What is it?
A scanned PDF is just pictures of pages: you can’t search it or copy from it. This tool reads the text on each page (OCR) and adds it as an invisible layer under the picture. The pages look exactly the same, but Ctrl+F, copy and screen readers now work.
Who is it for?
Office staff with scanned files, students with photographed notes, people searching old bank statements or property papers, lawyers with case bundles, and anyone who must upload a “searchable PDF”.
How to use it
- Choose a PDF.
- Pick the Language of the text (for example English, Hindi, Punjabi or English + Hindi) and the Quality: Normal (200 dpi) or Small print (300 dpi).
- Optionally type Pages (optional) like
1-5, and keep Skip pages that already have text ticked. - Tap Make searchable. It shows Loading the text reader… and then Reading page …. Download the result.
Tips for better results
- Scan straight, in good light, at 200–300 dpi; avoid shadows.
- Mixed Hindi and English pages: choose English + Hindi.
- Handwriting is read poorly; printed text works best.
The language data downloads the first time you use each language. Try a sample makes a small scanned invoice and finds “4711” in it once it is searchable.
Is my file uploaded?
No. The file is opened and changed inside your browser, on your own phone or computer. Nothing is sent to us, and closing the page clears it.
Errors and how to fix them
- “This PDF is password-protected. Remove the password first”: open it once with Remove PDF Password (you need the password), then use the unlocked copy here.
- “Every page already has text you can search, so nothing needed reading”: the PDF is not a scan. Untick Skip pages that already have text only if the existing text is wrong.
- “No pages were read”: the page numbers you typed are not in the PDF. Leave Pages empty for all pages.
- Words come out wrong: choose the right language, use Small print (300 dpi), and rescan crooked or blurry pages.
- It is slow: each page takes a few seconds, more on phones. Do 10–20 pages at a time.
Open the tool: Make Scanned PDF Searchable (OCR)
Still stuck?
Contact support. Tell us which tool or page you were using, what you tapped, what you saw, and your phone or computer and browser (for example: Android phone, Chrome). We reply by email.
Questions, or an error not listed here?
Tell us in the comments: what you were doing, the exact message you saw, and your device and browser. We read every comment and add new fixes to this article.