# PDF Guard(Pro) vs Scanem

The clearest difference is price: Scanem at Free against PDF Guard(Pro)'s $2.99. Scanem also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 20 months). PDF Guard(Pro)'s advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 26.0). On ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scanem is free to download; PDF Guard(Pro) costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

PDF Guard(Pro) ships an update every 20 months, Scanem every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Guard(Pro) | Scanem |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $2.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | — | **[5.0 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/scanem-pdf-document-scanner/id6756688662/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | — | **15** |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 20 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Size | 22 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Hrishi Suthar](https://appshunter.io/developer/1660005858) | [Labi, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/455469767) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Guard(Pro)

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-guardpro/id6475249016)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### Scanem

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/scanem-pdf-document-scanner/id6756688662)

Easily scan documents using your phone's camera and enhance their quality. This app allows you to customize, compress, sign, and secure your PDFs without watermarks or paywalls. Share your documents instantly in a private and efficient manner.

**Highlights:** Scan documents with camera, Enhance quality and readability, Compress PDF file size, Sign and markup PDFs, Lock PDFs with password, One-tap sharing, 100% private, on-device storage

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Guard(Pro) free?

PDF Guard(Pro) costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Scanem free?

Scanem is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do PDF Guard(Pro) or Scanem have ads?

Neither PDF Guard(Pro) nor Scanem shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Guard(Pro) or Scanem?

PDF Guard(Pro) ships an update every 20 months, and Scanem every 5 weeks. Most recently, PDF Guard(Pro) was updated on October 9, 2026 and Scanem on October 14, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*