OCR — Scanned PDF

Options

Only works on scanned/image PDFs (max 50 pages). Pages that already contain text are kept unchanged.

100% Private: Your files are never stored on our servers — they are deleted immediately after processing.

Turn flat scanned documents into living, searchable PDFs. Our OCR engine reads the scanned pages and adds an invisible text layer — so you can search, select and copy text while the original scan stays visually untouched. English and Hindi (Devanagari) are supported.

How to OCR — Scanned a PDF online

  1. 1

    Upload your scanned PDF (image-only pages).

  2. 2

    Choose the language: English, Hindi or both together.

  3. 3

    Pick the scan quality (200-400 DPI) — 300 DPI is recommended.

  4. 4

    Click Run OCR and download your searchable PDF.

Why use OCR — Scanned PDF on impdf.app?

English + Hindi OCR

Recognizes Latin and Devanagari scripts — even mixed-language documents work with the combined mode.

Original look preserved

The OCR text layer sits invisibly under the scan — your document looks exactly the same.

Smart hybrid processing

Pages that already contain text are kept as-is; only true scanned pages get OCR'd.

Search and copy unlocked

After OCR you can Ctrl+F search the document and copy text into other apps.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is OCR and when do I need it?

OCR (Optical Character Recognition) reads text from images. If your PDF is a scan and Ctrl+F doesn't work, you need OCR.

Which languages are supported?

English and Hindi (Devanagari). Choose 'English + Hindi' for documents mixing both scripts.

Will OCR change how my document looks?

No — the text layer is added under the original image. Visually nothing changes.

Is there a page limit?

OCR handles up to 50 pages per job. Split longer documents first, then process the parts.