Comparison

SparkPDF vs AlignScan

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

Head to head
About

SparkPDF

Transform your phone into a powerful PDF scanner, filler, and signing tool. Easily convert paper documents to digital PDFs, add text and signatures, and manage your files on the go. Core features are free, with optional ads or a one-time purchase to remove them.

Highlights
  • Scan documents to PDF
  • Fill and sign PDFs
  • Add text, dates, and stamps
  • Merge and split PDFs
  • Convert images to PDF
  • Organize files into folders
  • Search text within PDFs
Read full description

SparkPDF turns your phone into a document scanner, PDF filler and signing tool. Scan paper into clean PDFs, fill them in, sign them and share them — no subscription required. The core PDF tools are free. Some export, save, share and print actions may include a short ad, or you can remove ads permanently with a one-time purchase. With SparkPDF, you can: • Scan documents into clear, sharp PDFs • Fill in PDFs by adding text and dates • Sign by drawing, typing, importing — or by scanning your real signature • Scan a real stamp and place it on any page • Merge several PDFs into one, or split one into separate files • Turn photos and images into PDFs • Add, reorder and delete pages • Search inside text-based PDFs to find the right page • Organize your files into folders • Open PDFs straight from Files and other apps • Read in fullscreen, with the whole screen for your page • Export, share and print finished documents SparkPDF adds what a document needs on top of the page — your signature, text, dates and stamps — so everyday paperwork gets finished on your phone rather than at a desk. Your documents stay with you. SparkPDF processes files directly on your device wherever possible, so personal, school and work paperwork stays under your control. Download SparkPDF and get your paperwork done. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

AlignScan

Easily transform document photos into clear, professional files. Features auto-detection, perspective correction, and image enhancement for polished JPG or PDF exports. Ideal for students, professionals, and everyday users needing quick document scanning.

Highlights
  • Auto document detection and crop
  • Perspective correction
  • Image enhancement
  • A4-style page layout
  • JPG and PDF export
  • Privacy-friendly local processing
Features
Read full description

AlignScan is a lightweight mobile app for document scanning, OCR text extraction, and complete PDF editing — scan, sign, merge, split, compress, protect, and convert PDFs in one place. Whether you're submitting homework, organizing contracts and reports, extracting text from images, signing documents, or saving receipts and paper records, AlignScan turns ordinary document photos into clear, polished files. Why choose AlignScan • Auto document detection and crop Detects the useful document area and removes distracting background • Perspective correction Fixes tilted, angled, or distorted page shots for a cleaner result • Image enhancement Reduces shadows, improves brightness, and makes text easier to read • OCR text extraction Extract text from document photos or imported images, then copy it or save it as a TXT file • Sign PDFs Draw, type, or stamp a signature and place it anywhere on the page • Merge, split & compress PDFs Combine multiple files, split a PDF into separate pages, or shrink file size for easier sharing • Protect & convert PDFs Encrypt PDFs with a password, or convert to Word, Excel, image, or text • A4-style page layout Centers and formats pages neatly for a more professional look • JPG and PDF export Export single images or combine pages into PDF files • Privacy-friendly local processing Core scan, OCR, and formatting steps are handled on device Great for • Students scanning homework, notes, and test papers • Professionals capturing contracts, reports, invoices, and meeting notes • Users extracting text from printed documents, forms, receipts, and images • Anyone needing to sign, merge, split, compress, protect, or convert PDFs • Everyday users saving receipts, forms, certificates, and printed records • Mobile work scenarios where documents need to be scanned quickly • Multi-page files that need to be combined and archived How it works Scan a document Point your camera at any document — AlignScan auto-crops, corrects perspective, enhances, and formats the page for you. Extract text with OCR Take a photo or import an image, then copy the recognized text or save it as a TXT file. Edit PDFs Sign, merge, split, compress, protect with a password, or convert PDFs to Word, Excel, image, or text. Export Preview and export your pages as JPG or PDF files. With AlignScan, your document photos look straighter, cleaner, and more professional. Extract useful text from images, and handle all your PDF editing needs in one app. Try AlignScan free with 20 complimentary saves. Choose a monthly or yearly subscription, or unlock everything with a one-time lifetime purchase. Subscriptions auto-renew; cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Your scans stay private with on-device processing. AlignScan only accesses the camera, photos, and local storage when needed for scanning, importing, OCR recognition, and exporting files. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.aitoolsoft.com/privacy-policy.html Support: support@aitoolsoft.com

Screenshots

SparkPDF4 screens
AlignScan4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SparkPDF at 50% against AlignScan's 0%. SparkPDF also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.3) and monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs paid). AlignScan's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and in-app purchases 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. SparkPDF sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and AlignScan sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SparkPDF holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 4 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of SparkPDF's written reviews are positive against 0% of AlignScan's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SparkPDF ships an update every 10 days, AlignScan fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
SparkPDF versus AlignScan: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSparkPDFAlignScan
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better3.3 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings24 — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterFortnightly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size108 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMoetez Theiri智慧 吴

Customer experience

SparkPDF

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

AlignScan

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

SparkPDF

One-time4
  • Coffee Support$2.99
  • Extra Support$4.99
  • Big Support$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Remove Ads Forever$9.99
3 purchases

AlignScan

Subscriptions2
  • AlignScan Pro Monthly$0.991 Month
  • AlignScan Pro Yearly$5.991 Year
One-time1
  • AlignScan Pro Lifetime$9.99

Questions

Is SparkPDF free?
SparkPDF is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is AlignScan free?
AlignScan is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SparkPDF or AlignScan?
SparkPDF is rated higher. SparkPDF averages 5.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while AlignScan averages 3.3 from 4 ratings.
Do SparkPDF or AlignScan have ads?
SparkPDF shows ads; AlignScan does not.
Which is updated more often, SparkPDF or AlignScan?
SparkPDF ships an update every 10 days, and AlignScan fortnightly. Most recently, SparkPDF was updated on October 31, 2026 and AlignScan on October 25, 2026.

Other comparisons