Comparison

Papers by ReadCube vs Papertuck

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

Head to head
About

Papers by ReadCube

Manage, read, and discover research literature on your mobile devices. Annotate PDFs, organize your library with custom lists and tags, and receive personalized recommendations for new papers. Syncs seamlessly with desktop and web applications.

Highlights
  • Read and manage research papers
  • Annotate PDFs with notes and highlights
  • Organize library with custom lists and tags
  • Discover new research with personalized recommendations
  • Search and download articles
  • Sync across devices
Features
Read full description

ReadCube is the simplest way to read, manage and discover research literature. ReadCube on your iPhone and iPad are the perfect companions to the ReadCube web and desktop software, enabling you to access your papers anywhere – read on the go, organize your library, and annotate PDFs with notes and highlights. Enhanced PDF: • Tap-able inline citations, reference lists, and author names so you can quickly find cited articles and related information • Supplements are automatically attached where available • Fullscreen or double-page PDF viewing plus multi-touch zoom/navigation for an optimal reading experience • Multi-color highlighting and note taking tools Easily find new papers: • Search the ReadCube databases within the app • Quickly download new articles with a single tap when you’re on campus or with your institutional proxy • Import directly from Safari, email attachments, and other apps • In your preferred browser, use any search engine to find article PDFs • Use the “Open In…” option from the browser or any app to add PDFs to your ReadCube library • Metadata is automatically resolved - no more guessing with cryptic file names Personalized Recommendations: • Discover relevant new papers based on your library or lists – you’ll never miss another important paper again! Stay organized: • Create custom lists and sort articles into one or multiple lists • Quickly search your entire library (and all annotations) • Add any number of #tags to further customize your library organization • Sync everything – papers, notes, highlights – between the ReadCube desktop and web apps or your other mobile devices Simplify your research life – try ReadCube for free on your iPhone, iPad, and computer. We love feedback from our users - please email support@readcube.com with any suggestions or issues. Thanks for using ReadCube!

About

Papertuck

Features
Read full description

Paperwork feels unimportant - until it suddenly matters. Papertuck keeps receipts, warranties, IDs, insurance papers, contracts, tax records, and other household documents ready for the moment you need them. Scan or import a paper, use on-device text extraction to make it searchable, and set reminders for expiries and renewals. SCAN, ORGANIZE, FIND • Scan with your camera or import photos and PDFs • Keep multi-page documents together • Extract text on device with OCR • Search by title, category, merchant, or words in the document • Automatically suggest practical categories from extracted text • Track dates, amounts, notes, and warranty details • Archive or share a document when you need it STAY AHEAD OF IMPORTANT DATES Add reminders for passport expiries, insurance renewals, warranty deadlines, return windows, and more. Local notifications help you act before a document becomes urgent. LOCAL FIRST Start free without creating an account. Your free vault supports up to 50 active documents and stays on your device. There are no ads and no cross-app tracking. On supported devices, you can protect the app with Face ID or Touch ID. PAPERTUCK PRO Upgrade for unlimited documents, secure cloud backup, multi-device sync, and household vault sharing. Pro cloud sync is optional and requires an account. Synced documents are encrypted in transit and at rest, but cloud sync is not end-to-end encrypted. Papertuck Pro is available as a monthly or annual auto-renewable subscription. Any free trial and your local price are shown before purchase. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm. Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. Your papers, ready when life asks. Privacy Policy: https://papertuck.com/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Additional Terms of Service: https://papertuck.com/terms Support: support@papertuck.com

Screenshots

Papers by ReadCube4 screens
Papertuck4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Papers by ReadCube at none against Papertuck's 3. Papertuck's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 months). 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. Papertuck sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Papers by ReadCube asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Papers by ReadCube ships an update every 2 months, Papertuck every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Papers by ReadCube versus Papertuck: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPapers by ReadCubePapertuck
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (556 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews41.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings556 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size79 MB68 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperDigital Science & Research Solutions Inc.Varun Adiyeri Parambath

Bugs and requests

Papers by ReadCube

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes
  • Sync issues causing data loss and duplication
  • Unreliable PDF downloads and access
  • Inconsistent behavior of annotation tools
  • Compatibility problems with newer devices and OS versions

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add eraser tool for handwritten annotations
  • Improve PDF viewing and navigation experience
  • Implement better organization and folder management
  • Integrate citation and bibliography tools
  • Provide more customization options

Papertuck

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Papers by ReadCube

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Papertuck

Subscriptions2
  • Papertuck Pro Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Papertuck Pro Annual7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Personal$49.99

Questions

Is Papers by ReadCube free?
Papers by ReadCube is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Papertuck free?
Papertuck is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Papers by ReadCube or Papertuck have ads?
Neither Papers by ReadCube nor Papertuck shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Papers by ReadCube or Papertuck?
Papers by ReadCube ships an update every 2 months, and Papertuck every 5 days. Most recently, Papers by ReadCube was updated on October 23, 2026 and Papertuck on October 20, 2026.

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