Comparison

PDF Expert vs Firestop Locator

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

Head to head
About

PDF Expert

This app allows you to edit, annotate, fill out forms, and convert PDF documents. It offers AI-powered summarization and analysis, along with tools to merge, sign, and protect your files. Work seamlessly across Apple devices with a user-friendly interface.

Highlights
  • Edit PDF text and images
  • Annotate and highlight PDFs
  • Fill out PDF forms
  • Convert files to and from PDF
  • AI-powered summarization and analysis
  • Merge and combine PDF files
  • Sign documents with e-signatures
Features
Read full description

PDF Expert is a fast and easy PDF app to read, annotate, fill and sign PDF forms, convert files to PDF, and merge, split or compress documents – all in one intuitive app for iPhone, iPad, Mac & Vision Pro. Read PDF files with comfort, highlight and mark up text, fill out forms, sign contracts, create and convert PDFs, and summarize long documents in seconds with AI-powered tools. Unlock unlimited possibilities with PDF Expert Premium and work across all your Apple devices. "PDF Expert is one of my must-have iPad apps and a desktop-class PDF reader." – MacStories "The best app for managing, editing, and reading PDFs on your iPad." – The Sweet Setup ▶ WITH PDF EXPERT, YOU CAN: READ PDFs - PDF reader with Day, Night, and Sepia modes for comfortable reading anytime - Scroll PDFs vertically or horizontally and search text in any document - Open and view PDF files from email, web, Files, or any app via the Share menu - Read PDFs out loud with Text to Speech ANNOTATE AND MARK UP PDFs - Highlight, underline, and strike through text in your PDFs - Mark up documents with pen, shapes, text, notes, and comments - Add stamps such as Approved or Confidential - Record your voice and add audio notes to PDFs FILL AND SIGN PDF FORMS - Fill out PDF forms with text fields, checkboxes, and radio buttons - Sign PDF documents in seconds – draw your signature or add it from an image - Save your signature to sign contracts, agreements, invoices, and applications faster - Fill, sign, and send forms right from your iPhone – no printing or scanning needed - Supports all major form formats, including AcroForms and static XFA forms ***PREMIUM FEATURES*** EDIT PDFs - Edit text directly in a PDF – just as you would in a Word document - Add, replace, and resize images in your PDFs - Add links to other pages or websites - Add outlines to navigate large PDFs CREATE AND CONVERT PDFs - Create PDFs from Word files, images, and other documents - Convert Word to PDF, JPG to PDF, and PNG to PDF in seconds - Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, PNG, and TXT MERGE, SPLIT AND ORGANIZE PDFs - Merge and combine multiple PDF files into one - Split PDFs and extract pages into a new file - Add, delete, rotate, and reorder pages with thumbnail preview COMPRESS PDFs - Compress PDFs to reduce file size for email and sharing - Shrink large PDF files to save space on your device SUMMARIZE PDFs WITH AI – PDF COPILOT - List Main Points – get key takeaways from any PDF - Summarize – get concise summaries of entire PDFs or annotations - Ask Anything – find details with AI answers and references - Explain – get instant explanations of words or phrases PROTECT YOUR FILES - Password-protect PDF Expert - Redact – permanently black out sensitive information WORK WITH SCANNED DOCUMENTS - Open scanned PDFs to fill out, sign, annotate, and share CONSTRUCTION TOOLS - Scale and measure drawings with the Measure tab - Polygon, polyline, and redline tools MORE FEATURES - Customizable toolbar - Presentation Mode - Print and share PDFs via email or cloud ONE ACCOUNT FOR ALL YOUR APPLE DEVICES One Premium subscription covers PDF Expert on iPhone, iPad, and Mac – no need to buy versions separately. Read more about our terms and conditions here: https://pdfexpert.com/privacy https://pdfexpert.com/terms Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at http://readdle.com/contact

About

Firestop Locator

Streamline firestop documentation and inspections with this app. Track installations, visualize locations on floor plans, and generate instant reports. Manage projects and teams securely, even offline.

Highlights
  • Team & Project Management
  • Visual Floor Plans
  • Offline Functionality
  • QR Code Enabled
  • Instant Reporting (PDF/Excel)
  • Customizable Forms
  • Secure Sign-On
Features
Read full description

Take control of your firestop management. Firestop Locator streamlines documentation and inspections, making it easy to track installations, generate reports, and maintain quality control from the job site to the office. * Team & Project Management: Manage project access with secure teams and roles. * Visual Floor Plans: Visualize your firestop locations directly on your project's floor plans. * Full Offline Functionality: Work from anywhere, even without Wi-Fi, and sync up when you're back online. * Secure Single Sign-On: Sign in quickly and securely using your existing Access STI account. * Intuitive Workflow: Efficiently track firestop installations and inspections from start to finish. * QR Code Enabled: Utilize our turn-key solution with pre-printed QR labels for instant identification. * Instant Reporting: Generate comprehensive reports in both PDF and Excel® formats on the spot. * Custom Tracking: Track a wide range of custom items to suit your project’s unique needs. * Flexible Forms: Personalize item and inspection forms with custom fields for maximum flexibility. Firestop Locator empowers building owners, architects, contractors, and inspectors to document, track, and report on firestop systems with confidence and efficiency. Privacy Policy: https://www.stifirestop.com/legal/privacy-policy/ Terms of Service: https://www.stifirestop.com/legal/terms-and-conditions/

Screenshots

PDF Expert4 screens
Firestop Locator2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Firestop Locator at 100% against PDF Expert's 46%. Firestop Locator also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 12). PDF Expert's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.2) and ratings volume (216K vs 5). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. PDF Expert sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Firestop Locator asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Expert holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Expert has 216K ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 46% of PDF Expert's written reviews are positive against 100% of Firestop Locator's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PDF Expert ships an update fortnightly, Firestop Locator every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
PDF Expert versus Firestop Locator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPDF ExpertFirestop Locator
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (216K ratings) — better4.2 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews45.6% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings216K — better5
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#72 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size307 MB22 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperReaddle Technologies LimitedSpecified Technologies Inc.

Customer experience

PDF Expert

All ratings215,975 ratings
Positive92.4%
Neutral2.3%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews1,147 reviews
Positive45.6%
Neutral7.4%
Negative47.0%

Firestop Locator

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

PDF Expert

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Corrupted PDFs after editing
  • Sync issues with cloud storage providers
  • Unexpected loss of annotations and edits
  • Unreliable performance on older iPad models

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved palm rejection for Apple Pencil
  • Customizable toolbar and annotation presets
  • Better integration with other productivity apps
  • More flexible file management and organization
  • Ability to create fillable PDF forms

Firestop Locator

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

PDF Expert

Subscriptions9
  • PDF Expert Premium Trial7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • PDF Expert Premium No Trial$9.991 Month
  • PDF Expert for Education7 Days trial$39.991 Year
Show 6 more
  • PDF Expert Premium7 Days trial3 variants$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Premium New7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Premium Existing7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert – Premium Editing1 Year trial$49.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Mac & iOS Pro7 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • PDF Expert Mac & iOS7 Days trial$79.991 Year
One-time1
  • PDF Expert Basic$9.99
None

Firestop Locator

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PDF Expert free?
PDF Expert is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Firestop Locator free?
Firestop Locator is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PDF Expert or Firestop Locator?
PDF Expert is rated higher. PDF Expert averages 4.7 out of 5 from 216K ratings, while Firestop Locator averages 4.2 from 5 ratings.
Do PDF Expert or Firestop Locator have ads?
Neither PDF Expert nor Firestop Locator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PDF Expert or Firestop Locator?
PDF Expert ships an update fortnightly, and Firestop Locator every 6 weeks. Most recently, PDF Expert was updated on October 2, 2026 and Firestop Locator on June 1, 2026.

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