Preview vs Smart PDF+ Editor
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Preview
Streamline your workflow with tools to create, edit, annotate, and export PDFs and images. Easily access files, scan documents, and make quick edits with Apple Pencil support. Export your work in various formats with customizable resolution and size options.
- Create and edit PDFs
- Annotate and markup documents
- Scan documents with camera
- Edit images
- Export in multiple formats
- AutoFill PDF forms
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Preview makes working with PDFs and images easier than ever, with built-in tools to create, edit, annotate, markup, and export. Access & Scan PDFs Easily find and access all the PDFs and images you have saved in the Files app right from Preview. Or use your camera to quickly scan multiple pages of a document and save it as a PDF. Edit PDFs Markup your PDFs with Apple Pencil on iPad, resize them, or rotate them. You can also use AutoFill to quickly fill out PDF forms with your contact information and details in an instant. Work with Images Create a new image with Apple Pencil on iPad or from images in your clipboard. You can also crop, flip, rotate, and resize images. Export with Ease Export images and PDFs as different file types like HEIC, JPEG, JPEG-2000, PDFs, PNGs, or TIFF. And adjust your exports with different options for resolution and size.
Smart PDF+ Editor
This app allows users to read, sign, and annotate PDF documents, especially with stylus input. It's designed for professionals to quickly handle documents and for students to take notes on study materials. Features include a built-in file manager for organization.
- Ink annotations
- Document signing
- File organization
- PDF reading
- Document sharing
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Smart PDF is a PDF editor specially optimized for ink annotations. Use it with an Apple Pencil for the ultimate ease in note taking. Great for professionals Quickly sign and send documents. Review, annotate and share files with your colleagues. Great for students If you spend a lot of time reading and studying documents on your iPad, then Smart PDF is an indispensable tool for getting the most out of your study time. Take notes on documents in class, or while studying at home. Keep all your files organized with the built-in file manager, with color-coded categories. We hope you enjoy Smart PDF! -- The App Makers @ Qrayon
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Preview at Free against Smart PDF+ Editor's $4.99. Preview also leads on ratings volume (1.9K vs 53). Smart PDF+ Editor's advantage is rating (3.8 vs 1.9) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 26.0). On review sentiment, 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
Preview is free to download; Smart PDF+ Editor costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Smart PDF+ Editor holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 1.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Preview has 1.9K ratings behind it against 53, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 7% of Preview's written reviews are positive against 5% of Smart PDF+ Editor's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Preview ships an update every 3 months, Smart PDF+ Editor every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Preview | Smart PDF+ Editor |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $4.99 |
| Rating | 1.9 (1.9K ratings) | 3.8 (53 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 7.4% of reviews — better | 5.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1.9K — better | 53 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Apple | Qrayon, LLC |
Customer experience
Preview
Smart PDF+ Editor
Bugs and requests
Preview
Reported bugs
3 issues- Black screen issues
- Inability to preview certain file types
- Inconsistent behavior when opening files
Requested features
3 requests- Integrate with Files app
- Add support for more file types
- Improve PDF editing capabilities
Smart PDF+ Editor
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Preview
No in-app purchases
Smart PDF+ Editor
No in-app purchases
