OCR PDF

Recognize the text in a scanned PDF so you can search, copy and edit it.

100+ languages supported
No watermark on downloads

or drop your file here

Powerful OCR Technology

Recognizes Latin, Cyrillic, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese and Korean scripts, plus more.

Flexible Export Options

Get a searchable PDF that keeps your original layout, or a plain .txt file.

Then Redact What You Find

Once scans have text, Redact PDF can find and remove names and numbers.

Three Steps to Make Your PDF Searchable

OCR a PDF in three steps, no software to install, no account needed.

Upload your PDF

Drag and drop or select your scanned document up to 15MB free, 2.5GB on Pro and 5GB on Premium.

Choose your output

Language is detected automatically. Choose a searchable PDF or a plain .txt file as your output.

Download the Result

Your newly digitized, fully readable text file or PDF is ready to download and auto-deleted after 15 min.

Got a stack of PDFs? Make them all searchable with a workflow

Unlock the Text Hidden in Your Images.

Scanned documents are essentially just flat photographs. Here is how OCR makes your files searchable, editable, and useful again.

Digitize Paper Archives

Add a searchable text layer to scanned paperwork. Use document search to find names and keywords, then check the matches against the original scan.

Edit Scanned Documents

Stop retyping physical documents from scratch. Extract the text directly to a .txt file to easily copy, paste, and edit in Word.

Extract Invoice Data

Quickly pull raw text and numbers from flat, scanned receipts and invoices to speed up your accounting and data entry workflow.

Improve Accessibility

Convert flat image-based PDFs into standard text formats so screen readers and text-to-speech apps can read the document aloud.

Prepare for Translation

Extract the foreign text from a scanned brochure or manual into a .txt file to easily paste it directly into translation software.

Search Legal Contracts

Apply OCR to flat, scanned legal exhibits and signed contracts so lawyers and judges can easily search pages for specific clauses.

How OCR works

A scanned PDF is a photograph of a page, the letters are pixels, not text, which is why you can't search or select them. OCR analyses those pixels, identifies the characters, and turns them into real text. FynePDF then either layers that text invisibly behind your original scan, or hands it to you as a plain file.

Searchable PDF

Keep the original page layout while adding an invisible text layer you can search, select, and copy.

Plain .txt

Extract the recognized text into a plain .txt file for copying, translation, indexing, or further editing.

100+ languages

Latin, Cyrillic, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Devanagari, Persian, Greek, Hebrew and more, including scripts that read right to left.

Before and after OCR

Rotate PDF

Straighten sideways scans first; OCR reads upright pages far better.

Compress PDF

Shrink large scans after making them searchable.

Chat with PDFAI

Ask questions about a scan once it has real text.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is OCR and how does it work on a PDF?

OCR (optical character recognition) reads the text in a scanned page or photo and turns it into real text you can search, select and copy. FynePDF recognises the text on each page and adds it as an invisible layer, so the PDF looks exactly like the original scan but becomes searchable. You can also export the recognised text as a plain .txt file.

Can I OCR a PDF and then edit the text, or just make it searchable?

Two output options. A searchable PDF keeps your original scan exactly as it looks, with the recognised text layered invisibly behind it so the document appears unchanged but you can search, select and copy from it. A plain .txt export gives you just the text, ready to paste into Word, a translator, or any other tool. Free accounts process files up to 15MB.

Is the OCR tool free to use online?

Yes, FynePDF's OCR tool is free with no sign-up required. Free accounts process files up to 15MB, with 10 tasks and 600MB of processing a day. Professional at $7/month raises this to 2.5GB, and Premium to 5GB, both with unlimited daily tasks.

Is it safe to use OCR on FynePDF? Are my files secure?

File transfers use TLS encryption. Cloud-processed files are automatically deleted within 15 minutes after processing completes, unless you choose to save them to your Library. Documents are not used to train AI models. Read the Privacy Policy for storage and processing details.

Can I use the OCR tool on Mac, Windows, or mobile?

Yes. FynePDF's OCR tool works directly from your browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android with no installation. Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge are all supported.

Which languages does FynePDF's OCR support?

FynePDF's OCR recognises 100+ languages across Latin, Cyrillic, Arabic, Devanagari and CJK scripts. That includes English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Czech, Romanian, Turkish, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Hebrew, Hindi, Marathi, Nepali, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Malay, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Japanese and Korean.

Why is some of my OCR text wrong?

OCR accuracy depends mostly on the scan, not the document. Blurry photos, low resolution, skewed or rotated pages, handwriting, decorative fonts and heavy background patterns all reduce accuracy. For the best results, scan at 300 DPI or higher, make sure pages are upright, Rotate PDF fixes sideways scans and use good, even lighting if photographing a page. Clean printed text at 300 DPI is recognised very reliably; a phone photo of a creased receipt won't be.

What's the difference between a searchable PDF and a .txt export?

A searchable PDF looks identical to your original scan, same layout, same images, same signatures, but with invisible text behind it so you can search and copy. A .txt export contains only the raw recognised text, with no images, formatting or page structure. Choose searchable PDF when the document needs to stay looking the same, such as a signed contract or an archived record. Choose .txt when you want to edit, translate or feed the text into another tool.

Can I OCR a photo taken on my phone?

Yes. Upload a photo or image file directly JPG, PNG, HEIC and other common formats work alongside PDFs. Phone photos need a little more care than scans: hold the camera parallel to the page, get even lighting with no shadow across the text, and keep the page flat. A creased receipt shot at an angle will produce more errors than the same receipt scanned at 300 DPI. Once recognised, you can export the text as a .txt file or as a searchable PDF.