# Papyrus vs PDF Editor

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PDF Editor at none against Papyrus's 2. Papyrus's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). On price, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Papyrus sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. PDF Editor asks for nothing beyond the download.

Papyrus ships an update weekly, PDF Editor every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 12, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Papyrus | PDF Editor |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/papyrus-research-library/id6766133716/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **2** | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 25 MB | 10 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Zhenda Fu](https://appshunter.io/developer/1896207907) | [Arima Jain](https://appshunter.io/developer/1679158070) |

## What reviewers say

### Papyrus

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/papyrus-research-library/id6766133716)

Organize, annotate, and cite research papers within a native Apple ecosystem. This workspace allows you to import PDFs and citation records, take notes, and manage your reading collections as structured projects. It offers local-first storage with optional cloud sync and various export formats.

**Highlights:** Read and annotate PDFs, Organize citation records, Take Markdown notes, Search entire library, Create structured projects, Local-first storage, Optional iCloud/WebDAV sync

**Features:** Safari Extension, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Papyrus Lifetime Unlock | $3.99 | one-time |
| Papyrus Lifetime Unlock | $5.99 | one-time |


### PDF Editor

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-editor-document-assistant/id6789095581)

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Papyrus free?

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

### Is PDF Editor free?

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

### Do Papyrus or PDF Editor have ads?

PDF Editor shows ads; Papyrus does not.

### Which is updated more often, Papyrus or PDF Editor?

Papyrus ships an update weekly, and PDF Editor every 3 weeks. Most recently, Papyrus was updated on October 12, 2026 and PDF Editor on October 12, 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.*