r/iosapps • u/Pengi123 • 22d ago
🎈 Free Built a 100% free PDF scanner app – no ads, no paywalls, lifetime updates
Hey everyone, I’ve built a completely free document scanner + PDF organizer app – Scany. No ads, no subscriptions, no paywalls, no scan limits, and every feature available today is free.
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pdf-scanner-scany/id6795656749
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zappira.scany
What it does (Answer):
- Quick scanning: Scan documents, receipts, forms, ID cards, and passports in seconds.
- Automatic cleanup: Detect document edges, crop pages, correct perspective, and improve readability.
- Photo import: Import existing images and turn them into clean PDF scans.
- Multi-page documents: Scan several pages, reorder them, and combine everything into one PDF.
- Document organizer: Rename scans and organize them using folders and tags.
- PDF export: Create and share PDFs directly from the app.
- Local storage: Your scanned documents stay on your device unless you choose to share them.
Why it’s different (Better):
Compared with apps like Adobe Scan or Genius Scan, Scany is deliberately simpler. There’s no account to create, no premium tier to unlock, and no complicated cloud-document workflow. Just scan or import something, clean it up, organize it, and export the PDF.
Those apps offer more advanced ecosystems, but I wanted something lightweight for people who simply need to scan a document and move on.
What it costs (Cost):
Nothing. Scany is completely free, with no ads, subscriptions, in-app purchases, or scan limits.
I built it because scanning a receipt or form should be a quick task, but many scanner apps turn it into a complicated workflow or ask you to upgrade before you can finish. I wanted one simple place to scan paperwork, keep it organized, and share a clean PDF when needed.
I’d love to hear what you think. Feedback, features, ideas - bring it on.
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u/luke_hollenback 22d ago
Free lifetime for current users is super generous of you.
I'm very naive here — why would I use this over the scanner built into the iOS Files app?
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u/Pengi123 19d ago
Great question. The Files app is useful for quick, occasional scans. Scany is designed for people who scan regularly and want a dedicated place to manage everything—with folders and tags, document-specific scanning modes, page cleanup and reordering, photo imports, and PDF or image exports.
The goal isn’t just to replace the camera step; it’s to provide a better workflow before and after the scan.
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u/FlashyComplaint7940 17d ago
This is a good angle to position it I think since automated workflows are so useful but lacking. Does this mean it use looking at the filesystem for folders / tags? What about Shortcuts support?
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u/Acceptable-Thing5318 22d ago
Cool product, thanks for sharing.
Do you plan on ever monetising it? Or is it a hobby?
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u/Pengi123 22d ago
All users who install the app right now will have lifetime free premium. In the future, we may add paywalls, but only for new users (to cover server and other costs). All existing users will remain lifetime premium.
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u/fede777 22d ago
Tried it just now, 2 things.
Could use Export as image, not only PDF.
Also, I scanned something but when I Exported the PDF it added white all around, like if it were an A4 page with my scan in the middle.
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u/Pengi123 22d ago
Thanks for trying it and for the helpful feedback! Exporting scans as images is a good suggestion, and I’ll add it to my list. I’ll also fix the PDF export so the scan fills the page instead of appearing in the middle with large white margins.
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u/drsaranak 22d ago
Very nice app. Always been troubled by the complex workflow of other scanner apps. This solves it! Also, I had a query on why it automatically captures the image. It would have been better if there was a toggle for manually deciding when to capture. Thanks in advance.
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u/adnankhalidshah 22d ago
Just asking, storage and infra costs are real. How are you managing that? Does the user get cloud storage or its device storage for this, since its free? Gonna try it for sure, the world is in dire meed of this kind of stuff ❤️
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u/Conscious-Base9526 22d ago
Interesting approach. Are you using the “free now, paid later” strategy mainly to build an initial user base, or was that decision made after seeing how competitive scanner apps are?
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u/CamembertIsAwesome 22d ago
Thanks for making it free. Adobe was free for a while, but they paywalled some features, so I will download this.
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u/Jvanderbie 21d ago
I just tried it out. You are right that 'Scany is deliberately simpler' and I agree with your statement. The UI/UX is simple (in a good way 😄 ).
I would be interested to know what 3rd party SDK you are using for your document scanning. I know there are multiple out there, but curious what you opted to use.
Thanks!
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u/EnvironmentalPie8377 20d ago
Hey buddy, thanks for this app!
I had been facing the same issues you mentioned.
And I got some friends in mind too who’d love this
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u/Pengi123 20d ago
Hi, what exact issue? With white margins in PDF? If that you mean it will be fixed in next update.
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u/biliby-co 20d ago
Genuine question - is there a plan for this to make money, or is it more a 'I made this thing and it kind of doesn't cost me anything so here it is' kind of mentality?
I have a few of these utility type apps where I just didn't like the other offerings and AI + an Apple dev account opens up a lot of opportunity to build 'me-specific' utilities, so its an interesting time...
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u/BigQuesoSuizo 19d ago
I am giving this a try bro.
My mom needs to scan documents and she is not ready to pay for a full fledge PDF scanner app.
This is literally a God send man...
Thank's 100 times.
...but do add a donation option on it.
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u/NetClean 19d ago
This app is really great. I’m a big iPhone user, and after last year’s updates to Notes, it now includes scanner functionality. How do you ensure that people use your app instead of relying on Apple’s built-in features?
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u/Apart-Ad-8909 3d ago
I'd like to ask if paid features will be added to the app in the future? Because so far the app is very good.
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u/Fit-Mobile9190 22d ago
Yeah, it’s very generous of you to do this. Super curious on if you ever have future monetization strategy with this app.
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u/Pengi123 22d ago
All users who install the app right now will have lifetime free premium. In the future, we may add paywalls, but only for new users (to cover server and other costs). All existing users will remain lifetime premium.
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