Comparison

PDF Field Guide vs Bamboo

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

Head to head
About

PDF Field Guide

Quickly access, search, and share your essential PDF documents. Organize and import files for offline viewing, and convert images into searchable PDFs. Smart zoom and full-screen reading enhance your experience.

Highlights
  • Organize and group documents
  • Import PDFs for offline viewing
  • Create searchable PDFs from images
  • Smart zoom and full-screen reading
  • Keyword search and table of contents
  • Share documents via multiple methods
Features
Read full description

PDF Field Guide is the #1 quick reference companion helping you recall information quickly!  Add, view, search and share your most important PDF documents quickly and easily from your iPhone, iPad and Mac. Helping you recall information quickly when you need it most! ADD - Organize and group your most needed documents for fast access. - Import PDFs from iCloud or Files App for offline viewing. - Create searchable PDFs using your camera and automatic document recognition. - Convert images to searchable PDFs from your photos or camera roll. VIEW - Double tap on the screen to Smart Zoom to the text you want to read. - Automatically switch to full screen reading mode when placed in landscape orientation. - Requires no internet connection. Documents are stored locally in iOS Files App. - Supports system dark mode. SEARCH - Perform keyword search to find information quickly. - Create customizable table of contents for fast access to important pages. - Tap to jump to sections in documents with embedded table of contents. - Tap to follow hyperlinks in documents with embedded links. - Highlight to select text in OCR-enabled documents allowing you to copy or share key information. SHARE - Share individual or multiple documents via email, text, AirDrop and more. - Family sharing enabled. - No subscriptions. Ever.

About

Bamboo

This app is a Markdown note-taking tool for organizing knowledge and utilizing AI features. It allows users to capture ideas, write long-form content, and connect notes with wiki links. AI assistance is available for drafting, summarizing, and brainstorming, with users controlling their AI provider.

Highlights
  • Markdown editor with syntax highlighting
  • Wiki link creation for connecting notes
  • AI assistance for drafting and summarizing
  • Organize notes into collections
  • Cross-device synchronization
  • Import and export content
Features
Read full description

Bamboo is a Markdown notes app for writing, organizing knowledge, and using AI on your own terms. Available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with Web Clipper support, Bamboo helps you capture ideas anywhere and continue working across devices. Capture quick notes, long-form documents, tasks, reminders, research, meeting notes, reading highlights, and personal knowledge. Bamboo keeps your notes in Markdown so they stay portable, readable, and easy to manage. WRITE AND CAPTURE Use a focused Markdown editor with syntax highlighting, task lists, tables, wiki links, footnotes, highlights, math, images, and attachments. Keep ideas, notes, reminders, and tasks together so writing, thinking, and planning stay in one place. ORGANIZE AND CONNECT Organize notes into collections for projects, areas, archives, or research spaces. Connect ideas with wiki links, pin important notes, star favorites, and build a knowledge base that stays easy to navigate as it grows. AI ASSISTANCE, UNDER YOUR CONTROL Bamboo Pro lets you connect supported AI providers and use assistant features directly in your notes. Draft, rewrite, summarize, brainstorm ideas, and work with selected content without leaving your workspace. You stay in control of the provider and model you use. KEEP YOUR NOTES YOURS Your notes stay in Markdown, making them easy to move, back up, and keep for the long term. Search across notes, revisit recent work, import and export your content, create backups, and keep your work available across devices with optional Bamboo Pro features such as iCloud Sync, HTML export, and PDF export. Bamboo includes optional auto-renewable monthly and yearly Pro subscriptions. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current billing period. You can manage subscriptions in your App Store account settings. Privacy Policy: https://zhigui.github.io/app-docs/bamboo/privacy_policy.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

PDF Field Guide4 screens
Bamboo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: PDF Field Guide at free against Bamboo's freemium. PDF Field Guide also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. PDF Field Guide sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Bamboo sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. 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 — 5.0 for PDF Field Guide against 5.0 for Bamboo. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Field Guide ships an update monthly, Bamboo every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
PDF Field Guide versus Bamboo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF Field GuideBamboo
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB56 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHeidi Paul志贵 陈

Customer experience

PDF Field Guide

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bamboo

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

PDF Field Guide

One-time2
  • Premium Pass$1.99
  • Pro Pass$4.99
2 purchases

Bamboo

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Pro7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Annual Pro7 Days trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is PDF Field Guide free?
PDF Field Guide is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bamboo free?
Bamboo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PDF Field Guide or Bamboo?
PDF Field Guide and Bamboo are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do PDF Field Guide or Bamboo have ads?
Neither PDF Field Guide nor Bamboo shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Field Guide or Bamboo?
PDF Field Guide ships an update monthly, and Bamboo every 2 months. Most recently, PDF Field Guide was updated on November 4, 2026 and Bamboo on November 5, 2026.

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