Comparison

PDF Merger vs PDF Tools

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

Head to head
About

PDF Merger

Features
Read full description

PDF Merger 2.0 is the fastest, most private way to combine, split, compress, scan, OCR, and sign PDFs on iPhone and iPad โ€” now with built-in AI Chat powered by Gemini. โ€” NEW IN 2.0 โ€” โ€ข AI Chat (Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite) โ€” Ask any PDF anything. Summaries, lookups, totals, translations. Opt-in, with no chat history stored on our servers. 5 free questions/week. โ€ข OCR (on-device) โ€” Recognise text on scanned PDFs in 30+ languages. Searchable, copyable, exportable. โ€ข Page Extraction โ€” Pull any page into its own PDF in one tap. โ€ข Page Numbering โ€” Add numbers to every page with custom format & position. โ€ข E-Signature โ€” Stamp a saved signature image with date. โ€ข Cover Page Bundler โ€” Auto-generate a cover with title + table of contents. โ€ข Insert Blank Page โ€” Perfect for chapter breaks. โ€ข 40+ Languages โ€” Fully localized UI and App Store keywords. โ€ข iPad Polished โ€” Sidebar layout, drag-and-drop, Apple Pencil ready. โ€” CORE FEATURES โ€” โ€ข Merge PDFs โ€” Drag, drop, and reorder unlimited files into one PDF. โ€ข Split PDFs โ€” Extract page ranges or single pages with one tap. โ€ข Compress PDFs โ€” Shrink size up to 80% while preserving readability. โ€ข Rotate Pages โ€” Fix sideways scans, per-page or in batch. โ€ข Add Watermark โ€” Text or image, adjustable opacity and position. โ€ข Password Lock โ€” AES-128 encrypted PDFs. โ€ข Document Scanner โ€” Camera-to-PDF with auto-crop and perspective correction. โ€ข JPG to PDF โ€” Photos to PDF with auto-cropping. โ€ข PDF to Images โ€” Each page as JPG or PNG. โ€ข Apple Intelligence โ€” Smart Summary + Auto-Rename, fully on-device. โ€” PRIVACY-FIRST โ€” โ€ข PDF processing stays 100% on your device. โ€ข AI Chat is opt-in. When enabled, only the text of the PDF you're asking about is sent to Gemini, cached for 1 hour, and never stored beyond that. โ€ข No tracking, no analytics, no advertising. โ€ข Files live in your private app sandbox; deleted when you delete them. โ€” PRO TIER (optional) โ€” Unlock unlimited merges, larger batches, watermark removal, password protection, document scanner, OCR, e-signature, AI Chat, Apple Intelligence Smart Summary, and every new feature with a single subscription or one-time Lifetime purchase. โ€ข Weekly โ€” try Pro for less than a coffee โ€ข Yearly โ€” save 70% โ€ข Lifetime โ€” pay once, own forever Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the renewal date. Payment is charged to your Apple ID. Manage in Settings โ†’ Apple ID โ†’ Subscriptions. โ€” DESIGNED FOR iOS โ€” โ€ข Built natively with SwiftUI + PDFKit for iOS 17+. โ€ข Optimized for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Pencil. โ€ข Full Dark Mode support. โ€ข Dynamic Type accessibility throughout. โ€ข VoiceOver labels on every interactive control. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.freeprivacypolicy.com/live/dca821a0-9b8b-48a6-9565-d1c64344a313

About

PDF Tools

Features
Read full description

Edit, sign, compress, and convert PDFs with the same ease as a text editor. Everything in one powerful app โ€” no computer required. What you can do: Edit PDFs - Modify text, fonts, colors, and formatting. An intuitive interface inspired by editors you already know. Sign documents - Add handwritten signatures or draw directly on your PDF. Perfect for contracts, forms, and proposals. Compress PDFs - Reduce file size to share via email or messaging apps without losing essential quality. Convert to Word (DOCX) - Turn PDFs into fully editable documents and keep working in your preferred format. Open and edit DOCX files - Edit Word files directly in the app and export them as PDFs anytime. Insert images - Add photos from your gallery or camera straight into your document. Print documents - Send files to a printer or save as PDF from the print screen. Password protection - Keep your documents secure with encryption. OCR (Text Recognition) - Extract text from scanned PDFs and images to edit or search. Easy sharing - Send PDFs via email, messaging apps, or cloud services. Who is Pdf Tools for? Professionals who need to edit and sign documents on the go. Students organizing and updating PDF study materials. Small businesses managing contracts, proposals, and invoices. Anyone who wants to handle PDFs without relying on a computer. Why choose Pdf Tools? A clean and straightforward interface with no unnecessary complexity. All essential tools including editing, signing, compressing, and converting in one place. Designed to be fast, stable, and easy to use on your mobile device. Download now and manage your PDFs anytime, anywhere.

Screenshots

PDF Merger3 screens
PDF Tools4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PDF Merger at Free against PDF Tools's $12.99. PDF Tools's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

PDF Merger is free to download; PDF Tools costs $12.99 up front. PDF Merger sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. PDF Tools asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
PDF Merger versus PDF Tools: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF MergerPDF Tools
PriceFree โ€” better$12.99
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsโ€”
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo โ€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” better
Requires iOS17.015.5 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size2 MB83 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAhmet BostanckliogluSYSTEMPORT

In-app purchases

3 purchases

PDF Merger

Subscriptions2
  • Pro โ€” Weekly3 Days trial$1.997 Days
  • Pro โ€” Yearly$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • PDF Merger Lifetime$59.99
None

PDF Tools

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PDF Merger free?
PDF Merger is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PDF Tools free?
PDF Tools costs $12.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do PDF Merger or PDF Tools have ads?
Neither PDF Merger nor PDF Tools shows ads.

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