Comparison

Rectoly for Mendeley vs CROO Notes

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

Head to head
About

Rectoly for Mendeley

This app enhances the PDF reading and annotation experience for researchers, particularly those using Mendeley. It offers features like a reflowable reading mode, in-line annotation with Apple Pencil, text-to-speech, and tools for organizing research themes and figures.

Highlights
  • Reflowable Reading Mode
  • In-line PDF Annotation
  • Read Aloud (Text-to-Speech)
  • Research Themes organization
  • Cross-paper annotation search
  • Manuscript side-by-side view
  • Mendeley Library Sync
Features
Read full description

Rectoly is the research-focused PDF reader built for Mendeley users. Your library stays in Mendeley — Rectoly makes reading and annotating on iPhone, iPad and Mac a genuine pleasure. READING MODE Academic papers are usually typeset in two columns, which makes them hard to read on a phone or in a narrow split view. Reading Mode reflows the paper into a single, clean text column — without losing the original PDF. ANNOTATE IN READING MODE Unlike other readers, Rectoly lets you highlight, underline, add sticky notes, and write with Apple Pencil — all while staying in Reading Mode. Your handwriting even scales with the text size. Filter annotations by colour and by kind. ON-DEVICE TRANSLATION Read an English paper in your own language, in Reading Mode and on the PDF page. Translation runs on this device; the paper is never sent to a translation service. Translations are saved to your Mendeley library for your other devices (you can turn this off in Settings). The app's translation model (about 2.5 GB) needs 8 GB of memory or more. Translates English papers into the app's 19 other display languages: Hindi by the system's translator (iOS 26 or later), all the rest by the app's own model. READ ALOUD Hear the text in Reading Mode, in the system voice or the VoiceOver one. SOFT DARK A paper-friendly dark mode that dims the page itself, not just the interface. WORKBENCH (iPad and Mac) Pin Figure 1 beside the text and keep reading — no more scrolling back and forth between a figure and the paragraph that cites it. RESEARCH THEMES Send a passage to a theme, with its source. Keep the theme beside the paper, or open it as a sheet. Export as Markdown or Word (.docx). ACROSS PAPERS The library column has a new Across papers tab: search the annotations, the text and your handwriting in your whole library at once. FIGURES, TABLES AND A COMPARISON TABLE Figures to PNG, tables to CSV — and one table comparing many papers' abstracts, methods and results. YOUR MANUSCRIPT BESIDE THE PAPER Open the document you are writing (.docx, .doc, .odt, .rtf, Markdown, plain text — password-protected ones too) in a column next to the paper. It re-reads the file every time you save. CITATIONS AND NOTES, OUT OF THE APP Copy with page, copy BibTeX or citation keys, and a Notes folder for Obsidian and others — with keyboard shortcuts you can change. MENDELEY SYNC Sign in with your Mendeley account and read your library directly on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Highlights and text notes are saved into the PDF and written back to Mendeley. OPEN FROM WEBDAV Open PDFs kept on a WebDAV server such as Nextcloud or your university's storage — and add them to Mendeley from there. A LIBRARY THAT STAYS OUT OF YOUR WAY - PDFs download only when you open them, saving storage - Downloaded papers work fully offline — flights, commutes, conferences, field work APPLE PENCIL, PRESERVED Handwritten notes are backed up with iCloud, kept with a version history you can restore, and exportable as JSON for long-term preservation. Your research is never locked inside Rectoly. 14-DAY FREE TRIAL → ONE-TIME PURCHASE Try every Pro feature free for 14 days. Unlock with a single one-time payment — no subscription, no recurring charges, no lock-in. Rectoly is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Mendeley Ltd. or Elsevier. A Mendeley account is required to use this app.

About

CROO Notes

Features
Read full description

CROO Notes turns checklists, procedures and study material into clear, step-by-step workflows. Build organised stacks for recurring procedures, training, memory items and everyday tasks. When it is time to work, Focus Mode presents one clear step at a time—without distractions. IMPORT WITH AI Photograph or upload up to five pages of a checklist or procedure. CROO Notes creates an editable draft while preserving the original order and wording. Review every step before saving it to your library. BUILT FOR CLARITY • Create stacks, notes and reusable batches • Follow procedures one step at a time • Organise everything into custom categories • Find content quickly with library search • Add images where visual context matters • Build branching procedures for different outcomes • Share selected content using QR transfer LOCAL-FIRST AND OFFLINE Your library stays on your device and remains available without an internet connection. No account or login is required. AI imports only send the images you select for processing. From pre-flight preparation to training, study and everyday routines, CROO Notes keeps important knowledge structured, accessible and ready when you need it. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Rectoly for Mendeley4 screens
CROO Notes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: CROO Notes at 15.1 against Rectoly for Mendeley's 17.0. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Rectoly for Mendeley sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and CROO Notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
Rectoly for Mendeley versus CROO Notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRectoly for MendeleyCROO Notes
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyDaily—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size43 MB48 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTakaki TakemuraVenisi Taufa

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Rectoly for Mendeley

One-time2
  • 14-day TrialFree
  • Rectoly Pro (one-time)$49.99
3 purchases

CROO Notes

Subscriptions2
  • CROO Notes Plus Monthly$4.991 Month
  • CROO Notes Plus Annual$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • CROO Notes Lifetime$19.99

Questions

Is Rectoly for Mendeley free?
Rectoly for Mendeley is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CROO Notes free?
CROO Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Rectoly for Mendeley or CROO Notes have ads?
Neither Rectoly for Mendeley nor CROO Notes shows ads.

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