# PDF Expert vs Craft

PDF Expert and Craft both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 85% of Craft's written reviews are positive against 46% of PDF Expert's. Craft also leads on device support (4 vs 2). PDF Expert's advantage is ratings volume (216K vs 6.6K) and chart position (#64 vs unranked). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. PDF Expert sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Craft sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for PDF Expert against 4.8 for Craft. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PDF Expert has 216K ratings behind it against 6.6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 46% of PDF Expert's written reviews are positive against 85% of Craft's.

PDF Expert ships an update fortnightly, Craft every 10 days. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | PDF Expert | Craft |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (216K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-expert-editor-and-reader/id743974925/reviews) | **[4.8 (6.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/craft-notes-documents-ai/id1487937127/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **216K** | 6.6K |
| Positive reviews | 46.0% of reviews | **84.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Every 10 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#64** | — |
| Size | 307 MB | 314 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Readdle Technologies Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/285035419) | [Craft Docs Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1487937126) |

## What reviewers say

### PDF Expert

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-expert-editor-and-reader/id743974925)

**Currently charting:** #64 Top Grossing · Productivity, #195 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| PDF Expert Premium Trial | $9.99 | per month |
| PDF Expert Premium No Trial | $9.99 | per month |
| PDF Expert for Education | $39.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium New | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Premium Existing | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert – Premium Editing | $49.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Mac & iOS Pro | $79.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Mac & iOS | $79.99 | per year |
| PDF Expert Basic | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
- 💡 Powerful annotation and editing tools
- 🔒 Seamless cloud integration
- 📚 Excellent for reading and organizing PDFs

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🔒 Subscription model for advanced features
- 🔒 Inconsistent pricing and feature changes
- 🔍 Cluttered and confusing UI in latest update
- 🔍 Reduced customization options for annotations

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

- 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


### Craft

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/craft-notes-documents-ai/id1487937127)

This app helps you organize your thoughts, manage tasks, and boost productivity with an AI assistant. Create structured documents, plan your day, and connect with other tools for a seamless workflow across all your devices.

**Highlights:** AI Assistant for research and writing, Structured document creation, Native task management system, Daily notes and calendar view, Offline access and sync, Integrations with other tools

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Plus Monthly Subscription | $9.99 | per month |
| Legacy - Monthly Subscription | $10.99 | per month |
| Family Monthly Subscription | $17.99 | per month |
| Team Monthly Subscription | $59.99 | per month |
| Plus Annual Subscription | $95.99 | per year |
| Legacy - Annual Subscription | $99.99 | per year |
| Family Annual Subscription | $179.99 | per year |
| Business Monthly Subscription | $299.00 | per month |
| Team Annual Subscription | $599.00 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Absolutely amazing
- 👍 Beautiful, clean, simple, increasingly powerful
- 👍 Fantastic Essential App
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 👍 Seamless sync between devices

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 🐛 Crashes after recent update
- 🔍 Lack of customization options (e.g. font size)
- 🔍 Inconsistent and confusing UI conventions
- 🔍 Lack of basic features like tags and tables

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when using voice control dictation
- Inconsistent behavior when rearranging notes
- Exporting to PDF creates blank first page

**Requested features**

- Add support for tables and columns
- Implement tagging system for better organization
- Improve text editing and formatting options
- Integrate with more third-party apps and services
- Add graph view for visualizing note connections


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PDF Expert free?

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

### Is Craft free?

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

### Which has better reviews, PDF Expert or Craft?

Craft is rated higher. PDF Expert averages 4.7 out of 5 from 216K ratings, while Craft averages 4.8 from 6.6K ratings.

### Do PDF Expert or Craft have ads?

Neither PDF Expert nor Craft shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, PDF Expert or Craft?

PDF Expert ships an update fortnightly, and Craft every 10 days. Most recently, PDF Expert was updated on September 24, 2026 and Craft on September 24, 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.*