What is OCR Image and how does it work?

OCR Image is a free online tool from HuntPDF. Extract text from any photo or scanned image. You upload a file, the work happens on our servers, and you download the result. There is nothing to install and no account to create.

How do I use OCR Image online?

Upload your file using the box above — drag it in, browse for it, or bring it in from your cloud storage. A preview appears so you can check you've picked the right file. Run OCR Image, then download the result. You can rename it before you save it.

Is my file secure when I use OCR Image?

Yes. The file you send to OCR Image travels over an encrypted HTTPS connection and is processed automatically on our servers. It is never made public, never shared with anyone, and nobody reads it.

Does HuntPDF store my files after OCR Image has run?

No. Your upload is deleted the moment OCR Image finishes with it, and the file it produces is removed as soon as you have downloaded it, or when you upload another file, or when you close the page. Nothing is kept, and nothing is used to train anything.

Will the original quality and formatting be maintained?

Yes. OCR Image is built to leave your content exactly as it is — only the change you asked for is applied. Nothing else about the file is altered or re-compressed.

Can I use OCR Image on mobile?

Yes. OCR Image works in any modern browser on phones and tablets — iPhone, iPad or Android — with nothing to install. You can upload straight from your device or from your cloud storage.

Can I rename my file before downloading it from OCR Image?

Yes. The file OCR Image gives you back keeps the name of the file you uploaded by default. If you'd rather call it something else, edit the name in the field next to the download button before you save it.

Do I need to install any software to use OCR Image?

No. There is nothing to download, install or sign up for — OCR Image is used from your browser and does the work on our servers, so it behaves the same on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS.

How long does OCR Image take?

Most files are finished in a few seconds. A large or page-heavy file takes a little longer, because OCR Image runs on our servers rather than on your device — but you won't be waiting around. You can upload files up to 250MB.

Is OCR Image free to use?

Yes. OCR Image is free, with no signup, no watermark on the result and no daily limit for normal use.

What can OCR Image read?

Printed text in photos and screenshots: receipts, business cards, signs, book pages, slides photographed during a lecture. Clear print works far better than handwriting.

Which languages does OCR Image support?

English, Arabic, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese (Simplified). Choose the one that matches the text before you press Get the text.

Can I extract text from several images at once?

Yes. Add a batch of pictures and each one is read in turn, with its own block of text.

What do I get at the end?

Plain text shown on the page, which you can copy and paste anywhere. No new picture or PDF is created.

Why did it find no text?

Usually the photo is blurred or too dark, or the wrong language is selected. Retake the picture closer and straighter, or switch the language, and try again.

Should I use OCR Image or OCR PDF?

Use OCR Image when you just want the words out of a picture. Use OCR PDF when you have a scanned PDF and want to keep it as a PDF you can search and select text in.

OCR Image Online – Free, No Watermark, No Signup

Drop your file on the target

Several files · up to 260 MB each · deleted after processing

Drop your files here

Choose files

Receipts, screenshots, photos of pages
Up to 260 MB per file

Processed on our secure servers over HTTPS. Your files are deleted automatically after processing.

OCR Image reads the words in a picture and gives them back to you as text you can copy. It saves retyping when you have a photo of a receipt for an expense report, a screenshot of an error message, or a phone picture of a page from a library book.

How to use OCR Image

Add one or more pictures from your device, Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive. Receipts, screenshots and photos of pages all work, in JPG, PNG, HEIC and other common formats. Pick the language in the picture, press Get the text, and the words appear on screen with a count of how many were found, ready to paste into an email, a spreadsheet or a note.

Choosing the language in OCR Image

The language list covers English, Arabic, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese (Simplified). It starts on your browser's language, so someone with an Arabic browser sees Arabic selected, but you can switch it for each job.

Reading an Arabic menu with English selected gives you strings of odd characters, so if the result looks garbled, change the language and run it again.

Getting cleaner text from a photo

Shoot the page straight on, in even light, with the text filling most of the frame. Crumpled receipts and glare on glossy paper are the usual troublemakers. A quick pass through Image Enhancer with the Sharpen scan / text look can help a faint or grainy photo.

If the tool reports No text found, try a sharper photo or another language. For a document of several pages, turn the photos into one file with Image to PDF and then use OCR PDF, which keeps the pages and adds searchable text to each one.

Frequently asked questions

What can OCR Image read?: Printed text in photos and screenshots: receipts, business cards, signs, book pages, slides photographed during a lecture. Clear print works far better than handwriting.
Which languages does OCR Image support?: English, Arabic, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese (Simplified). Choose the one that matches the text before you press Get the text.
Can I extract text from several images at once?: Yes. Add a batch of pictures and each one is read in turn, with its own block of text.
What do I get at the end?: Plain text shown on the page, which you can copy and paste anywhere. No new picture or PDF is created.
Why did it find no text?: Usually the photo is blurred or too dark, or the wrong language is selected. Retake the picture closer and straighter, or switch the language, and try again.
Should I use OCR Image or OCR PDF?: Use OCR Image when you just want the words out of a picture. Use OCR PDF when you have a scanned PDF and want to keep it as a PDF you can search and select text in.