Comparison

Plato vs PDF

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

Head to head
About

Plato

Features
Read full description

Some thoughts aren't meant to last forever. Plato is a calm, simple notes app where every note has a timer. Write something down, choose how long it should live, and let it go. When the time runs out, the note is gone for good. DISAPPEARING NOTES Every note gets a timer: 5 minutes, 1 hour, 24 hours, 3 days or 7 days. When it reaches zero, the note is deleted forever. A RING THAT DRAINS Each note shows a countdown ring that empties as its time runs out, shifting from warm sienna to orange to red near the end. The text fades a little as the note gets older, so you always know what's about to vanish. SWIPE TO BURN Done with a note early? Swipe it to burn it, or burn it from the note itself. Once it's gone, it can't be recovered. LIGHT, NATIVE DESIGN Plato looks and feels like it belongs on your iPhone and iPad: clean lists, system fonts and SF Symbols, with a single warm accent taken from the icon – Plato's wax tablet of memory. Choose Light, Dark or System in Settings. YOUR NOTES STAY ON YOUR DEVICE No account, no cloud, no sync and no tracking. Plato works offline, and your notes never leave your device. FREE, WITH AN OPTIONAL TIP JAR Plato is free with no ads. If it's useful to you, an optional Tip Jar in Settings lets you support its development – tips unlock nothing and are not tax-deductible. The source code is on GitHub for anyone to inspect.

About

PDF

Features
Read full description

Scan, edit, sign and OCR PDFs on your iPhone. Your files never leave the device. PDF-PRO is a private, offline PDF editor and scanner for contracts, invoices, receipts and everyday documents. Read, scan and annotate for free. Upgrade to Pro for unlimited merge, split, compress, OCR, signatures, watermarks and password protection — the yearly plan includes a 3-day free trial. WHY PEOPLE SWITCH • Sign a contract without printing it • Scan paper and photos into a clean PDF • Merge, split or reorder pages before you send • Compress a large file so it fits in email or chat • Extract text with on-device OCR • Lock a PDF with a password, or add a watermark READ & ANNOTATE • Smooth reader with continuous scroll, pinch-to-zoom and single-page mode • Highlight, underline, strikeout, freehand ink and text notes • Search inside the document and jump to a page SCAN & CONVERT • Camera scan for paper documents, invoices and receipts • Photos to A4 PDF, or export pages as images ORGANIZE • Merge PDFs, split by page range, drag to reorder, rotate or delete pages • Folders, favorites and search in your on-device library OCR • Recognize text on the current page or the whole file • Copy or share the result — processed on your iPhone, not a server SIGN & PROTECT • Handwritten signature stamp you can place and resize • PDF password and a diagonal copyright watermark PRIVACY Every merge, split, compress, OCR and encrypt step runs locally. No account. No cloud upload. FREE vs PRO Free: read, scan and basic annotation. Pro: unlimited signature, OCR, compress, password, watermark, merge and split. • Yearly — best value, 3-day free trial • Monthly — month to month • Lifetime — pay once Subscriptions renew unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage in Apple ID settings. Terms of Service (Apple EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Plato4 screens
PDF4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PDF at every 3 weeks against Plato's every 7 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. Plato sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and PDF sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Plato ships an update every 7 months, PDF every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference Ā· 5 level
Plato versus PDF: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlatoPDF
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 7 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB12 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperWonmo Seongēˆ±åŽ 刘

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Plato

One-time4
  • Small tip$0.99
  • Kind tip$4.99
  • Generous tip$19.99
Show 1 more
  • Big tip$49.99
3 purchases

PDF

Subscriptions2
  • PDF-PRO Monthly$3.991 Month
  • PDF-PRO Yearly (3-Day Trial)3 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • PDF-PRO Lifetime Pass$59.99

Questions

Is Plato free?
Plato is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PDF free?
PDF is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Plato or PDF have ads?
Neither Plato nor PDF shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Plato or PDF?
Plato ships an update every 7 months, and PDF every 3 weeks. Most recently, Plato was updated on November 5, 2026 and PDF on October 31, 2026.

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