Comparison

Docusign vs PDF Expert

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

Head to head
About

Docusign

Securely send and sign digital documents, contracts, and PDFs from any device. Create your own signature, upload files from various cloud services, and manage the signing process with ease. It's a legally binding and secure way to handle agreements.

Highlights
  • Create custom digital signatures
  • Upload documents from cloud storage
  • Unlimited free signing for all parties
  • Prepare documents with signature tags
  • Set signing order for multiple signers
  • Real-time signing notifications
  • Supports multiple document formats
Features
Read full description

Docusign eSignature is the world’s #1 way for businesses and individuals to securely send and sign agreements from practically anywhere, at any time, from almost any device. The Docusign app is easy to use, includes unlimited free signing for all parties, and is trusted by millions of people worldwide. HOW DOCUSIGN WORKS | e-Sign PDFs, forms, and contracts on the go. • Step 1: Create your customized digital signature directly on your device. • Step 2: Upload documents easily via email, Google Drive, DropBox, Box, Evernote, Salesforce, or photo scanning. • Step 3: E-sign your documents for free with no monthly limit. STREAMLINED, SIMPLIFIED MANAGEMENT | Send and monitor agreements straight from your device. • Step 1: Import files to prepare and send them out for signature. • Step 2: Prepare your document with “Sign Here” tags that show precisely where to sign, initial, or add additional information and invite others to sign. • You can set the signing order and workflow for multiple signers. • Docusign supports both in-person and remote signing. • Responsive signing functionality automatically adapts documents for mobile to the size and orientation of the signer’s device. • Step 3: Remind signers to sign with a single tap or void a document that has already been sent for signature. • Step 4: Receive real-time push notifications when a document has been signed. E-SIGNATURE THROUGH DOCUSIGN IS LEGAL AND SECURE. Docusign’s complies with the eSign Act, which means: • Agreements are legally binding. • There is a complete audit trail to track who signed when and where. • Documents are encrypted; this is safer and more secure than paper. • Docusign is ISO 27001 SSAE16 compliant. Docusign’s free eSignature app supports multiple document types and formats, including: • PDF • Word • Excel • Images (JPEG, PNG, TIFF) • Text-Based Files Common documents to digitally sign with Docusign: • Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) • Sales contracts and proposals • Health care documents • Financial agreements • Waivers • Permission slips • Lease agreements PREMIUM PLANS In addition to the free signing experience, Docusign offers advanced features through subscription plans: Business Pro Plan • Send documents out for signature. • Add logic and advanced fields to your most critical documents. • Automate your agreement process with bulk send, powerforms, comments and personalized branding. Standard Plan • Send documents out for signature. • Access to advanced fields including Docusign’s most popular. • Manage signing on-the-go. Remind, void, in-person signing, and reusable templates. Real Estate Plan • Send documents out for signature. • Powerful real estate features including zipForm Plus integration and web branding. • Managing signing on-the-go. Remind, void, in-person signing, and reusable templates. Personal Plan • Limited document sending. Send up to 5 documents monthly. • Access to essential fields. Request signature, date, and name. • Reusable templates so you can standardize your documents. Email your questions or feedback to: mobilefeedback@docusign.com Find out more about Docusign and electronic signatures: https://www.docusign.com/products/electronic-signature/how-docusign-works Subscription Plan Information: • Payment is charged to iTunes Account at the time a user confirms purchase. • Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. • Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's account settings after purchase. • Cancellation of the current subscription is not allowed during the active subscription period. Privacy Policy: https://www.docusign.com/privacy/ Agreements and Terms: https://www.docusign.com/legal/agreements/

About

PDF Expert

This app allows you to edit, annotate, fill out forms, and convert PDF documents. It offers AI-powered summarization and analysis, along with tools to merge, sign, and protect your files. Work seamlessly across Apple devices with a user-friendly interface.

Highlights
  • Edit PDF text and images
  • Annotate and highlight PDFs
  • Fill out PDF forms
  • Convert files to and from PDF
  • AI-powered summarization and analysis
  • Merge and combine PDF files
  • Sign documents with e-signatures
Features
Read full description

PDF Expert is a fast and easy PDF app to read, annotate, fill and sign PDF forms, convert files to PDF, and merge, split or compress documents – all in one intuitive app for iPhone, iPad, Mac & Vision Pro. Read PDF files with comfort, highlight and mark up text, fill out forms, sign contracts, create and convert PDFs, and summarize long documents in seconds with AI-powered tools. Unlock unlimited possibilities with PDF Expert Premium and work across all your Apple devices. "PDF Expert is one of my must-have iPad apps and a desktop-class PDF reader." – MacStories "The best app for managing, editing, and reading PDFs on your iPad." – The Sweet Setup ▶ WITH PDF EXPERT, YOU CAN: READ PDFs - PDF reader with Day, Night, and Sepia modes for comfortable reading anytime - Scroll PDFs vertically or horizontally and search text in any document - Open and view PDF files from email, web, Files, or any app via the Share menu - Read PDFs out loud with Text to Speech ANNOTATE AND MARK UP PDFs - Highlight, underline, and strike through text in your PDFs - Mark up documents with pen, shapes, text, notes, and comments - Add stamps such as Approved or Confidential - Record your voice and add audio notes to PDFs FILL AND SIGN PDF FORMS - Fill out PDF forms with text fields, checkboxes, and radio buttons - Sign PDF documents in seconds – draw your signature or add it from an image - Save your signature to sign contracts, agreements, invoices, and applications faster - Fill, sign, and send forms right from your iPhone – no printing or scanning needed - Supports all major form formats, including AcroForms and static XFA forms ***PREMIUM FEATURES*** EDIT PDFs - Edit text directly in a PDF – just as you would in a Word document - Add, replace, and resize images in your PDFs - Add links to other pages or websites - Add outlines to navigate large PDFs CREATE AND CONVERT PDFs - Create PDFs from Word files, images, and other documents - Convert Word to PDF, JPG to PDF, and PNG to PDF in seconds - Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, PNG, and TXT MERGE, SPLIT AND ORGANIZE PDFs - Merge and combine multiple PDF files into one - Split PDFs and extract pages into a new file - Add, delete, rotate, and reorder pages with thumbnail preview COMPRESS PDFs - Compress PDFs to reduce file size for email and sharing - Shrink large PDF files to save space on your device SUMMARIZE PDFs WITH AI – PDF COPILOT - List Main Points – get key takeaways from any PDF - Summarize – get concise summaries of entire PDFs or annotations - Ask Anything – find details with AI answers and references - Explain – get instant explanations of words or phrases PROTECT YOUR FILES - Password-protect PDF Expert - Redact – permanently black out sensitive information WORK WITH SCANNED DOCUMENTS - Open scanned PDFs to fill out, sign, annotate, and share CONSTRUCTION TOOLS - Scale and measure drawings with the Measure tab - Polygon, polyline, and redline tools MORE FEATURES - Customizable toolbar - Presentation Mode - Print and share PDFs via email or cloud ONE ACCOUNT FOR ALL YOUR APPLE DEVICES One Premium subscription covers PDF Expert on iPhone, iPad, and Mac – no need to buy versions separately. Read more about our terms and conditions here: https://pdfexpert.com/privacy https://pdfexpert.com/terms Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at http://readdle.com/contact

Screenshots

Docusign4 screens
PDF Expert4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Docusign at 70% against PDF Expert's 46%. Docusign also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7) and ratings volume (827K vs 216K). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Docusign sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month and PDF Expert sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Docusign holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 827K and 216K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 70% of Docusign's written reviews are positive against 46% of PDF Expert's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Docusign versus PDF Expert: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDocusignPDF Expert
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (827K ratings) — better4.7 (216K ratings)
Positive reviews69.7% of reviews — better46.0% of reviews
Number of ratings827K — better216K
Update frequencyFortnightlyFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#34 — better#70
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size91 MB307 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDocusignReaddle Technologies Limited

Customer experience

Docusign

All ratings826,948 ratings
Positive97.3%
Neutral1.4%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews1,068 reviews
Positive69.7%
Neutral3.9%
Negative26.4%

PDF Expert

All ratings215,975 ratings
Positive92.4%
Neutral2.3%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews1,136 reviews
Positive46.0%
Neutral7.5%
Negative46.6%

User reviews

Docusign

From 827K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Convenient for signing documents on the go
  • 🚀 Saves time and effort
  • 🔒 Secure digital signatures
  • 👍 Useful for businesses and individuals

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Glitches with placing signatures and text boxes
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance across devices
  • 🐛 Issues with editing and updating documents
  • 🐛 Unreliable customer support
  • 🔋 High battery consumption

PDF Expert

From 216K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and responsive
  • 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
  • 💡 Powerful annotation and editing tools
  • 🔒 Seamless cloud integration
  • 📚 Excellent for reading and organizing PDFs

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
  • 🔒 Subscription model for advanced features
  • 🔒 Inconsistent pricing and feature changes
  • 🔍 Cluttered and confusing UI in latest update
  • 🔍 Reduced customization options for annotations

Bugs and requests

Docusign

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to log in or verify account
  • Signed documents not appearing in the app
  • Inconsistent behavior when finishing and sending documents
  • Compatibility issues with certain devices and operating systems

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add strikethrough functionality
  • Improve text box editing and placement
  • Allow more customization of signature appearance
  • Integrate with more document formats (e.g., Word)
  • Provide better in-app guidance and tutorials
Show 1 more
  • Improve mobile app performance and stability

PDF Expert

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Corrupted PDFs after editing
  • Sync issues with cloud storage providers
  • Unexpected loss of annotations and edits
  • Unreliable performance on older iPad models

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved palm rejection for Apple Pencil
  • Customizable toolbar and annotation presets
  • Better integration with other productivity apps
  • More flexible file management and organization
  • Ability to create fillable PDF forms

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Docusign

Subscriptions8
  • Personal Edition$14.991 Month
  • Professional Edition$19.991 Month
  • DocuSign for REALTORS®2 variants$34.991 Month
Show 5 more
  • Standard Edition2 variants$39.991 Month
  • Real Estate Edition$39.991 Month
  • Business Pro Monthly$59.991 Month
  • Business Pro$59.991 Month
  • Personal Edition$119.991 Year
10 purchases

PDF Expert

Subscriptions9
  • PDF Expert Premium Trial7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • PDF Expert Premium No Trial$9.991 Month
  • PDF Expert for Education7 Days trial$39.991 Year
Show 6 more
  • PDF Expert Premium7 Days trial3 variants$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Premium New7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Premium Existing7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert – Premium Editing1 Year trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Mac & iOS Pro7 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Mac & iOS7 Days trial$79.991 Year
One-time1
  • PDF Expert Basic$9.99

Questions

Is Docusign free?
Docusign is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PDF Expert free?
PDF Expert is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Docusign or PDF Expert?
Docusign is rated higher. Docusign averages 4.9 out of 5 from 827K ratings, while PDF Expert averages 4.7 from 216K ratings.
Do Docusign or PDF Expert have ads?
Neither Docusign nor PDF Expert shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Docusign or PDF Expert?
Docusign ships an update fortnightly, and PDF Expert fortnightly. Most recently, Docusign was updated on September 25, 2026 and PDF Expert on September 25, 2026.
Which is more popular, Docusign or PDF Expert?
Docusign currently peaks at #34 in the App Store charts, and PDF Expert at #70. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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