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How to Extract Text from an Image or Scanned PDF (Free OCR)
Turn photos, screenshots and scanned PDFs into editable, copyable text with free in-browser OCR — in English, Hindi and more.
A scanned page is just a picture — you cannot search it, copy it or edit it. OCR (optical character recognition) reads the letters in the picture and gives you real text.
Extract text from an image
- Open Image to Text.
- Choose the language of the text in the picture.
- Drop in your image, run the OCR and copy the result.
Image to Text (OCR)
Extract text from an image free — processed on your device.
Extract text from a scanned PDF
Use PDF OCR for scanned documents. If your PDF already contains real, selectable text, PDF to Text is faster and needs no OCR at all.
How to get accurate results
- Use a sharp, well-lit, straight-on photo.
- Pick the correct language before you start.
- Higher resolution helps, but avoid huge files that are slow to process.
- Check numbers and names — OCR can confuse similar characters.
Frequently asked questions
Is OCR 100% accurate?
No. Clean printed text is usually very accurate, but handwriting, blur and low-contrast scans reduce accuracy. Always proofread.
Does it work for Hindi and other languages?
Several languages are available in the language picker.
Is my document uploaded?
No. OCR runs inside your browser, so documents stay on your device.
