Short answer: they are the same app. Same features, same document formats, same search, same favourites, same dark mode. If you put RFCReader Plus and RFCReader Pro side by side on two devices, you could not tell them apart from the inside — the only visible difference is the corner of the icon.
The real difference is how you pay. RFCReader Pro costs $1.99 up front and everything is unlocked the moment you install it. RFCReader Plus is free to download and unlocks the same full feature set through a single in-app purchase. There is no subscription in either one, and no feature is exclusive to either app.
Same app, twice
Everything described in our earlier announcement applies to both apps identically:
- Every IETF RFC in plain text, PDF and HTML
- Full-index search across the entire document series
- Favourites that flag obsolete and superseded documents
- Dark mode, iPad support, and offline reading of downloaded documents
When we ship a new feature, it ships to both apps. Neither one is ahead.
The only real difference: how you pay
| RFCReader Plus | RFCReader Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Download price | Free | $1.99, once |
| Unlocking | Everything unlocks through a single in-app purchase | Everything is already unlocked — you paid up front |
| Subscription | None, in either app | |
| On the App Store since | June 2021 | September 2015 |
That is the entire list of differences. Everything else — features, document coverage, update cadence — is the same.
Telling them apart
The icons are near-identical on purpose: same book, same RFC lettering. Look at the corner ribbon.
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That is the whole trick: PRO on the ribbon, it is RFCReader Pro; Plus on the ribbon, it is RFCReader Plus. If you have both installed, the Home Screen is the one place you will ever see them side by side.
Which one should you get?
If you already own RFCReader Pro: keep it. Nothing is missing, and there is no reason to switch.
If you are choosing today: RFCReader Plus is the easier entry. Download it for free, try the reader on a few documents, and buy the one-time unlock only when you decide you want the full feature set. You risk nothing, and you end up with exactly the app Pro buyers have.
Get RFCReader Plus — Free
Get RFCReader Pro — $1.99
RFC documents are published by the RFC Editor on behalf of the IETF. Apple, iPhone and iPad are trademarks of Apple Inc. Prices shown are App Store prices in the United States and may vary by region.