OCR PDF
Turn scanned pages into searchable, selectable text.
A scanned PDF is just pictures of pages, so you can’t search it or copy its text. OCR reads the words on each page and adds an invisible text layer in exactly the right places, so the file looks the same but becomes searchable.
How to OCR a PDF
- Choose a scanned PDF.
- Pick the language(s) the document is written in.
- Click “Make searchable” and download the new PDF (and the text as .txt if you want it).
Frequently asked questions
Does OCR change how my PDF looks?
No. The page images stay exactly as they are; the recognised text is added as an invisible layer on top, which is how scanners and Adobe Acrobat do it.
Which languages are supported?
English, Afrikaans, German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian and Dutch. Choose more than one for mixed-language documents.
How accurate is it?
Clean printed text at 200–300 DPI is usually recognised almost perfectly. Handwriting, very small print, low-resolution photos and decorative fonts are harder.
Is my document uploaded?
No. The OCR engine runs inside your browser. The first time, it downloads the engine and language data from ModifyPDF; your PDF never leaves your device.
What you get
The same PDF with an invisible text layer on every scanned page. You can search it with Ctrl+F, select and copy text, and let your computer or document system index it. Tick “Also save the text” to get a plain .txt file too.
Mixed documents
Pages that already contain real text are skipped by default, so a PDF that mixes typed and scanned pages only gets OCR where it’s needed. Rotated scans are handled, as long as the page displays the right way up.
Better results
Scan at 300 DPI in black and white or greyscale, keep pages straight, and choose every language the document uses. Run Compress PDF afterwards if the scan is large.