What is the best scanner app for iPhone?

How seven iPhone scanner apps compare

This table compares what each app states on its own pages and App Store listing, read on November 7, 2026, for the US store. "Not stated" means the pages opened do not say, not that the feature is missing.

Sources: the makers' pages and App Store listings linked in this article, US store, read November 7, 2026. Prices can change.

What do the App Store privacy labels say?

Apple's labels are declared by each developer. They describe data collection, and they say nothing about how well an app scans. Read on November 7, 2026, they differ widely.

Source: each app's App Store listing, US store.

Apple Notes: pros and cons

The scanner in Apple Notes comes with your iPhone, so there is nothing to install. Apple also lets you sign in Notes with Markup.

• Pros: free, already installed, signing included, and search covers text in scanned documents.
• Cons: name or folder suggestions are not stated on the pages read.
• Choose it if you scan a page now and then and do not need more.

Adobe Scan: pros and cons

Adobe Scan saves scans to Adobe Document Cloud automatically, with 5 GB free and 20 GB paid, and its Digitize feature, in beta, turns handwriting into editable PDFs.

• Pros: searchable PDFs, handwriting tools, and a place in the Acrobat family.
• Cons: free text recognition covers scans of up to 5 pages, per its listing (its iOS help says 25), signing happens in Acrobat Reader, and sign-in is needed for subscription and online features.
• Choose it if you already use Acrobat or need to work on PDFs afterward.

Genius Scan: pros and cons

Genius Scan keeps its free version simple. No account is required, and its privacy policy says text recognition, PDF generation and image processing happen on the device.

• Pros: unlimited free scans with no watermark or ads, and available on Android too.
• Cons: text recognition and searchable PDFs need Ultra at $39.99 a year, and signing is in a separate app.
• Choose it if you want a plain, free scanner with years of history.

Scanner Pro: pros and cons

Scanner Pro by Readdle is a free app with an optional Plus subscription. Text recognition runs on the device, and its AI features are off by default, according to its privacy notice.

• Pros: text layers in PDFs, automatic upload to other clouds, and signing, all with Plus.
• Cons: new users pay for text recognition and signing, and current Plus prices per period are not stated on the pages read.
• Choose it if you want automatic upload to your cloud and do not mind a subscription.

CamScanner: pros and cons

CamScanner has the most US App Store ratings of this group, read November 7, 2026, and runs on phones, tablets, computers and the web, according to its site. Its FAQ describes local recognition in the app and cloud recognition that uploads images. If you are leaving it, see CamScanner alternatives for iPhone and how to take your documents with you.

• Pros: wide platform support, 40 or more recognition languages, and many AI tools.
• Cons: exports from the free version carry a watermark and QR code, signing is Premium.
• Choose it if you need one account across phone, computer and web.

QuickScan: pros and cons

QuickScan is the closest app to PaginaScan in spirit. Its privacy page says scanning and recognition run on the device with no server, its listing says the same of its AI features, and its site reports over 32,000 ratings worldwide.

• Pros: free for personal use, with text recognition, searchable PDFs, signing, summaries and automatic export to many clouds. The app runs on iOS 16.4 or later, and the listing marks some newer features as needing iOS 26.
• Cons: professional use needs a VIP donation or the Enterprise edition, and in-app sync between devices is not stated on the pages read.
• Choose it if you want a free private scanner with searchable PDFs, or an older iPhone.

PaginaScan: pros and cons

PaginaScan is our app, so read this one with that in mind. It reads text on the device. Apple's language models suggest a name and one of your folders and show amounts and dates as cards, on the device or, by default on iOS 27, through Apple's Private Cloud Compute. Adobe Scan, Genius Scan, Scanner Pro and QuickScan also state name suggestions. A suggestion among your own folders and cards of amounts and dates are not stated on the other apps' pages opened here, which does not prove they lack them.

• Pros: no account, the Data Not Collected label, and dates you can add to your calendar. Sync and backups use your own iCloud.
• Cons: no searchable text in exported PDFs, no password PDFs, compression or Word export, no Android or Mac version, signing is Pro and is a drawn signature, not a certified one, the free version stops at 3 folders of your own, it needs iOS 26 or later, suggestions need Apple Intelligence, and it has no ratings yet.
• Choose it if you want name and folder suggestions for each scan, and its amounts and dates in view.

What happened to Microsoft Lens?

Older lists still recommend it, but Microsoft retired Lens: it left the App Store on February 9, 2026, and scanning ended on March 9, 2026. Microsoft points people to scanning in the OneDrive app. Earlier scans stay readable if the app stays installed and signed in.

Do you need a scanner app at all?

Often you do not. If you scan a page now and then, Notes does it for free. A separate app earns its place when you scan often, or need to find, name, sign or export documents later. Our guide on how long to keep documents shows what is worth keeping, and how to scan a document covers PaginaScan.

How this comparison was made

Every line comes from the maker's own pages and App Store listing, opened on November 7, 2026, for the US store. Scanning quality was not tested here, so nothing on this page ranks how well an app reads a page. CamScanner's FAQ was only partly read. The seven are the apps our research met most often in search results and AI answers, plus PaginaScan. iScanner, a popular scanner, is not included.

Apple Notes, Adobe Scan, Genius Scan, Scanner Pro, CamScanner, QuickScan, Microsoft Lens and OneDrive are trademarks of their owners. PaginaScan is not affiliated with their owners.

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