Comparison

PDF Reader & Tools vs Modrift

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

Head to head
About

PDF Reader & Tools

Features
Read full description

PDFKit is the privacy-first PDF reader and toolbox that does everything on your device โ€” no uploads, no accounts, no waiting in line. Open any PDF and read it like a book, with paginated turn animations, sepia/dark backgrounds, font-size and line-spacing controls, bookmarks, and highlights that sync across reading sessions. Or stay in classic document mode for forms, contracts, and reports. Then jump straight into the toolbox: merge multiple PDFs, split a single document by page range, compress a giant scan to email size, convert images to PDF (and PDF pages back to images), rotate, reorder pages, add a password, watermark a draft, or stamp page numbers. Every operation runs locally โ€” your files never leave your device. BUILT FOR READING โ€ข Three reader modes: Document, Book (paginated), Reflow (resizable text) โ€ข Five backgrounds: White, Sepia, Gray, Dark, AMOLED Black โ€ข Bookmarks and highlights, with one-tap export โ€ข Auto-resume where you left off, even across app restarts FULL OFFLINE TOOLBOX โ€ข Merge multiple PDFs into one โ€ข Split by page range or every N pages โ€ข Compress with quality presets (low / medium / high) โ€ข Convert images (JPG/PNG/HEIC) to PDF โ€ข Convert PDF pages to images โ€ข Rotate, reorder, delete pages โ€ข Password-protect a PDF โ€ข Add watermark or page numbers PRIVACY FIRST โ€ข 100% on-device processing โ€” files NEVER uploaded โ€ข No account required โ€ข No data collection or tracking โ€ข Works fully offline LIBRARY YOU'LL ACTUALLY USE โ€ข Grid and list views โ€ข Filter by recents, favorites, or completed โ€ข Sort by name, date, size, or last opened โ€ข Search across imported documents โ€ข Custom collections for organizing If you've been frustrated by web-based tools that limit free uploads, slow conversion queues, and unclear data policies, PDFKit is the tool you've been waiting for. Read your PDFs, fix your PDFs, and keep them entirely yours. Download PDFKit and own your PDF workflow.

About

Modrift

Features
Read full description

Modrift is a lightweight client for quickly opening, reading, and lightly editing files stored in the cloud โ€” right from your iPhone. Not a heavy notes app: just open, read, and tweak, as fast as possible. Key features - Open Markdown files (.md / .txt / .markdown) with clean formatted rendering - Launch straight from Files or any app via "Open in Modrift" - Keep your own working home (iCloud โ€บ Modrift): list, create and organise files there - Switch between Home (by place) and Recent (by time) - Toggle between edit and preview with one tap - A formatting toolbar above the keyboard in edit mode โ€” headings, lists, checkboxes, bold and more, one tap each - Automatic saving (no manual save button) - Full-text search, and sorting by date modified or name - Turn to landscape for longer lines โ€” easier on long paragraphs and tables - Japanese / English interface Beyond Markdown - View images (PNG / JPEG / GIF / HEIC / WebP) with pinch to zoom โ€” free - View PDFs with paging and zoom โ€” Modrift Pro (one-time purchase) - View Word documents (.docx) formatted, with headings, lists and tables โ€” Modrift Pro - View Excel workbooks (.xlsx) as tables, with sheet switching โ€” Modrift Pro Markdown, text and images stay free. Only PDF, Word and Excel viewing is part of Modrift Pro โ€” a single one-time purchase, no subscription. These formats are view-only; they cannot be edited. About your home and editing - Files in your home (iCloud โ€บ Modrift) are editable in place, and edits sync to iCloud - Files outside your home (Dropbox / Google Drive, or iCloud Drive outside the Modrift folder) are view-only. To edit one, use "Copy to Home" and edit the copy (the original is not written back) - You can choose whether your home lives in iCloud or on this iPhone, in Settings Relationship to the Files app Modrift complements the Files app rather than replacing it. Leave general folder management to Files; Modrift focuses on formatted Markdown viewing, light editing, and tidying its own home folder. The name combines Mo (Mobile / Motion) + drift โ€” the idea of thoughts and files flowing freely on mobile.

Screenshots

PDF Reader & Tools4 screens
Modrift4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PDF Reader & Tools at daily against Modrift's every 4 days. PDF Reader & Tools also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Reader & Tools ships an update daily, Modrift every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and August 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 4 level
PDF Reader & Tools versus Modrift: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF Reader & ToolsModrift
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyDaily โ€” betterEvery 4 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 โ€” better16.4
Further details โ€” not scored
Size37 MB57 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGunawan SantosoNoriyuki Katahara

In-app purchases

None

PDF Reader & Tools

No in-app purchases

None

Modrift

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PDF Reader & Tools free?
PDF Reader & Tools is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Modrift free?
Modrift is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do PDF Reader & Tools or Modrift have ads?
Neither PDF Reader & Tools nor Modrift shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Reader & Tools or Modrift?
PDF Reader & Tools ships an update daily, and Modrift every 4 days. Most recently, PDF Reader & Tools was updated on September 9, 2026 and Modrift on August 23, 2026.

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