Scan to Text — Turn a Scanned Image or Photo into Editable Text
How does scan to text work?
Scan to text means turning a picture of a page into characters you can copy, search and edit. A scanned image or a phone photo holds pixels, not letters, so something has to read it first. Linnk's scan to text converter sends each page image to AI models (Linnk uses ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini models), which read the page, rebuild it as structured text and write it out in reading order. That's what matters once you're past a line or two: a two-column article, a letter with a letterhead and a footer, a form with labels beside boxes, or a page in Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese or Japanese. For a single sentence, the text-copy feature on your phone is quicker; for a full page you usually want everything, in the right order, in a file. Numbers, dates, IDs and amounts are copied digit for digit. A digit the models can't make out is marked with a question mark, and an unreadable passage is marked [illegible] rather than filled in with a guess. Copying the recognised text is always free, and the same upload also gives you Word, Markdown and a searchable PDF. A clean, straight, well-lit scan reads best; faded or curled pages may need a quick check.
Last updated: September 2026
How to convert a scan to text
From a scanned page or a phone photo to text you can paste anywhere, in three steps.
Upload the scanned image or photo
Drop a JPG, PNG, WEBP or HEIC file from your scanner folder or camera roll. Each image is read as a one-page scan, so shoot the page square-on in even light. Plain text is already selected as the output.
Check the text and copy it
Usually within a minute, the preview shows the recognised text, and you can copy it for free without an account. A question mark or [illegible] shows where the image was too faint to read, so compare those spots with the page.
Download the file you need
Sign in with a free account to download the text file. Markdown and a searchable PDF come from the same run, and a Word file can be built on request in a few extra minutes.
What this scan to text converter does
An image to text converter built for whole pages: letters, articles, forms and faded copies.
Whole pages in reading order
A newsletter set in two columns, a letter with a sidebar, a form with labels beside the boxes: the text comes out in the order you'd read it, so paragraphs aren't spliced together from alternating half-lines. That's the part that takes longest when you copy a page from a photo a few lines at a time.
Digits copied, not guessed
Invoice numbers, dates, amounts and reference codes are copied digit for digit. A digit too faint to read is marked with a question mark, and an unreadable passage is marked [illegible], so you know which spots to check before you paste the text anywhere important.
Faded scans flagged, not filled in
Old photocopies, yellowed pages and low-contrast photos are read wherever the print is legible, and the rest is flagged instead of filled with a plausible guess. A straight, well-lit scan still works best, so re-shoot a curled page if you can.
Keep the language, or translate it
Keep the original language or translate in the same run. By default a scan in Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese or Korean comes back as text in that script, ready to search or edit; switch to Translate to… before you start if you need it in another language.
Tables where tables belong
If the page holds a table, pick Markdown to keep it as a Markdown table, or a spreadsheet or CSV output for one sheet or file per table. Tables are never invented: a page without one is reported as having none.
Word, Markdown and a searchable PDF too
The same upload gives you Markdown with headings and lists, and a searchable PDF rebuilt as real text, with photos, logos and stamps placed back where they sat, so it looks close to the original. A Word file is built on request, usually in a few minutes.
Scan to text facts
What to expect before you upload a scanned image or photo.
Input
- Scanned images
- JPG, PNG, WEBP
- Phone photos
- HEIC, HEIF, JPG
- Each image
- Read as a one-page scan
- Scripts
- Including Arabic, Hebrew and CJK
Output
- Plain text
- Whole page, in reading order
- Markdown
- Headings, lists and tables
- Searchable PDF
- Rebuilt as real text
- Word
- Built on request
Accuracy
- Numbers and dates
- Copied digit for digit
- Unreadable digits
- Marked with a question mark
- Unreadable passages
- Marked [illegible]
- Faded or curled pages
- May need a quick check
Access
- Preview
- Free, no account
- Copy text
- Always free
- Download
- Free account
- Longer documents
- Paid plans, see linnk.ai/pricing
Scan to text options compared
How Linnk compares with the usual ways of getting text out of a picture.
| Feature | Linnk Scan to Text | Phone text copy (camera or photos app) | Free online OCR sites | Retyping by hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copying a line or two | Works, but more than you need | Quick and built in | Quick, often without an account | Fine for a short line |
| A full page with columns | Whole page in reading order | Selected and copied by hand, often in pieces | Varies; columns may run together | Slow, but in the order you choose |
| Faded or low-contrast scans | Unreadable parts marked [illegible] | Varies | Varies | Your judgement |
| Numbers and amounts | Digit for digit; unclear digits marked ? | Check by eye | Check by eye | Easy to slip a digit |
| Arabic, Hebrew and CJK scripts | Read in their own script | Depends on the device's language settings | Language support varies | Needs a keyboard for the script |
| What you get | Text file, Word, Markdown, searchable PDF | Text on the clipboard | Usually text, sometimes Word | Whatever you typed into |
| Cost | Copying free; downloads with a free account | Free, built in | Often free, sometimes with ads or limits | Your time |
Comparison as of September 2026. Features of other tools vary and change often; check each one for its current options.
Who uses scan to text
People with a page in a picture and somewhere the words need to go.
Office and admin staff
Turn a scanned letter, notice or contract page into text you can paste into an email, a case file or a reply, instead of retyping it paragraph by paragraph.
Students and researchers
Photograph a page from a library book or a printed journal and get the paragraphs as text for notes and citations, with two-column layouts in the right order.
Small business owners and bookkeepers
Pull invoice numbers, dates and amounts from a scanned invoice or a receipt photo and paste them into your accounts, digit for digit, with unclear digits marked.
Family historians and archivists
Convert typed letters, newspaper clippings and faded photocopies into searchable text. Anything too faint to read is marked, so you know what to check against the original.
People handling foreign paperwork
Get the text of a scanned certificate or official letter in Arabic, Chinese, Russian or another language as editable text in its own script, ready to search, quote or pass to a translator.
Teachers and tutors
Turn a printed worksheet or a textbook page into editable text you can adapt for a class, without rebuilding it from scratch.
Scan to text FAQ
How do I convert a scan to text?
My phone can already copy text from a photo. Why use a scan to text converter?
Is scan to text the same as image to text?
How do I extract text from an image with two columns?
What happens to tables in the image?
How accurate is the text on faded or low-quality scans?
Which file types can I upload?
Which languages can it read?
How long does scan to text take?
Is scan to text free?
What happens to my images after the conversion?
Convert your scan to text
Drop a scanned image or a photo, check the text in the preview, and copy it for free.