Notion vs PDF Expert

Notion is a single space where you can think, write, and plan. Capture thoughts, manage projects, or even run an entire company.

PDF Expert is a PDF editor and reader made by Readdle, a company founded in 2007, used by more than 30 million people worldwide with a 4.7-star rating across 211K reviews. It lets users edit text, images, and links directly inside a PDF, fill and sign forms with formula support, and manage pages by merging, rearranging, extracting, deleting, or rotating them. Beyond editing, PDF Expert includes OCR text recognition, a PDF Copilot AI assistant, PDF translation, and conversion to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and JPG formats. It also offers annotation tools such as notes, highlights, stamps, audio notes, and drawing, plus multiple reading modes, and has been recognized by Apple as an Editors' Choice and App of the Year runner-up.

• Extremely flexible - adapts to almost any workflow
• Clean, minimal interface
• Strong template ecosystem
• Good mobile apps

• Deep, desktop-grade editing tools rarely found in mobile PDF apps
• Native Mac and iOS apps feel fast and well integrated with Apple devices
• Strong annotation and signing toolset for reviewing and approving documents
• Offers both subscription and one-time Lifetime purchase options for Mac

• Can get slow with very large databases
• Steep learning curve for advanced features
• Offline mode is limited

• Only available on Apple platforms, with no Windows, Android, or web version
• Full editing features require a paid subscription or lifetime license
• Lifetime license only covers the Mac app, not iPhone or iPad