Comparison

LiquidText vs Lab.Hacks

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

Head to head
About

LiquidText

This app provides a dynamic workspace for reviewing and organizing information from documents and webpages. It allows users to extract key facts, connect ideas across different sources, and annotate content for research, writing, or study.

Highlights
  • Import documents and webpages
  • Extract and organize excerpts
  • Connect ideas with ink links
  • Compare document sections
  • Annotate PDFs, Word, and PowerPoint
  • Search across all documents
Features
Read full description

*** Named “Most Innovative iPad App of the Year” by Apple App Store *** LiquidText offers a fast, natural way to review, gather, and organize information across all your documents and webpages—then apply the results to writing reports, meeting prep, or simply studying. Pull out key facts and connect them together, squeeze a document to compare sections, draw a line to connect ideas in different documents, comment on multiple pages at once, build upon your thoughts, and much more. ► WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING: * "If you want to experience the power of going beyond paper, you can download LiquidText" – Cult of Mac * One of Macworld’s Top 24 Apps for iPad Pro * One of Time Magazine's Ten Best apps for iPad Pro * * "There's a better way to organize your research, and the app is it." – iMore, Serenity Caldwell * “All you need for deep research projects.” – Macworld, Jackie Dove * "The world changed with...LiquidText" – Law360, Paul Kiesel * "LiquidText may just be *the* app for reviewing and annotating PDFs using Apple's tablet and stylus." – CIO Magazine, James Martin * “One of the most powerful, original iPad apps I've tried in years” – Federico Viticci, MacStories.net ► LIQUIDTEXT’S COMPLETE FEATURE SET INCLUDES: (Features with * require a paid upgrade.) Import • Create a workspace and import all the documents and web pages you need • Compatible with PDF, Word, and PowerPoint document types • Import from Dropbox, iCloud Drive, Box, email, and more • Import content from webpage or send to LiquidText directly from Safari • Instant OCR to select text in scanned documents; do a full document-OCR to search as well!* • Import documents & metadata directly from reference managers (supports Zotero and Mendeley)* Interact • Pull excerpts from all the documents in your project into the Workspace area • Add your own notes (typed or written) to the Workspace area • Freely draw on your notes, or on the workspace itself* • Organize excerpts and notes into groups • Connect anything - draw live “ink links” that span pages, documents, notes, and more* • Create mind-maps by drawing “ink links” connecting your excerpts/notes to one another * • Get context - tap notes and excerpts to find original source Compare • Pinch a document to compare different distant pages side by side • Collapse text to see annotated parts side-by-side • Collapse text to view search results(s) side-by-side • Import unlimited number of documents into a project, view up to 3 at once* Annotate • Freely draw* or highlight on your document, notes, or the workspace itself • Add margin notes/comments to text, images, notes, and excerpts • Comment on two or more selections simultaneously • Replace document with a newer version (and annotations are brought to new doc)* Search • Search for keywords across all your LiquidText documents • Find keywords in title or text of your documents* • Bulk highlight, tag, or link to your search results* Realtime Collaboration • Invite colleagues into your shared projects and work together in near realtime* • Leave comments and notifications for your collaborators* • Privacy controls: set whether each workspace & document in your project is shared or private* Easy Export • Export your project as a PDF (includes your Workspace and documents) • Export your project as a Word file (converts your notes/excerpts into a linear document) • Send a full LiquidText file for those with the app. • Send files by email or to Dropbox, iCloud Drive, Zotero, and more* Sync & Backup* • Real-time, cross-platform sync • Continuous cloud backup • Multi-device display: • Use your desktop or tablet as additional display for your other device • Use your tablet for freehand inking while viewing and keyboarding on your desktop See our terms of use at https://www.liquidtext.net/terms-of-use Learn more at LiquidText.net | Better Than Paper

About

Lab.Hacks

This app serves as a laboratory assistant, offering a suite of tools and calculators for everyday lab tasks. It provides quick reference tables, step-by-step guides, and offline access to help students, researchers, and technicians work more efficiently.

Highlights
  • Dilution and molarity calculators
  • Unit conversion tools
  • Lab timers
  • Quick reference tables
  • Step-by-step protocols
  • Offline access
Features
Read full description

Lab.hacks is your ultimate companion for everyday work in the laboratory. Whether you're a student, researcher, or lab technician, Lab.hacks provides you with a growing collection of essential tools, calculators, and practical hacks designed to make your lab life easier. Features: • Handy calculators for dilutions, molarity, unit conversions & more • Smart lab timers and quick reference tables • Step-by-step protocols and how-to guides • Offline access – always available when you need it • Minimalist design for maximum focus • No login required – just open and start using From pipetting shortcuts to buffer recipes – Lab.hacks brings efficiency to your fingertips. Stop wasting time searching for formulas and start working smarter in the lab! Get Lab.hacks now and discover how small tools can make a big difference. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

LiquidText4 screens
Lab.Hacks4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Lab.Hacks at 96% against LiquidText's 50%. Lab.Hacks also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.6) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.6). LiquidText's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (6.4K vs 136). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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. LiquidText sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.49 per month and Lab.Hacks sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Lab.Hacks holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: LiquidText has 6.4K ratings behind it against 136, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of LiquidText's written reviews are positive against 96% of Lab.Hacks's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LiquidText ships an update every 2 weeks, Lab.Hacks every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
LiquidText versus Lab.Hacks: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLiquidTextLab.Hacks
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (6.4K ratings)4.9 (136 ratings) — better
Positive reviews49.7% of reviews96.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6.4K — better136
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size317 MB76 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperLiquidText, Inc.Lab.hacks GmbH

Customer experience

LiquidText

All ratings6,383 ratings
Positive91.3%
Neutral3.0%
Negative5.8%
Written reviews1,468 reviews
Positive49.7%
Neutral13.6%
Negative36.7%

Lab.Hacks

All ratings136 ratings
Positive98.5%
Neutral0.7%
Negative0.7%
Written reviews27 reviews
Positive96.3%
Neutral3.7%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

LiquidText

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Frequent crashes and data loss issues
  • Inconsistent behavior with Apple Pencil
  • Text selection and highlighting problems
  • Sync issues between iPad and Mac versions
  • Unexpected changes to existing annotations

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Improved palm rejection and writing experience
  • Better export and sharing options
  • Thumbnail/outline view for easier navigation
  • Ability to rotate and resize text/image annotations

Lab.Hacks

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

LiquidText

Subscriptions10
  • LiquidText Live, Monthly, Stu7 Days trial$5.491 Month
  • LiquidText Live, Monthly, StPr7 Days trial$5.491 Month
  • LiquidText Unlimited, Mo, Stu7 Days trial$10.901 Month
Show 7 more
  • LiquidText Live, Monthly7 Days trial$10.901 Month
  • LiquidText Live, Monthly, Upg7 Days trial$10.901 Month
  • LiquidText Unlimited, Yr, Stu7 Days trial$19.001 Month
  • LiquidText Live, Yearly, Stu7 Days trial$54.901 Year
  • LiquidText Live, Yearly7 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • LiquidText Live, Yearly, Upg7 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • LiquidText Unlimited, Yr7 Days trial$189.991 Year
8 purchases

Lab.Hacks

Subscriptions2
  • Lab.hacks Ad-free monthly$2.991 Month
  • Lab.hacks Ad-free annual$28.991 Year
One-time6
  • Donate 1$$0.99
  • Donate 5$$3.99
  • Donate 10$$8.99
Show 3 more
  • Donate 20$$17.99
  • Donate 50$$44.99
  • Donate 100$$89.99

Questions

Is LiquidText free?
LiquidText is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Lab.Hacks free?
Lab.Hacks is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, LiquidText or Lab.Hacks?
Lab.Hacks is rated higher. LiquidText averages 4.6 out of 5 from 6.4K ratings, while Lab.Hacks averages 4.9 from 136 ratings.
Do LiquidText or Lab.Hacks have ads?
Lab.Hacks shows ads; LiquidText does not.
Which is updated more often, LiquidText or Lab.Hacks?
LiquidText ships an update every 2 weeks, and Lab.Hacks every 2 months. Most recently, LiquidText was updated on November 4, 2026 and Lab.Hacks on November 3, 2026.

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