OCR PDF — Make Scanned PDF Searchable Online for Free
Add a text layer to scanned PDF pages — make the document searchable, copyable, and ready for indexing.
How to run OCR on PDF
- 1Upload a PDF with scanned or image-based pages
- 2Select the document language: Russian, English, or both
- 3Click 'Run OCR' — the engine processes each page
- 4Download the PDF with the added text layer
Features
- Supports Russian, English and mixed-language documents
- Invisible text layer added on top of page images
- Document remains visually identical to the original
- Processed entirely in the browser — files never leave your device
Use cases
- Make a scanned contract or report searchable
- Enable text copying from a PDF scan
- Prepare a document for search engine indexing
FAQ
Which languages are supported?
Russian, English, and a combination of both (for bilingual documents). Selecting the correct language improves accuracy.
Will the document look different after OCR?
No. The visual content stays identical — only an invisible text layer is added on top of the page images.
How accurate is the recognition?
Accuracy depends on scan quality. Clear, high-contrast scans deliver 95%+ accuracy. Blurry or low-quality scans produce lower results.
Why does processing take a long time?
OCR is resource-intensive and runs entirely in your browser. Processing time depends on page count and complexity. Multi-page documents take longer.
Can I run OCR on a PDF that already has text?
Yes, but there's little benefit — the text layer already exists. OCR is most useful for image-only PDFs like scans and photos.
Does it work on mobile?
Technically yes, but OCR is resource-heavy. For multi-page documents, using a desktop computer is strongly recommended.