Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
The verdict on

ScanGuru

45
User verdict / 100 High confidence Divided

ScanGuru is praised for its ease of use and effective document scanning, but many recent users report significant issues with deceptive subscription practices, high weekly costs, and difficulty canceling, often feeling scammed.

4.6★ lifetime (92,542) Free + in-app purchases since 2015 by GM UniverseApps Limited updated 0.6 mo ago recent negative 43% 120 reviews across 4 regions
Subscription Issues High Cost Scanning & OCR Quality Ease of Use
5★296
4★17
3★10
2★14
1★228
recent reviews across 4 regions, vs the 4.6★ lifetime average

ScanGuru is a mobile scanning application that allows users to digitize documents, convert them to PDF, and share them. While some users find it to be a convenient and effective tool for scanning on the go, a significant number of recent reviews highlight problems with unexpected charges, unclear pricing, and a frustrating cancellation process.

What users like

  • Easy to use for scanning documents and converting to PDFR6R33R40R74
  • Helpful for digitizing important documents like certificates and recordsR9R74R79R106
  • Automatically trims and cleans up scanned photos for a professional lookR107

What users complain about

  • Users are charged unexpectedly or immediately after signing up for a 'free trial'R12R24R30R35
  • Subscription cancellation is difficult and unclear, often requiring users to go to the App Store without further instructionsR2R43R47R50
  • The app is considered very expensive, with subscription costs as high as $7-8 per weekR18R307R49R92
  • Some features, like converting handwritten text to digital text or PDF to Word, do not work correctly or produce distorted resultsR39R44R58R73
  • The app is difficult to use, lacks instructions, or simply does not work for some usersR4R21R22R23
  • Scanning quality can be poor or pages do not scan properlyR9R170

Latest update · v2.32.9

What the developer says changed (the verdict above weighs this against what reviewers report):

Thanks for staying with us! In this update, we have made bug fixes and performance improvements. Your feedback helps us to improve!

Recurring themes

Subscription Issues negative
Many users report being charged immediately or unexpectedly after signing up for a 'free trial,' with some calling it a 'scam.' The cancellation process is frequently described as difficult, misleading, and frustrating, often requiring users to navigate external app store settings without clear guidance. Some users were charged even after canceling within the trial period.R2R10R12R24
High Cost negative
A recurring complaint is the app's high price, with many reviewers surprised by weekly charges of $7-8, which they consider exorbitant for an occasional-use app. Some users state they would not pay for it at this price point.R7R8R18R25
Scanning & OCR Quality mixed
While many users praise the app for its ease of scanning and ability to convert documents to PDF, a significant number report issues with scan quality, such as pages not scanning properly or poor image quality. The OCR (Optical Character Recognition) features, like converting handwritten text or PDF to Word, are frequently criticized for being inaccurate, distorted, or not working at all.R9R39R40R44
Ease of Use mixed
Reviews are split on ease of use. Many users find the app intuitive, simple, and easy to use for basic scanning tasks. However, others describe it as very hard to use, lacking instructions, or simply not working, leading to frustration and uninstallation.R4R6R33R46

Who it's for

ScanGuru is for users who need a quick and easy way to scan documents and convert them to PDF on their phone, especially those who frequently need to digitize physical documents for work or personal records R74R107. It might be suitable for educators or field representatives who need to send professional-looking documents on the go R107. However, it is NOT for users who are looking for a free scanning solution, are sensitive to high weekly subscription costs, or require reliable advanced features like accurate OCR for handwritten text R8R39R92. It is also not for users who prefer a straightforward subscription cancellation process.

Evidence note: The recent reviews skew significantly negative, particularly regarding subscription practices and pricing. While there are positive reviews praising ease of use, the volume and detail of negative experiences related to billing and cancellation are substantial. The developer's notes mention 'bug fixes and performance improvements,' but recent reviews still report issues with app functionality and scanning quality, suggesting these problems persist for some users.

Frequently asked

Is ScanGuru free to use?
No, ScanGuru is not free to use; while it may offer a free trial, many users report being charged immediately or unexpectedly for a subscription, with costs as high as $7-8 per week R7R8R18R307.
How do I cancel my ScanGuru subscription?
Canceling a ScanGuru subscription can be difficult, with many users reporting that the app directs them to the App Store without clear instructions on how to proceed, leading to frustration and continued charges R2R43R50.
Does ScanGuru accurately convert handwritten text to digital text?
Based on user reviews, ScanGuru's feature for converting handwritten text to digital text often does not work correctly, producing incorrect translations, jumbled words, or error messages R39R44R73R78.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R6] 5/5 · US Scam Guru: Easy-Peasy right in the palm of your hand onto your phone screen. Then you can file it wherever you want to put it🙌
  2. [R33] 5/5 · US Second to none: Love this app easy to use as well as set up
  3. [R40] 5/5 · US Works great: It easily scans and converts to pdf in a size that easily fits in email attachments. Pricey but simple & great at what it does
  4. [R74] 5/5 · US ScanGuru review: ScanGuru was just what I needed. I needed to take a whole lot of documents or certificates and records and turn them in the digital records. Scan guru made it easy. If you don’t have a scanner and you need to to scan documents, this is the way to do it
  5. [R9] 4/5 · US Love this: Just Sometimes it hard to scan it is not able to frame my document and need to adjust But I am so happy I could save my certificates and letters
  6. [R79] 5/5 · US Vfw: I was pleased with being able to scan my husbands military records and send them with. Minutes
  7. [R106] 5/5 · US New user: Well, after spending about two or three hours this afternoon, trying to scan some documents, my passport, my temporary resident permit to live in Mexico, and then the appropriate customs forms that needed to be done. They needed to be scanned and then converted to a PDF file and then sent to the appropriate authorities, so you can imagine I’m 76 years old most of my career I always had a
  8. [R107] 5/5 · US Scanning on the Go: I’m a field rep and often need to send professional looking documents out while I’m on the road. I’m rarely near a scanner so this app is a lifesaver. The app is easy to use. I love that it automatically trims and cleans up photos so well that no one would ever know it wasn’t from a legit scanner. Thank you!
  9. [R12] 1/5 · US Please read!: Scan Guru advertised a free trial but then charged high, undisclosed, and recurring subscription fees. I canceled the application before the 7‑day trial ended, specifically on 03/02/2026, and I have a screenshot confirming the cancellation. Despite canceling on time, I was still charged, and I am now being billed for an additional week even though the subscription period ended on 03/19
  10. [R24] 1/5 · US Felt scammed: I downloaded product 22 November not realizing I had started free trial and when I did go to use app they charged me on December with button set on free trial like I had never activated it so I used thinking I’d have week try out product and instead was charged. I can say it worked well enough for my reason I got it but free trial after expiring I probably would not have charges if p
  11. [R30] 1/5 · US How about SCAMguru: I signed up for the free trial and was charged $33.67 immediately
  12. [R35] 1/5 · US Roban dinero: Acepte unos días gratis que te dan supuestamente y luego cancele ese mismo día porque no me sirvió la aplicación y me cobraron dos veces si no desinstalo la aplicación sigue cobrando sugiero que tengan cuidado porque te roban y luego te dicen que tú autorizaste pues cuando dan días gratis te engañan y luego te cobran para mí están sagrados nunca más los vuelvo a usar
  13. [R2] 2/5 · US No better than iPhone: And very difficult to cancel subscription. It refused to cancel on the app and told me to cancel it here.
  14. [R43] 1/5 · US Canceling: Been trying to cancel FREE trial for 3 days and account is still activate. I want a refund !
  15. [R47] 2/5 · US Unsubscribe: Hard to unsubscribe
  16. [R50] 1/5 · US WARNING BEWARE: They say they won’t cancel subscription have to visit App Store. Do not get this app it’s trrribl
  17. [R18] 1/5 · US $8 a week no thanks: $8 a week no thanks
  18. [R307] 3/5 · GB Good but needs more affordable price plans: $7 per week!? Had to look twice, thought it said per month at first. It makes sense if you use it all the time as a power productivity tool, but for an occasional user, too expensive
  19. [R49] 1/5 · US Too expensive: $8.00 per month? You must be kidding. It may work fine, but I would never get that much use for it at that price. Next…
  20. [R92] 1/5 · US $6.99 per WEEK??: $6.99. Per week! Exorbitantly expensive for an app that is only needed once a while. Deleted it right away and bought myself a 3 in one printer scanner instead, much more value for money.
  21. [R39] 1/5 · US Scanner translation errors: For some reason the app will translate to text incorrectly, such as, changing the word DireWolves to DISHCLOTHES, when the word DireWolves is written clearly. Also the scanning to change the text will say complete them says, sorry I can’t complete that request. And it also gives a try again logo for pages that I have to exit the app and refresh it before going back int
  22. [R44] 1/5 · US Scanning: Does not do as illustrated. Does not take hand written document and auto change the fonts.
  23. [R58] 1/5 · US Horrible App: I would scan the documents and turn it into a word document and it wouldn’t upload correctly.
  24. [R73] 1/5 · US PDF converter: I purchased the year subscription so that option didn’t give me the week trial option but I said if it does at least one of the two popular features it’s worth it well guess what it doesn’t do either I tried every which way possible I tried converting a pdf to word to edit and it is so distorted that it doesn’t come out correctly it or it says error and the same for the handwrite to
  25. [R4] 1/5 · US Very hard to use!!: Very hard to use, no instructions, error, messages, coming up with no explanation. so far, not impressed with the app. I was thinking about purchasing it but not anymore.
  26. [R21] 1/5 · US Review Jan 11: Tried using your system and nothing but blank came up on my phone. It then that I canceled my subscription. No contact information to help me.
  27. [R22] 1/5 · US No sirve: No sirve no escanea imágenes
  28. [R23] 1/5 · US Not working: I just added this app & it’s not working!!! 😡
  29. [R170] 3/5 · US Bad quality: Some pages do not scan properly, bad quality
  30. [R10] 1/5 · US Stop: Chargeing me
  31. [R7] 1/5 · US Payment: I wish it was free to use but I’m so disappointed with this
  32. [R8] 1/5 · US ScamGuru: The most disgusting app in the world. Want to download a scanned document? Pay money. Want to scan multiple items and save as one file? Pay money. Want to scan more than 3 pages at once? Pay money. Rename your crappy app to ScamGuru. The number of downloads won't overshadow your inadequacy. · translated
  33. [R25] 1/5 · US Price?????: Where’s the price? Or can we assume we find out AFTER you empty out our bank account.
  34. [R46] 1/5 · US Disappointing: Keeps trying to force you into paid version. Can’t get it to work at all. Does anyone actually test these apps to see if they work for someone who doesn’t already know how to use them?
  35. [R78] 2/5 · US Complete fail: I had 2 letters that our mother’s hand wrote. We needed them turned into typed letters. Scanned both letter just fine. But the transfer to text were complete fails!! 1-3 words per line (when shared to computer), words were jumbled together and also parsed into fractions of the word. Can not state how disappointed in a waste of $6.75! Cancelled same day!!

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store