OCR PDF
Turn a scanned PDF or a photo of a document into a searchable PDF that looks exactly the same, with text you can find, select and copy.
- Choose the language of the document
- Upload the scanned PDF or image
- Download the searchable PDF
Your files never leave your device
What a searchable PDF is
A scanned page is only a picture of text. OCR (optical character recognition) reads the words and places an invisible text layer exactly over them, so the page looks identical but search, copy and screen readers work.
For the best results
- Choose the language of the document and keep "Also recognize English" for mixed text.
- Scans at 300 DPI or sharp photos give the best accuracy.
- Straighten photos first with the Scan to PDF tool.
- Pages that already contain text are skipped, so mixed PDFs are fine.
Limits
Up to 100 pages per file. The language data (a few MB) is downloaded once, the first time. Recognition takes a few seconds per page, depending on your device.
Frequently asked questions
What is OCR PDF?
It recognizes the text in scanned pages and adds it as an invisible, searchable layer to the same PDF.
Does the PDF look different afterwards?
No. The original pages are kept; only invisible text is added.
Does it support Arabic?
Yes, plus 24 other languages including Persian, Urdu, Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Can I turn a photo into a searchable PDF?
Yes. Upload a JPG, PNG or WEBP image and you get a one-page searchable PDF.
Why is some text wrong?
OCR depends on scan quality. Blurry, skewed or low-resolution pages produce more errors.
Is my file uploaded?
No. Recognition runs on your device and the file never leaves it.