# iBal Rotary vs PDF Expert

The clearest difference is price: PDF Expert at Free against iBal Rotary's $17.99. PDF Expert also leads on ratings volume (216K vs 23) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). iBal Rotary's advantage is review sentiment (83% vs 46%) and in-app purchases (none vs 12). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

PDF Expert is free to download; iBal Rotary costs $17.99 up front. PDF Expert sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. iBal Rotary asks for nothing beyond the download.

PDF Expert holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Expert has 216K ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 83% of iBal Rotary's written reviews are positive against 46% of PDF Expert's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

iBal Rotary ships an update every 2 months, PDF Expert fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | iBal Rotary | PDF Expert |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $17.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.4 (23 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ibal-rotary/id567642367/reviews) | **[4.7 (216K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-expert-editor-and-reader/id743974925/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 23 | **216K** |
| Positive reviews | **82.9% of reviews** | 46.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | — | **#70** |
| Size | 29 MB | 307 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | +4 | 4+ |
| Developer | [AirSpayce](https://appshunter.io/developer/564666685) | [Readdle Technologies Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/285035419) |

## What reviewers say

### iBal Rotary

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ibal-rotary/id567642367)

This app helps helicopter pilots quickly calculate weight and balance for their aircraft. It supports numerous helicopter models and allows users to add custom aircraft configurations. The app provides graphical displays and can email mission manifests, aiding in compliance with aviation regulations.

**Highlights:** Supports numerous helicopter types, Add custom aircraft configurations, Graphical CG displays, Email mission manifests, Detects weight and CG problems, Predefined load lists

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and accurate calculations
- 👍 User-friendly and simple interface
- 🛠️ Excellent customer support
- ✅ Reliable and functional
- 💡 Versatile and complete

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Repurchase required for new versions
- 🔊 Annoying sounds
- 👎 Poor user interface
- 📉 Outdated data
- 🤷‍♂️ Stations cannot be deleted

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on iPhone 4 since latest update
- Choose photo function does not work on iPad Mini Retina
- Math is sometimes wrong
- Rounding of aircraft values is annoying

**Requested features**

- Add B3E aircraft
- Ability to modify aircraft data
- Add BK-117 D2/D3 (H145) to aircraft list
- Add Bell 505 to aircraft library
- Input fuel burn to calculate flight duration estimate


### PDF Expert

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-expert-editor-and-reader/id743974925)

**Currently charting:** #70 Top Grossing · Productivity, #206 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| PDF Expert Premium Trial | $9.99 | per month |
| PDF Expert Premium No Trial | $9.99 | per month |
| PDF Expert for Education | $39.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium New | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium Existing | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert – Premium Editing | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Mac & iOS Pro | $79.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Mac & iOS | $79.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Basic | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

- 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


## Frequently asked questions

### Is iBal Rotary free?

iBal Rotary costs $17.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is PDF Expert free?

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

### Which has better reviews, iBal Rotary or PDF Expert?

PDF Expert is rated higher. iBal Rotary averages 4.4 out of 5 from 23 ratings, while PDF Expert averages 4.7 from 216K ratings.

### Do iBal Rotary or PDF Expert have ads?

Neither iBal Rotary nor PDF Expert shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, iBal Rotary or PDF Expert?

iBal Rotary ships an update every 2 months, and PDF Expert fortnightly. Most recently, iBal Rotary was updated on September 21, 2026 and PDF Expert on September 25, 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.*