Does this work well on handwriting or poor scans?
Not reliably. It is strongest on clean printed text, and significantly weaker on handwriting, low-contrast scans, and phone photos with skew or glare.
OCR PDF
Turn scans into searchable PDF files.
Upload a scan or image and run OCR in-browser. The original image stays intact while the text layer becomes searchable.
This file never leaves your device
Processing happens entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is stored, nothing is sent to us. Close the tab and it's gone.
Check for yourself — open DevTools, go to the Network tab, and run the tool. You'll see no upload.
Action panel
Free users are limited to 5 pages per document. Premium users get unlimited pages on the same file.
English only in this tool.
OCR runs in the browser and reuses a cached model on repeat use.
What this tool does
Runs OCR on a scanned PDF or image and produces a searchable PDF where a hidden text layer sits beneath the original image so the document can be selected and searched in standard readers.
When to use OCR PDF
- • Scanned forms. The print is clean and a text layer makes the file searchable without retyping the whole document.
- • Invoices and statements. Search by amount, vendor name, or document date after OCR has been applied.
- • Archive cleanup. A stored scan becomes easier to find later in a document library or in your local file system.
Why it is useful
- • Searchable PDFs are far easier to find, review, and quote from later.
- • It keeps the original image quality while making the text selectable.
- • It avoids manual transcription for clean, text-heavy scans.
How to use OCR PDF
- 1. Upload a scanned PDF or image.
- 2. Wait for the page-by-page OCR progress to finish.
- 3. Review the text and export the searchable PDF or plain text file.
- 4. Download the result and open it in a reader to confirm the text is selectable.
Privacy and safety note
OCR runs fully in your browser. The language model downloads once the first time you use the tool, then it is cached locally. No document content is sent to a server for this task.
Frequently asked questions
Is the original image kept?
Yes. The OCR text layer is added beneath the image instead of replacing it, so the original visual quality is preserved.
Is there a limit on pages?
Free users are limited to five pages per document; premium users have no page cap for the same file.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The OCR work runs in-browser and the downloaded model is cached locally.