PDFDEN / Advanced / OCR PDF

OCR PDF

OCR PDF scans so you can search, select and copy their text. The pages look exactly the same, and the scan never leaves your computer.

or drop it here Processed on your device. Nothing is uploaded.

How to OCR PDF

Drop your scanned PDF into the box.
Choose the document language.
Run OCR and wait while each page is read. It takes a few seconds per page.
Download the searchable PDF, or the recognized text as a .txt file.

Make a scanned PDF searchable

OCR (optical character recognition) reads the words in a scanned image. PDFDEN runs Tesseract on each page and adds an invisible text layer on top of the original, so the page looks unchanged but search and copy now work.

The scanned PDF guide has tips for better results.

Languages and speed

Supported languages are English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Dutch. Other languages will not be recognized well.

OCR runs in your browser, which keeps the file private but takes time: a few seconds per page. For long documents, split the PDF and process the pages you need. If a PDF already has selectable text, PDF to Text is much faster.

Guides

How to Make a PDF Searchable, Even a ScanHow to make a PDF searchable with free OCR: add a hidden text layer so scanned pages can be searched and copied. Runs in your browser.How to Compare Two PDF FilesHow to compare two PDF files: load both, get a word-level diff with additions in green and deletions in red. Free, runs in your browser.How to Convert PDF to WordHow to convert PDF to Word: get an editable .docx or an exact-look copy in your browser. Free, no signup, and your file is never uploaded.How to Convert PDF to ExcelHow to convert PDF to Excel: turn PDF tables into an .xlsx spreadsheet or a CSV in your browser. Free, no signup, and your file is never uploaded.How to Scan a Document on iPhoneHow to scan a document on iPhone with the Notes or Files app, save it as a PDF, then make it searchable and small enough to email.How to Convert PDF to Google DocsHow to convert PDF to Google Docs: open it with Docs in Google Drive, or convert to Word first to keep more of the headings and paragraphs.

Frequently asked questions

How do I OCR a PDF?

Drop the scanned PDF here, pick the language and run it. You get a searchable PDF and the text as a .txt file.

Is this OCR PDF tool free?

Yes. No signup and no watermark, and the scan is processed in your browser.

Which languages does the OCR support?

English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Dutch.

How long does OCR take?

A few seconds per page, so a long document can take several minutes. Keep the tab open until it finishes.

Does OCR change how my PDF looks?

No. The text layer is invisible and sits on top of the original page image.

Can I just copy the text out of a scan?

Yes. Download the recognized text as .txt. For PDFs that already contain text, PDF to Text extracts it directly.