Comparison

PDF Reader vs ScanLens

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

Head to head
About

PDF Reader

This mobile app acts as a PDF office assistant, offering features for editing, scanning, and optical character recognition. It allows for easy document management, page manipulation, and conversion of images and paper documents into editable digital files.

Highlights
  • PDF Editing
  • Image to PDF conversion
  • Import PDF files
  • OCR Text Recognition
  • Add, delete, rearrange pages
  • Filters, highlights, annotations
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

PDF Reader - OCR Scan Edit: Your mobile PDF office assistant. Supports editing, scanning, and OCR recognition, making document management easy and efficient. Key Features: PDF Editing Easily add, delete, and rearrange pages. Supports filters, highlights, and annotations, making your PDFs more readable and personalized. Image to PDF Import multiple images at once and automatically generate a PDF file for clarity, organization, and efficiency. Import PDF Import PDF files from system folders, ready to use right out of the box, making management easier. OCR Text Recognition Intelligently recognize text in images or scans, extracting and generating editable PDF files with one click, instantly converting paper documents to digital form. Whether you're scanning notes, editing documents, or recognizing text in images, PDF Reader - OCR Scan Edit is your go-to assistant. 【Ad-Free Edition - Enjoy a Pure Experience】 Upgrade to the Ad-Free version to enjoy an uninterrupted workspace:  • Remove all advertisements completely. • Focus entirely on reading, scanning, and editing. Subscription Details: • Payment will be charged to your iTunes account upon confirmation. • Subscriptions auto-renew unless turned off at least 24-hours before the period ends. • Manage your subscriptions and auto-renewal in your Account Settings after purchase. Links: Privacy Policy: https://pdfreaderocrscanedit.com/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://pdfreaderocrscanedit.com/terms.html Subscription Terms: https://pdfreaderocrscanedit.com/subscription_terms.html

About

ScanLens

This app functions as a mobile document scanner and PDF editor. It allows users to scan physical documents, convert images into PDFs, add digital signatures and stamps, and perform various PDF editing tasks. Features include OCR for text extraction, file compression, and secure password protection.

Highlights
  • Document scanning with edge detection
  • Convert photos to PDF
  • Digital signatures and custom stamps
  • PDF annotation and editing tools
  • Text recognition (OCR)
  • PDF compression and password protection
  • QR code scanning
Read full description

ScanLens is a document scanner and PDF editor for iPhone and iPad. Scan documents, convert photos to PDF, add signatures and compress files before sharing. • Document scanner. Scan contracts, receipts, invoices, passports, driver's licenses and business cards. ScanLens automatically detects page edges and corrects perspective. • Photos to PDF. Import photos and combine them into one PDF, or add pages to an existing document. • Sign PDFs. Draw your signature on the screen with your finger, save it and reuse it in other documents. Import an existing signature from a photo or scan it from paper. • Custom stamps. Import a personal or company stamp from a photo, or scan it from paper. Save it and reuse it in other documents. • Annotate PDFs. Highlight text, draw freehand and add arrows, lines, circles or rectangles. Choose colors and line widths. • PDF tools. Merge and split PDFs, reorder pages and add text. • Compress PDFs. Reduce file size by adjusting export quality before sharing. • Text recognition (OCR). Extract text from scans, then copy or edit it. Create searchable PDFs. • Clean up scans. Use Magic Eraser to remove small stains and shadows, or a finger or paper clip at the edge of a page. • QR scanner. Scan QR codes in a dedicated camera mode. Export documents as PDF, JPG, PNG or TXT. Password-protect PDFs and back up documents to iCloud. Scanning and importing documents are free and unlimited. The free version gives you access to the first three pages of each document and adds ScanLens branding to exported files. Premium includes signatures and stamps, PDF merging and splitting, advanced editing, Magic Eraser, searchable PDFs and exports without ScanLens branding. It also includes backups to Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive, smart folders and scan workflows. Privacy Policy: https://scanlens.io/privacy Terms of Use: https://scanlens.io/terms EULA: https://scanlens.io/eula

Screenshots

PDF Reader4 screens
ScanLens4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: ScanLens at 5.0 against PDF Reader's 4.3. ScanLens also leads on ads (none vs shown). PDF Reader's advantage is ratings volume (538 vs 2) and chart position (#41 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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 Reader sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days and ScanLens sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ScanLens holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 538 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Reader ships an update every 10 days, ScanLens every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
PDF Reader versus ScanLens: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF ReaderScanLens
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (538 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews42.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings538 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#41 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better17.4
Further details — not scored
Size72 MB103 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFuzhou Jiange Technology Co., Ltd.BitForge Pte. Ltd.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

PDF Reader

Subscriptions2
  • PDF Reader Ad-Free$5.997 Days
  • PDF Reader Ad-Free$29.991 Year
4 purchases

ScanLens

Subscriptions3
  • Premium Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Premium Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly14 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium Lifetime$59.99

Questions

Is PDF Reader free?
PDF Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ScanLens free?
ScanLens is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or ScanLens?
ScanLens is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 538 ratings, while ScanLens averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do PDF Reader or ScanLens have ads?
PDF Reader shows ads; ScanLens does not.
Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or ScanLens?
PDF Reader ships an update every 10 days, and ScanLens every 3 weeks. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on November 9, 2026 and ScanLens on October 30, 2026.

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