat Reader | PDF Maker |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (654K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/acrobat-reader-pdf-editor/id469337564/reviews) | **[4.7 (85 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-maker-scanner-and-convert/id1232567191/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **654K** | 85 |
| Positive reviews | 49.1% of reviews | **61.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Every 5 months |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#2** | — |
| Size | 522 MB | 20 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.3 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Adobe Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/331646274) | [Kruti Patel](https://appshunter.io/developer/1228160192) |

## What reviewers say

### Acrobat Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/acrobat-reader-pdf-editor/id469337564)

**Currently charting:** #2 Top Grossing · Business, #14 Top Free · Business, #81 Top Grossing (US App Store)

This app is a powerful PDF tool for viewing, editing, annotating, and signing documents. It offers AI-powered features for summarizing and interacting with PDFs, along with robust conversion and security options. Collaborate on files and access your documents from anywhere.

**Highlights:** View, edit, and annotate PDFs, Sign and fill PDF forms, Convert files to and from PDF, AI-powered document summarization, Collaborate in PDF Spaces, Compress and secure PDFs, Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

**Features:** iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (16)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Acrobat Premium - Monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| Adobe Acrobat Premium | $4.99 | per month |
| AI Assistant for Acrobat | $6.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Premium | $7.49 | per 7 days |
| Acrobat Premium - Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Premium - Weekly | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| PDF Pack - Doc Creator | $9.99 | per month |
| Premium - Edit & Create PDF | $9.99 | per month |
| PDF Edit and Convert Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Premium - Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Premium - Monthly | $14.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Reader Plus - Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Adobe ExportPDF | $23.99 | per year |
| Adobe Acrobat Pro | $24.99 | per month |
| Acrobat Premium - Yearly | $48.99 | per year |
| Acrobat Premium - Yearly | $69.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 🔒 Secure document storage
- 👍 Convenient for reading and annotating PDFs
- 👍 Useful for students and professionals

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable
- 🔒 Overly intrusive login requirements
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 👎 Counterintuitive user interface changes
- 🔍 Poor search and organization features

**Reported bugs**

- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Inconsistent behavior when editing PDFs
- Inability to open or save certain file types
- Sync issues between mobile and desktop versions

**Requested features**

- Add erase tool for annotations
- Improve palm rejection for Apple Pencil
- Allow direct text editing in PDFs
- Provide better cloud integration and sync
- Offer more customization options


### PDF Maker

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-maker-scanner-and-convert/id1232567191)

Easily transform your photos and scanned documents into professional PDF files. This app allows you to import images, scan documents with automatic edge detection, apply filters, and edit pages before sharing your creations via email and other platforms.

**Highlights:** Photo to PDF conversion, Built-in scanner with auto-cropping, Apply filters (B&W, Grayscale), Manual cropping, PDF page rotation and deletion, Insert pages into existing PDFs, Share PDFs via email

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Upgrade to Pro | $2.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Acrobat Reader free?

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

### Is PDF Maker free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Acrobat Reader or PDF Maker?

PDF Maker is rated higher. Acrobat Reader averages 4.6 out of 5 from 654K ratings, while PDF Maker averages 4.7 from 85 ratings.

### Do Acrobat Reader or PDF Maker have ads?

PDF Maker shows ads; Acrobat Reader does not.

### Which is updated more often, Acrobat Reader or PDF Maker?

Acrobat Reader ships an update every 9 days, and PDF Maker every 5 months. Most recently, Acrobat Reader was updated on September 29, 2026 and PDF Maker on September 18, 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.*