PDF annotation apps for iPhone and iPad
To mark up PDFs on an iPhone or iPad, check whether you can annotate without a subscription and whether you also need to fill in forms or sign. The apps below document PDF annotation on iOS. Apps in this guide: Adobe Acrobat Reader (mobile app), PDF Expert, PDF Reader Pro, PDFgear, Xodo.
Conditions checked
- iOS
- Annotate PDFs
Before you choose
A free download doesn't make every tool free; editing and other features can sit in a paid tier. A drawn signature is not a certified digital signature.
Documented conditions compared
Each cell reflects the catalog's current qualified sources for this platform. Not documented means unknown, not unsupported. Notes and sources are on each app below.
| App | Free | No subscription | Fill in PDF forms | E-signing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe Acrobat Reader (mobile app) | Free, important features paid · Subscription | Free, important features paid · Subscription | Documented | Documented |
| PDF Expert | Subscription · Free, important features paid | Subscription · Free, important features paid | Documented | Not documented |
| PDF Reader Pro | One-time purchase | Documented | Not documented | Documented |
| PDFgear | Documented | Documented | Documented | Documented |
| Xodo | Subscription · Free, important features paid | Subscription · Free, important features paid | Documented | Documented |
Products with evidence for these conditions
Listed alphabetically, with no paid placement. Inclusion establishes these documented conditions, not a hands-on endorsement or a guarantee of fit.
Xodo
iOS
iOS · Annotate PDFs · Fill in PDF forms · E-signing
- On iPhone and iPad, highlighting, underlining, and striking out text in Reader mode needs the subscription.
Sources for the apps above were checked between 2026-09-12 and 2026-09-13.
Common questions
Can I annotate PDFs on an iPad without a subscription?
No subscription, as recorded here: Adobe Acrobat Reader (mobile app) — Free, important features paid · Subscription (Paid features: Editing text and images; OCR (iOS); Converting PDFs to Office and image files; Combining and splitting files; Organizing pages; Password protection); PDF Expert — Subscription · Free, important features paid (Paid features: Editing PDFs; Merging PDFs; Rotating and reordering pages); PDF Reader Pro, PDFgear — Documented; Xodo — Subscription · Free, important features paid (Paid features: Unlimited access to all 30+ tools; Converting PDFs to Office files; High compression; Merging documents into one PDF; Redaction; License for business use; OCR; Creating fillable forms). Check the notes and paid features too: an app can let you annotate for free but keep other tools in a subscription.
Can these apps sign PDFs?
E-signing, as recorded here: Adobe Acrobat Reader (mobile app), PDF Reader Pro, PDFgear, Xodo — Documented; PDF Expert — Not documented. Where signing is documented. A drawn signature may not be accepted where a certified digital signature is required.
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