Comparison

ROeID vs CEI Reader

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

Head to head
About

ROeID

Access digital services in Romania securely from your mobile device. This app guides you through activating your digital identity for seamless access to Romanian citizen systems. Log in using your email and password to enjoy all available benefits.

Highlights
  • Digital service authentication
  • Step-by-step identity activation
  • Access Romanian citizen systems
  • Email and password login
  • Mobile access
Features
Read full description

Descarcă acum aplicația mobilă ROeID și autentifică-te la serviciile digitale din Romania, indiferent de locația în care te afli! Prin simpla descărcare pe telefonul tău mobil, vei fi ghidat pas cu pas în procesul de activare a identității tale, care îți va permite accesul la sistemele informatice disponibile pentru cetățenii români. Utilizează adresa ta de email și parola pentru a te conecta și beneficia de toate avantajele oferite!

About

CEI Reader

Features
Read full description

Hold your Romanian electronic identity card (CEI) against your phone and, within seconds, see everything stored in its chip: names, personal numeric code (CNP), date of birth, photo, signature, validity and, with the card PIN, your home address. Then do what you need with it: export a PDF that institutions can verify, sign documents electronically with the card, or keep it in a history protected by Face ID. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Read the CEI chip: surname, given names, CNP, sex, nationality, date of birth, document number, validity, issuing authority. • See the photo and signature stored in the chip, sharper than the printed ones. • Read the home address, protected by the card's 4-digit PIN. The address is no longer printed on the new card. • Export a PDF for a bank, school, notary or employer: the data, photo and address, plus a verification section (state signature, certificate chain, chip fingerprint, QR code) and a page with the holder's declaration and space for a signature and stamp. • Sign documents electronically with your ID card: pick a PDF from the phone, enter the CAN and the 4-digit PIN, hold the card. The electronic signature is created on the phone with the certificate in the chip, in PAdES format. Any other file gets a detached signature (.p7s). • Keep your read history and signed documents encrypted on the phone, opened only with Face ID, Touch ID or the phone passcode. History is optional and can be deleted at any time. "AUTHENTIC CEI" CHECK The chip data is digitally signed by the Romanian state at issuance. The app verifies the signature and the certificate chain up to the national authority (CSCA Romania) on the phone, so you know the data shown is exactly what is written in the chip. PRIVACY • No account, no server, no ads, no analytics. The app works without internet. • Data never leaves the phone. What you save to history is encrypted with a key kept in the phone's secure chip. • The PIN is never stored and is sent to the card once. The app never retries on its own and shows you how many attempts remain. • PDFs and signed documents are shared by you, where and when you choose. HOW IT WORKS 1. Type the CAN, the 6-digit code printed on the front of the card, bottom right. 2. For the address or for signing, also enter the 4-digit PIN that came with the card. 3. Hold the card flat against the top of the phone, on the back, until the read finishes. 4. Export the PDF, sign the document or save the read to history. LANGUAGES Romanian, English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Turkish, Arabic, Hindi, Urdu and Chinese. REQUIREMENTS • iPhone with NFC (iPhone 7 or later), iOS 16.4 or later. • The Romanian electronic identity card (the chip model, issued since 2021). The old card has no chip. • The CAN printed on the card. For the address and for signing, the 4-digit PIN. TIPS • Remove thick cases and keep the card still until the read completes. • After 5 wrong PINs the card locks and can only be unlocked at the registry office. The app never retries on its own. Guides and FAQ: ceireader.ro Independent, privately developed app. Not affiliated with the Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs, DGEP or any other public institution. The signature created in the app is an advanced electronic signature made with the certificate on your own card; qualified signatures are available only through the state's official services.

Screenshots

ROeID4 screens
CEI Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ROeID at Free against CEI Reader's $29.99. CEI Reader's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 3 weeks). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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

ROeID is free to download; CEI Reader costs $29.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ROeID ships an update every 3 weeks, CEI Reader every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
ROeID versus CEI Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterROeIDCEI Reader
PriceFree — better$29.99
Rating2.7 (51 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews13.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings51 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size142 MB41 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperAutoritatea pentru Digitalizarea RomanieiGEORGE-ALEXANDRU BERESCU

In-app purchases

None

ROeID

No in-app purchases

None

CEI Reader

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ROeID free?
ROeID is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CEI Reader free?
CEI Reader costs $29.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do ROeID or CEI Reader have ads?
Neither ROeID nor CEI Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ROeID or CEI Reader?
ROeID ships an update every 3 weeks, and CEI Reader every 3 days. Most recently, ROeID was updated on October 25, 2026 and CEI Reader on October 24, 2026.

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