OCR PDF — Make Scanned PDF Searchable Online for Free
Make scanned PDFs searchable and selectable. OCR recognizes text in any language and embeds it — no cloud, no upload, runs in browser.
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
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
Use cases
- Make a scanned NDA text-selectable so you can copy specific clauses into a reply
- Search through 50 pages of a scanned manual for a specific part number
- Convert a photo-quality bank statement to a searchable PDF for tax filing
Why use this OCR tool instead of alternatives?
Powered by Tesseract — industry-standard OCR engine
Tesseract is the same open-source engine used by Google and major document processing platforms. It delivers 95%+ accuracy on clean scans and handles mixed Russian-English documents in one pass.
Invisible text layer — layout stays unchanged
After OCR, your PDF looks identical to the original. The recognized text is added as an invisible layer beneath the page images — nothing is reformatted, shifted, or replaced.
Make scanned PDFs searchable free — no upload needed
The entire OCR process runs in your browser using WebAssembly. Your scanned document never leaves your device, which matters for medical records, legal papers, or any confidential scan.
Common problems
OCR runs but no searchable text appears
Ensure the document language matches your selection. Mixed Russian/English content needs both languages selected simultaneously.
Processing freezes or never completes
Large PDFs can overwhelm the browser. Split the document into smaller parts first, then OCR each part separately.
Recognized text contains many errors
Scan quality directly determines accuracy. Increase scan resolution to at least 300 DPI and ensure pages are not skewed.
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 OCR work with handwritten text?
No. Tesseract OCR is trained on printed fonts, not handwriting. For handwritten documents you'll need dedicated handwriting recognition software.
Can I search and copy text in the PDF after OCR?
Yes. That is the main purpose — after OCR the invisible text layer enables Ctrl+F search and text selection in any PDF viewer.
How long does OCR take for a 10-page document?
Typically 30–90 seconds depending on page complexity and your device speed. Progress is shown page by page during processing.
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