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Top 16 Scanners and OCR SDKs Used in iOS Apps on the Apple App Store
Last update: 6 Sep 2024 CET
App Store

Top 16 Scanners and OCR SDKs Used in iOS Apps on the Apple App Store

We at 42matters have identified the 16 most popular Scanners and OCR SDKs leveraged by iOS apps available on the iOS app market.

Scanner and OCR SDKs enable apps to scan and process texts and QR codes from images and documents. While Scanner SDKs provide apps with the ability to scan, crop, rotate, and color correct documents and QRs, OCR (Optical Character Recognition) SDKs recognize text in scanned images and documents and convert them into machine-readable texts. These SDKs may also provide tools for language detection, spell checking, and formatting.

This list is based on our analysis of the millions of mobile applications – and the 2,300+ SDKs they use – that constitute the vast inventory of the Apple App Store. The accompanying data provides readers with a glimpse into the rich mobile application insights generated by the 42matters technology. This data is also available via our APIs, file dumps, Explorer, and SDK Explorer.

The intended purpose of this article is to assist app builders in their search for the perfect Scanners and OCR SDK to leverage in their app, as well as to give SDK developers insight into their biggest competitors and potential customers. This data collected by our technology may also serve as a useful tool for folks researching the wider mobile app market.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 78.33% have integrated ZXing. This accounts for 59.33% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

ZXing ("zebra crossing") is an open-source, multi-format 1D/2D barcode image processing SDK implemented in Java, with ports to other languages.

Total Apps
81.00k
App Store
App Share
78.33%
App Store
Apps
80.55k
Games
454
Total Downloads
17.07b
App Store
Download Share
59.33%
App Store
App Downloads
15.49b
Game Downloads
1.58b

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use ZXing.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 9.55% have integrated ML Kit by Google. This accounts for 30.99% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
9.88k
App Store
App Share
9.55%
App Store
Apps
9.83k
Games
47
Total Downloads
8.92b
App Store
Download Share
30.99%
App Store
App Downloads
8.91b
Game Downloads
8.54m

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use ML Kit by Google.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 7.70% have integrated ZBar. This accounts for 9.04% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

ZBar is an open source software suite for reading bar codes from various sources, such as video streams, image files, and raw intensity sensors.

Total Apps
7.96k
App Store
App Share
7.70%
App Store
Apps
7.92k
Games
46
Total Downloads
2.60b
App Store
Download Share
9.04%
App Store
App Downloads
2.38b
Game Downloads
219.20m

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use ZBar.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 3.08% have integrated QRCodeReaderViewController. This accounts for 4.31% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

QRCodeReaderViewController was initially a simple QRCode reader SDK. But it now lets you specify the format type you want to decode.

Total Apps
3.18k
App Store
App Share
3.08%
App Store
Apps
3.16k
Games
18
Total Downloads
1.24b
App Store
Download Share
4.31%
App Store
App Downloads
992.45m
Game Downloads
247.84m

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use QRCodeReaderViewController.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 1.31% have integrated Tesseract OCR. This accounts for 1.78% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

The Tesseract OCR SDK contains an OCR engine — libtesseract and a command line program — tesseract. Tesseract 4 adds a new neural net (LSTM) based OCR engine which is focused on line recognition, but also still supports the legacy Tesseract OCR engine of Tesseract 3 which works by recognizing character patterns.

Total Apps
1.36k
App Store
App Share
1.31%
App Store
Apps
1.32k
Games
34
Total Downloads
513.06m
App Store
Download Share
1.78%
App Store
App Downloads
498.30m
Game Downloads
14.77m

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Tesseract OCR.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, 1.15% have integrated Scandit. This accounts for 4.38% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Scandit develops software for mobile enterprise apps with the highest quality barcode scanning, text and objects recognition, and augmented reality solutions.

Total Apps
1.19k
App Store
App Share
1.15%
App Store
Apps
1.19k
Games
1
Total Downloads
1.26b
App Store
Download Share
4.38%
App Store
App Downloads
1.26b
Game Downloads
4.93k

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Scandit.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Genius Scan. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
536
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
536
Games
0
Total Downloads
62.57m
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
62.57m
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Genius Scan.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Scanbot. This accounts for 1.38% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
200
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
200
Games
0
Total Downloads
398.22m
App Store
Download Share
1.38%
App Store
App Downloads
398.22m
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Scanbot.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Cortex Decoder. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
180
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
180
Games
0
Total Downloads
243.86k
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
243.86k
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Cortex Decoder.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated ABBYY. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Mobile document capture and on-device text recognition. Create smooth self-service experiences for customers.

Total Apps
53
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
53
Games
0
Total Downloads
30.00m
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
30.00m
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use ABBYY.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Dynamsoft Barcode Reader. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
47
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
47
Games
0
Total Downloads
755.69k
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
755.69k
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Dynamsoft Barcode Reader.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Pixolus. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Pixolus is an SDK that automates data acquisition. Users only need a smartphone and Pixolus's image recognition software to acquire content and data.

Total Apps
42
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
42
Games
0
Total Downloads
268.90k
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
268.90k
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Pixolus.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated PSPDFKit. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

PSPDFKit is the best framework for working with PDF files. The PSPDFKit SDK provides first-rate PDF solutions for your application with features like annotating, signing, and form filling.

Total Apps
35
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
35
Games
0
Total Downloads
1.73m
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
1.73m
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use PSPDFKit.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Anyline SDK. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Anyline is a mobile OCR SDK that enables you to scan numbers and short text within your application.

Total Apps
31
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
31
Games
0
Total Downloads
12.30m
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
12.30m
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Anyline SDK.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Zebra Scanners. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
29
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
29
Games
0
Total Downloads
23.22k
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
23.22k
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Zebra Scanners.

Among all apps utilizing scanners and ocr SDKs, <1% have integrated Docutain. This accounts for <1% of app downloads within the scanners and ocr SDK category.

Total Apps
4
App Store
App Share
<1%
App Store
Apps
4
Games
0
Total Downloads
506.96k
App Store
Download Share
<1%
App Store
App Downloads
506.96k
Game Downloads
0

Use the 42matters SDK Explorer to find all apps that use Docutain.

Browse iOS and Android SDKs With the SDK Explorer

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  • SDK IntelligenceSDK Intelligence

    See how many apps integrate specific SDKs, how many times these SDKs have been downloaded, developer details, similar SDKs, and more.

  • New Installations and Removals HistoryNew Installations and Removals History

    Analyze installation and removal trends for SDKs. Discover which apps have removed or integrated specific SDKs in a given timeframe.

  • Market Share per Google Play and Apple App Store CategoryMarket Share per Google Play and Apple App Store Category

    See which app categories or genres are most likely to use specific SDKs. Detect SDK market share per category.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How does 42matters collect this data?'

We’ve developed a number of machine learning algorithms that scan millions of mobile and connected TV (CTV) applications on a regular basis. In addition, we collect ground truth app performance intelligence and use this data to build statistical models that estimate the performance of apps for which we do not have ground truth data.

What SDK data does 42matters collect?'

We track over 2,300 of the most popular SDKs integrated in iOS and Android apps. We collect a variety of SDK insights (title, platform, ID, category, and developer website); performance metrics (the number of apps that have installed each SDK, installation and removal trends, and app downloads); market share statistics (including market share per app category); and more!

How can I access 42matters’ SDK data?'

The most direct way is to use our SDK Explorer, which is a visual, web-based research platform that enables you to peruse all 2,300+ SDKs that we track. It’s great for market research, lead generation, competitor analysis, etc. However, more technically-inclined folks might prefer our APIs and File Dumps, which enable you to query info for specific apps or SDKs. You can also use our other research platform (the Explorer) to view integrated SDKs by app.

Can I use 42matters’ solutions to generate app publisher leads?'

Absolutely! We actually wrote about this on our blog. We focused on ad network SDKs, but the examples are applicable to most SDK types. To summarize, you can use the Explorer’s advanced filtering capabilities to home in on best-fit app publishers, leverage the SDK Explorer to see which apps use your competitors’ SDKs, and use our APIs and file dumps to build custom lead generation processes.

What data does 42matters provide on mobile apps?'

A ton! We track 17+ million apps across Google Play, the Apple App Store, Amazon Appstore, Tencent Appstore, and Huawei AppGallery. Our solutions provide access to app details (developer insights, metadata, ASO keywords, contact information, etc.); performance metrics (downloads, MAUs, ratings, reviews, top chart rankings, etc.); technical insights (integrated SDKs, permissions, required capabilities, etc.); content details (categories, genres, IAB categories, content ratings, etc.); compliance information (app-ads.txt, privacy policies, store status, etc.) and much, much more!

Can I use 42matters’ solutions to find SDKs for my app?'

Definitely. The SDK Explorer enables you to sort SDKs by category, identify similar SDKs, analyze SDK reliability, and more. In addition, you can use the Explorer to monitor your competitors, including which SDKs they add and remove, their current tech stacks, and SDK changelogs. This means you use our solutions not only to find the right SDK for a particular purpose, but also which SDKs you might need to keep up with your rivals.