PDF to Text

OCR

Extract text from PDFs, including scans.

PDF to Text is a free online tool to extract text from PDFs, including scans. It runs entirely in your browser, so your files never leave your device — nothing is uploaded. There's no sign-up, no watermark, and it works on any modern browser on desktop or mobile.

How to use PDF to Text

PDF to Text extracts selectable, copyable text from any PDF, including scanned and image-only documents. Built-in OCR reads pages that have no embedded text so you can pull out the words anyway. All processing is local, meaning your PDF is processed in your browser and never uploaded, ideal for confidential files.

Read the full guide: How to Extract Text From a PDF Free (OCR, No Upload)

1Upload your PDF by dragging it in or selecting it from your device.
2Let the tool extract the embedded text, or run OCR on scanned pages.
3Review the recognized text and copy or download it.

Built-in OCR

Reads text from scanned or image-only PDFs that have no selectable text inside them.

Copy or download

Grab the extracted text instantly to paste elsewhere or save it as a plain text file.

Local and private

Both extraction and OCR run in your browser, so your PDF is never uploaded to any server.

PDF to Text — frequently asked questions

Can it read text from a scanned PDF?

Yes. When a PDF has no embedded text, built-in OCR recognizes the characters from the page images so you can still extract the words. Clear scans give the best accuracy.

Is OCR as accurate as native text extraction?

Native extraction is exact because it reads the real text layer. OCR is highly accurate on clean scans but can miss characters on blurry, skewed or low-resolution pages.

Is my document private during OCR?

Yes. Everything is processed in your browser and never uploaded, so scanned contracts, IDs and other sensitive PDFs stay on your device.