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Recognise text (OCR)

Podalls Convert is free OCR software for Windows 10 and 11 that makes scanned PDFs searchable. Windows’ own text recognition reads each page and lays the words invisibly over the scan, so you can select, search and copy them. Nothing is uploaded.

Download free for Windows How it works
Recognise text (OCR) Scans you can search.
Make a scanned PDF selectable, searchable and convertible
v0.3.0 · Windows 10 and 11 · Offline · Free How to make a scanned PDF searchable on Windows Malaysia · UTC+8
Opens
.pdf
Makes
name (searchable).pdf; the scan is untouched
In the app
Tools › PDF › Recognise text
Account
Not needed
Price
Free, for work too

How it works

How to make a scanned PDF searchable on Windows

Three steps, all on your PC. Nothing is uploaded.

  1. Open Tools › PDF › Recognise text, or choose it in the Reader.

  2. Pick the language, which pages to read, and Faster, Standard or Careful.

  3. Open the searchable copy. The original scan is not changed.

What you get

Built for the real document.

  • The scan stays as it was

    Words are laid over the page invisibly; the picture itself is never touched.

  • Your languages

    Reads the languages you have added to Windows, or chooses automatically.

  • Sideways pages fixed

    Pages scanned on their side or upside down are read the right way up.

  • Straight into Word

    PDF to Word, Excel and EPUB read scans as they convert, when Read scanned PDFs is on.

Your choices

Every choice, before it starts.

The Recognise text dialog, drawn from the app with its defaults selected. The notes say what each choice does.

Recognise text

Read the text as

Automatic(selected)A language you choose

Automatic uses the languages Windows is set up for.

Pages

Pages without text(selected)Every page

A PDF that is part typed, part scanned keeps its real text.

How carefully

FasterStandard(selected)Careful

Careful reads small or faint print better, and takes longer.

A searchable copy is saved next to the original. The original is not changed.

Under the hood

How it decides.

What it reads, what it saves, and the rules it follows, taken from the app itself.

Reads 1 file type

  • .pdf

Saves as

  • letter (searchable).pdf

Never over another file, and never over your original.

  • Words laid over the scan

    Each word is placed invisibly over its letters and stretched to fit, so selecting text highlights the right place.

  • Any script

    Latin text uses a built-in font; other scripts use a Unicode font already on Windows, and the Queue says if one is missing.

  • Crooked scans flagged

    Pages scanned 1.5° or more off straight get a warning, since they read less reliably.

  • Nothing to do, no failure

    A PDF whose pages all have text already is marked “already searchable”, not failed.

App or website?

Why not an online converter?

Online tools ask for your file first. Podalls Convert never does.

Topic Podalls Convert Windows appOnline converters In the browser
Your file Stays on your PCUploaded to their server
Internet Not needed to convertNeeded for every file
Size and pages What your PC can handleOften capped on free plans
Many files Drop a whole folder: every job joins the queueUsually one at a time
Account Not neededOften asked for
Price Free, for work tooFree tier, or a subscription

Good to know

Honest limits.

What this tool does not do, said plainly.

  • Needs a Windows language with text recognition; the app explains how to add one.
  • Results depend on scan quality. Crooked scans get a warning.
  • A PDF that already has text on every page is left as it is.

First time? The install guide shows every screen, including the Windows warning.

Questions

Recognise text (OCR), answered.

5 answers

Another question? Everything about Podalls Convert.

Is my document uploaded for OCR?

No. Recognition uses the engine built into Windows and runs on your PC.

Can I convert a scan to Word directly?

Yes. With Read scanned PDFs on in Settings (the default), PDF to Word, Excel and EPUB read scans as they convert.

How do I add a language?

In Windows Settings › Time & language › Language & region, add the language. Podalls Convert can read it after that, and Automatic includes it.

Which languages can it read?

The ones Windows can recognise on your PC. The dialog and the Settings page list what is installed.

Is Recognise text (OCR) in Podalls Convert free?

Yes. Podalls Convert is free for personal and commercial use, with no account and no subscription. Every tool in it, including this one, comes in the same free download.

In the same free download

Keep going.

Every tool below comes with Podalls Convert. One app, one queue, nothing uploaded.

Recognise text (OCR), without the upload.

Download free for Windows

What you are getting

Tool
Recognise text (OCR), in Tools › PDF › Recognise text
Makes
name (searchable).pdf; the scan is untouched
Works on
Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit
Version
0.3.0
Price
Free for personal and commercial use