Make a PDF
searchable.
A scan is a photograph: the words are there for your eyes and nowhere else. Optical recognition reads them and writes them into the file, so the document becomes searchable. Free, processed in France.
- tool.pricefree 0 €
- tool.installnothing to install
- tool.retentiondeleted after the job
- tool.hostingFrance 100%
Your files are processed on servers in France and deleted automatically once the job is done. More on security.
What it takes, what it gives back
- You uploadA scanned PDF, up to 100 MB
- You chooseThe language of the document, and whether to redo an existing text layer
- You get backThe same PDF, with a text layer added under the images
- What is not doneNothing is retyped or corrected. Recognition reads, it does not proofread
- RetentionNone. The file you send and the file produced are erased once the job is done
Three steps, nothing to install
Upload the scanned PDF
Up to 100 MB.
Say what language it is in
It changes the result more than anything else on this page.
Download the searchable PDF
It looks identical, and now it searches.
Three situations it was made for
Years of scanned paper you cannot search
A folder of scans is a folder you have to open one by one. Recognized, it answers a search.
Quoting from a scanned report
Selectable text means copying a sentence instead of retyping it.
Making a document readable by a screen reader
A photograph of text says nothing to assistive software. A text layer does.
What the tool actually does
The images are untouched
The text is written underneath the picture of the page. The document looks exactly as it did, and selecting a word now selects the recognized text sitting behind it. Nothing you can see has moved.
The quality of the scan decides the result
A clean scan at a decent resolution reads almost perfectly. A faint photocopy, a page scanned crooked or a photograph taken at an angle reads badly, and no setting fixes that. If the source is poor, scanning it again beats every option on this page.
Recognition is not proofreading
What comes out is what the software believed it saw. There will be mistakes, especially on unusual names, on handwriting and on tables. The document becomes searchable, which is the point, and it does not become a verified transcript.
Before you upload anything
Which languages are supported?
English, French, or both at once for a document that mixes them.
Does the document change to look at?
No. The text is added underneath the images. Nothing visible moves.
My document already has text, what happens?
It is left alone, unless you turn on the switch that rebuilds the text layer from the images.
How accurate is it?
It depends almost entirely on the scan. A clean page reads very well; a faint or crooked one reads poorly, and no setting compensates.
Why is it slower than the other tools?
Because every page has to be read as an image. A long document can take a minute.
Is the tool free?
Yes, with no sign-up and nothing to install.
Are my files kept?
No. The file you send and the file produced are deleted automatically once the job is done.
Where are my files processed?
On servers in France. Your data stays in the European Union, under the GDPR.
More questions about the tools? See the toolbox section of the help centre.