Comparison

FineReader vs Scanner PDF

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

Head to head
About

FineReader

Transform your mobile device into a powerful scanner for documents and books. Extract text from images with advanced OCR technology, create editable digital copies, and share them easily. Organize and annotate your scanned files with intelligent features.

Highlights
  • Scan documents and books
  • Offline and online OCR
  • Extract text to TXT
  • Save as PDF and JPEG
  • Share to cloud storage
  • Annotate PDFs
  • Automatic document classification
Features
Read full description

ABBYY FineReader PDF - the first smart AI-powered scanner that turns your mobile device into an all-purpose tool to quickly capture docs and books, create electronic copies in PDF and JPEG, and extract texts from scans for further editing and sharing. FineReader PDF - the top mobile scanner for iPhone or iPad from ABBYY, a Digital Intelligence company. *** Ranked #1 Business application in 98 countries *** *** Winner of SUPERSTAR Award in the "Document Capture" category in the Mobile Star Awards *** Use FineReader PDF to scan paper documents, books, agreements, receipts, magazine articles, notes, recipes, charts, tables, slides, whiteboards, or even billboards on the street and get perfect digital copies. KEY FEATURES • PDF & JPEG. Scan any text and save scans to JPEG images or cross-platform PDF documents. • OFFLINE OCR. Quickly extract text from scans into TXT format on your device without an internet connection. • ONLINE OCR. Recognize text (OCR) on scans in 183 languages (including Latin, Cyrillic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean alphabets) and choose from among 4 output formats. • SHARE & EXPORT. Send results by email, to FineReader PDF for Windows, save in cloud storages - iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive, Yandex.Disk, Evernote, OneDrive for Business, and more. • LIVE TEXT. Make phone calls, send emails, follow the links, and more from scanned docs. • ABBYY NEURAL NETWORK. The smart gallery will automatically classify documents into 7 types: A4, books, business cards, handwritten, IDs, other docs, and receipts. • SEARCH TEXT ON PHOTOS. Type the text from a photo into a Search field in the gallery. FineReader PDF will find photos that have this text. • AR RULER. Define doc size in AR. It will be useful for non-standard documents and further printing them out in proper proportions. • SIRI SHORTCUTS. Open scans with Siri and set the flow of actions with scans using Shortcuts app. • ANNOTATE SCANS. Discover a set of easy-to-use tools to modify your PDFs: add your signature or a text box, use a highlighter, write with a pen, or conceal content with the redaction tool. • 3D TOUCH & SPOTLIGHT SEARCH SUPPORT. • PASSWORD ON PDF. Add a password for the image-only PDF files while exporting and sending via email. • MULTIPAGE DOCS. Create, edit, and enhance separate images or large multi-page documents without any additional selection on the viewfinder. • AUTO-CAPTURE AND FILTERS. Excellent visual quality with auto-capture of page boundaries and advanced image filters, which process scans in color, greyscale, or black-and-white versions. • BUILT-IN FILE STORAGE. Save scans inside the app with tags and search capabilities. • Transfer docs to your Mac or PC using Home Sharing. • AIRPRINT. Print out scans directly from your iPhone or iPad. Read us: abbyy.com/blog/mobile Facebook.com/ABBYYsoft Twitter @ABBYY_Software YouTube.com/ABBYYvideos Do you like FineReader PDF? Please leave a review!

About

Scanner PDF

This app transforms your phone into a portable scanner. Easily digitize documents, add signatures and stamps, and convert them into high-quality PDFs or JPEGs. It also features OCR for text recognition and translation, and allows direct faxing.

Highlights
  • Scan documents with phone camera
  • Convert to PDF, JPEG, PNG
  • OCR text recognition and translation
  • E-sign and stamp documents
  • Direct faxing from device
  • Cloud storage backup
Features
Read full description

PDF Scanner App is a powerful scanner that fits in your pocket! Discover a universal tool to scan any paper document and save its digital version in a wink. Scan, sign, affix and share multipage documents in high quality PDFs or JPEGs easier than ever. Enjoy the smoothest experience while scanning: - Business documents, agreements, letters, invoices, order sheets and email them back - Paper notes and sketches to always keep them at hand - Any articles and book pages for later read - Receipts to keep track of travel expenses - Business cards to save the important contacts - Rentals, credit notes, bills or any other printed documents Recognize text on your scans with OCR: - Extract and edit text from books, bills, scans, etc. - Printed and handwritten text will be automatically recognized - Translate recognized text into 100+ languages E-sign and stamp documents right on your device: - Put one or several signatures and stamps into the app - Add them to any scanned pages in a tap Share your scans via: - Email or message documents as PDF, JPEG, or PNG, or save to Photos - Export to Dropbox, Evernote, Google Drive or open in any 3rd party application Fax directly from the Scanner App: - Take photos of documents with your camera - E-sign or stamp your faxes - Fax from iPhone in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, etc. - Use delivery tracking to check fax status Have all your files within Cloud Storage: - All your Scanner App files in Cloud Storage are backed up safely so you don’t lose them Keep all the important docs at your fingertips and beat back the paper clutter easy breezy! We offer a great feature for our users called Business Pack! Now you can use one subscription to access both “Scanner PDF – Scan Documents”, "Call Recorder for Me", "Second Phone Number for Me" and "Invoice Maker app" apps simultaneously. Our “Second Phone Number for Me” app gives users the ability to have one more number without an additional sim card. One phone, two numbers! "Call Recorder" helps you to record phone calls. "Invoice Maker app" is an amazing tool for invoice creating. Great for small business! Business Pack subscription gives access to "Scanner PDF - Scan Documents", "Call Recorder for Me", "Second Phone Number for Me" and "Invoice Maker app" apps simultaneously. Basic premium subscription gives access to "Scanner PDF - Scan Documents" app only. Choose from different subscription options! Business Pack subscriptions: - 1 Week Business Pack - 1 Month Business Pack - 6 Months Business Pack - 1 Year Business Pack Basic premium Scanner subscriptions: - 1 Month Subscription - 6 Months Subscription - 1 Year Subscription * Subscription with a free trial period will automatically renew to a paid subscription. * Please note: any unused portion of a free trial period (if offered) will be forfeited when you purchase a premium subscription during the free trial period. * You can cancel a free trial or subscription anytime by canceling your subscription through your iTunes account settings. This must be done 24 hours before the end of a free trial or subscription period to avoid being charged. The cancellation will take effect the day after the last day of the current subscription period, and you will be downgraded to the free service. Help Additional Subscription Information – Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase – Your subscription will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period – Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period and the cost will be identified. – Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s Account Settings after purchase Privacy Policy: https://neosus.net/privacy-policy-page/ Terms of Use: https://neosus.net/terms-of-use/

Screenshots

FineReader4 screens
Scanner PDF4 screens

Verdict

The call

FineReader and Scanner PDF both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 71% of FineReader's written reviews are positive against 32% of Scanner PDF's. FineReader also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). Scanner PDF's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. FineReader sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Scanner PDF sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for FineReader against 4.6 for Scanner PDF. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 19K and 20K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 71% of FineReader's written reviews are positive against 32% of Scanner PDF's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FineReader ships an update monthly, Scanner PDF every 3 months. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
FineReader versus Scanner PDF: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFineReaderScanner PDF
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (19K ratings) — better4.6 (20K ratings)
Positive reviews71.3% of reviews — better32.4% of reviews
Number of ratings19K20K — better
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size130 MB125 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperABBYY USA Software House IncNeosus

Customer experience

FineReader

All ratings19,332 ratings
Positive94.3%
Neutral2.9%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews442 reviews
Positive71.3%
Neutral5.7%
Negative23.1%

Scanner PDF

All ratings20,233 ratings
Positive89.5%
Neutral3.8%
Negative6.6%
Written reviews1,396 reviews
Positive32.4%
Neutral2.7%
Negative65.0%

User reviews

FineReader

From 19K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Quick scanning
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 📁 Efficient file management
  • 🔑 Reliable OCR performance
  • 💾 Convenient cloud integration

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Privacy concerns with cloud processing
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🐛 Inconsistent scanning quality
  • 📄 Limited multi-page document handling

Scanner PDF

From 20K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 👍 Convenient mobile scanning
  • 🚀 Fast scanning process
  • 💡 Useful for on-the-go document needs

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Deceptive subscription model
  • 💰 Overpriced subscription fees
  • 🐛 Poor image quality
  • 🔒 Difficult to cancel subscription
  • 🐛 Unreliable scanning and document handling

Bugs and requests

FineReader

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent crashes when switching between apps
  • Unreliable auto-capture feature
  • Issues with sending scans via email

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to edit scanned documents
  • Support for multi-page PDF scanning
  • Improved edge detection for curved documents
  • Offline OCR processing option

Scanner PDF

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Scanned documents disappearing
  • Subscription charges even after cancellation
  • Inability to access scanned documents

Requested features

3 requests
  • Option to permanently disable subscription
  • Improved image quality and processing
  • Clearer pricing and subscription information

In-app purchases

10 purchases

FineReader

Subscriptions9
  • [ARCHIVE]Entry Premium monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Scan PDF and documents7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • [ARCHIVE]Basic Premium monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • ARCHIVE-Advanced Premium month7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • PDF Scanner + OCR7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • FineScanner Premium monthly7 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • PDF Scanner$9.991 Year
  • Photo Scanning app14 Days trial$20.991 Year
  • FineScanner Premium yearly$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • [ARCHIVE] No Ads$5.99
9 purchases

Scanner PDF

Subscriptions9
  • Scanner Premium3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • 1 Week Smart Business Pack3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • Scanner Premium3 Days trial2 variants$9.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • 1 Week Business Pack3 Days trial$9.997 Days
  • 1 Month Business Pack3 Days trial$24.991 Month
  • Scanner Premium3 Days trial$34.996 Months
  • Scanner Premium3 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Scanner yearly premium3 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • 1 Year Business Pack3 Days trial$119.991 Year

Questions

Is FineReader free?
FineReader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Scanner PDF free?
Scanner PDF is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, FineReader or Scanner PDF?
FineReader is rated higher. FineReader averages 4.7 out of 5 from 19K ratings, while Scanner PDF averages 4.6 from 20K ratings.
Do FineReader or Scanner PDF have ads?
Neither FineReader nor Scanner PDF shows ads.
Which is updated more often, FineReader or Scanner PDF?
FineReader ships an update monthly, and Scanner PDF every 3 months. Most recently, FineReader was updated on September 24, 2026 and Scanner PDF on September 24, 2026.

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