Comparison

Glean vs DocNova

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

Head to head
About

Glean

Transform your iPhone into a rapid, private document scanner. Capture, enhance, and create searchable PDFs locally. Optionally sync with Google Drive for cloud backups, ensuring your documents remain secure and accessible.

Highlights
  • Multi-page scanning with auto edge detection
  • One-tap document cleanup
  • On-device OCR for searchable PDFs
  • Offline functionality
  • Optional Google Drive integration
  • Organize and manage scanned documents
Read full description

Glean turns your iPhone into a fast, private document scanner. Capture any document, clean it up, and get a crisp, searchable PDF — kept right on your device. Connect Google Drive only if you want a cloud copy. Glean has no servers of its own, so your documents stay yours. SCAN • Multi-page scanning with automatic edge detection and perspective correction • One-tap "Clean up" removes shadows and glare, whitens the page, and sharpens text • Crop, rotate, filters, and brightness / contrast / saturation controls SEARCHABLE PDFs • On-device text recognition (OCR) turns every scan into a searchable PDF • Find and copy the text inside your documents — no internet required YOUR STORAGE, YOUR CHOICE • Every scan is saved on your device, and is even accessible in the Files app • Optionally connect Google Drive to save PDFs into a folder you choose • Works fully offline — Google Drive is never required ORGANIZE • Combine several scans into one PDF, or split a multi-page scan into separate files • Rename, search, and manage everything in one place • Import existing PDFs from your Drive folder PRIVATE BY DESIGN • Scanning and text recognition happen on your device • No analytics, no tracking, and no servers that ever see your documents • Sign in with Apple or Google — and delete your account and data anytime Glean developed and designed by Zahid Hussain at TechFoundry · © 2026

About

DocNova

Features
Read full description

DocNova: PDF Scanner & OCR DocNova transforms your iPhone into a powerful document scanner, PDF editor, OCR text reader, and QR code toolkit. Easily scan receipts, invoices, contracts, ID cards, business cards, books, notes, certificates, and other documents with professional-quality results. Whether you're a student, professional, freelancer, teacher, accountant, or business owner, DocNova helps you scan, organize, edit, and share your documents quickly and securely. Smart Document Scanner Capture high-quality document scans using your device's camera. Automatic edge detection Perspective correction High-resolution scanning Color, Grayscale, Black & White, and Enhanced filters Multi-page document scanning Save documents as PDF or JPEG Crop, rotate, and reorder pages OCR Text Recognition Extract text from scanned documents and images with built-in Optical Character Recognition (OCR). Convert printed text into editable text Copy extracted text instantly Save or share recognized text Ideal for receipts, invoices, books, forms, and business cards Complete PDF Toolkit Manage your PDF files with a complete set of editing tools. Merge multiple PDF files Split PDF pages Compress PDF documents Add digital signatures Apply custom text watermarks Rename and organize documents QR Code & Barcode Scanner Scan and generate QR codes and barcodes with ease. Scan QR codes instantly Scan product barcodes Import QR codes from photos Generate custom QR codes Create business barcodes Access scan history anytime Smart Document Manager Keep all your documents organized in one place. Create custom folders Search documents quickly Organize with categories and tags Built-in PDF viewer Dark Mode support Recently opened documents Recycle Bin for deleted files Easy Sharing Share your documents whenever you need. Save files locally Share through Mail Share via Messages AirDrop support Print documents directly Privacy First Your privacy is important. Local document processing Secure document storage No unnecessary cloud uploads Fast, reliable, and secure performance Perfect For Students Teachers Office Professionals Freelancers Small Businesses Accountants Real Estate Agents Field Workers Personal Document Management Why Choose DocNova? Professional-quality document scanning Accurate OCR text recognition Powerful PDF editing tools QR code and barcode scanning QR code generation Digital signatures PDF compression PDF merge and split Smart document organization Fast performance Clean and intuitive interface Whether you're scanning receipts, invoices, contracts, books, notes, certificates, ID cards, or important paperwork, DocNova provides everything you need to scan, edit, organize, and manage your documents in one simple and reliable app. Download DocNova: PDF Scanner & OCR today and enjoy a smarter way to manage your documents from anywhere.

Screenshots

Glean3 screens
DocNova4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: DocNova at 3 against Glean's 1. DocNova also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Glean versus DocNova: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGleanDocNova
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.413.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size97 MB84 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTechFoundry, Inc.Disha Thummar

In-app purchases

None

Glean

No in-app purchases

None

DocNova

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Glean free?
Glean is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DocNova free?
DocNova is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Glean or DocNova have ads?
Neither Glean nor DocNova shows ads.

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