# PDF Reader vs PDF Reader Mate

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PDF Reader Mate at none against PDF Reader's 2. PDF Reader's advantage is ratings volume (505 vs 8) and review sentiment (43% vs 25%). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. PDF Reader sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days. PDF Reader Mate asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for PDF Reader against 4.4 for PDF Reader Mate. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Reader has 505 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 43% of PDF Reader's written reviews are positive against 25% of PDF Reader Mate's.

PDF Reader ships an update every 10 days, PDF Reader Mate every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Reader | PDF Reader Mate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (505 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-ocr-scan-edit/id6754001880/reviews) | **[4.4 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-mate/id6802948067/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **505** | 8 |
| Positive reviews | **42.9% of reviews** | 25.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 10 days** | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Best chart rank | **#49** | — |
| Size | 72 MB | 81 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 16.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Fuzhou Jiange Technology Co., Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1821346905) | [Fuzhou Yuxian Future Technology Co., Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/6802948069) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-ocr-scan-edit/id6754001880)

**Currently charting:** #49 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| PDF Reader Ad-Free | $5.99 | per 7 days |
| PDF Reader Ad-Free | $29.99 | per year |


### PDF Reader Mate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-reader-mate/id6802948067)

This app offers a comprehensive suite of tools for managing PDF documents. It allows you to scan physical papers into digital PDFs, extract text using OCR, annotate and edit existing PDFs, and convert them into various image formats. All core features are available without requiring an account.

**Highlights:** Scan documents to PDF, OCR text extraction, Annotate and edit PDFs, Convert PDF to long image, Convert PDF to multi-page images, No sign-up required

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Reader free?

PDF Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is PDF Reader Mate free?

PDF Reader Mate is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, PDF Reader or PDF Reader Mate?

PDF Reader Mate is rated higher. PDF Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 505 ratings, while PDF Reader Mate averages 4.4 from 8 ratings.

### Do PDF Reader or PDF Reader Mate have ads?

Both PDF Reader and PDF Reader Mate show ads.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Reader or PDF Reader Mate?

PDF Reader ships an update every 10 days, and PDF Reader Mate every 2 weeks. Most recently, PDF Reader was updated on October 31, 2026 and PDF Reader Mate on October 31, 2026.

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