Using your smartphone camera to scan documents is n’t anything newfangled . originally we saw some of the best Android scanner apps to scanQR codesandvisiting card . And as you have guessed it from the title , next in the line is – right OCR apps for Android .
While there is no dearth of OCR apps for Android on Google Play Store , find the right one for you might take some time . Fret not , we prove several Android scanner apps , some of them for specifically for converting images of handwritten note to text while others that can do much more , and see which one is suitable for which of your needs . countenance ’s begin .
Table of Contents
Best OCR App For Android
1. Office Lens
Office Lens is an app by Microsoft which means you already know it will come tightly integrated with the office suite of apps . If you do n’t use Office 365 or are not a big lover of it , there are other choice I will talk about below .
Yes , Office Lens come in with a sinewy OCR scanner but it will knead with only OneNote , Docs , Excel , Powerpoint or PDF .
Note : OneNote appalso come with OCR tech built - in but apply Office Lens if you want to cut the text edition in Word or other Office apps .
Read:5 good OCR Software For Big document
Office lens system extend dissimilar adjustment for scan whiteboards , print report , business card , and photos which it handles by correct brightness and direct contrast to get rid of the brilliance .
pro : you could save everything in OneDrive and blue-pencil the born-again text in OneNote or Word . A must - have for Office 365 users . make for amazingly well and easy to employ . There are no ads .
confidence game : If you do n’t apply Office 365 , try something else . The app is destitute but MS Suite is not .
Verdict : I would only recommend Office Lens to 365 user . You ca n’t go ill-timed with this app if that ’s the case . Easy to scan , entrepot , and look for for everything in the cloud .
InstallOffice Lens(Free )
2. Text Fairy
Text Fairy , one of the best OCR reader apps , does one affair and it does it really well . The democratic OCR app is innocent to habituate and come with no ads whatsoever . One affair that Office Lens lacked was the power to even off viewpoint . Say , you are scan a Holy Writ and the pages are dented near the pith , the app will glance over and take an image and correct it mechanically .
This improves the scanning accuracy . you could blue-pencil the extract text and export it in PDF data format . Unlike Office Lens , it only works with printed text , there is no hand support . On the plus side , it endure more than 50 language .
register : Take a Picture of Handwriting And Convert to Text – Android Apps
pro : Supports many spoken language , autocorrects viewpoint , and export to PDF . No ads and totally barren . There is text edition to voice feature .
Cons : No handwriting accompaniment , no cloud or third - political party app support .
Verdict : Text Fairy is easy to use the app with a unclouded UI and minimalist pattern . Good for when you do n’t involve to scan , organize , research too many written document . Otherwise , cloud support would be better . It is good for occasional employment .
InstallText Fairy(Free )
3. CamScanner
CamScanner is a multi - purpose app that can be used for read documents ( converting images to pdf ) as well as an effective OCR puppet ( converting image to editable text ) , or so they lay claim . I essay the app specifically for its OCR capableness and found it less than satisfactory .
The OCR characteristic in CamScanner only comes with the pro variation , for a one time fee of $ 1.99 . After scanning some handwritten note of hand , I saw the app made some mistakes . Accuracy was low than ask and not corresponding to the likes of Office Lens or Text Fairy .
Also , you could not delete the scanned school text in a .txt file cabinet . That feature is usable in the Premium version which will be you $ 4.99 / month .
Also Read : CamScanner vs. Adobe Scan vs. Office Lens – Which One to employ and Why
Pros : It come with a cloud repositing account so you could salt away everything there . musical accompaniment is great and app UI is full to reckon at .
Verdict : If you are already invested in CamScanner ecosystem then it makes sensation to upgrade with one purchase and get its OCR feature . With this , you ’ll be easily capable to store everything in the cloud .
InstallCamScanner($1.99 , $ 4.99 / month )
4. Google Keep
Google Keep is a strong OneNote and Evernote contender with a lot of note - taking and storing features . One of them is OCR . Being a Google app , it integrate with Calendar , Docs , and other Google services . The app is free and ad - costless , as all matter Google are .
The means it works is a little unlike because Keep is a minimalist banknote - take on app . You scan an image with text and then wiretap on the three dots on the right of the screen to “ catch the school text ” in the image .
Read : A childlike Way to Extract textual matter From ikon Using Google Keep
you’re able to then add the text to the same promissory note which will be editable and searchable . you could also export it to Google Docs . During my trial , the app worked exactly as advertise and there were no errors like in CamScanner .
pro : The app is free and syncs with other Google products . Accuracy is good .
Cons : Since Google Keep is not a stand - alone OCR app , you ’ll have to manually copy - paste the item into a new written document . To overpower this upshot , you may scan text file using theGoogle Driveon your Android or even useGoogle Googlesapp as it scans text and then you may replicate it on the clipboard . Since all of them uses Google swarm server for OCR , the result should be pretty much the same .
Also , Google Keep postulate internet access to work on your image , so check that you havan e active Internet connexion .
Verdict : Google Keep is one of the best OCR image scanner apps for Android because it has everything you demand including swarm storage and cross - platform compatibility and sync for complimentary . It is more utilitarian if you take a kick - ass note app .
InstallGoogle Keep(Free )
5. PDF Scanner
PDF Scanner is a written document scanner that come up with some in - app purchases for extra features , but the OCR tech is entirely devoid to use . you’re able to easy scan the image for text and convert it into PDF . It let you edit the text before keep open it .
The app put up more than 100 languages in OCR and you do n’t need an Internet connectionto make it work . Other feature film let in signature , converter , and scanner .
The OCR works okay but there are too many ads in the spare variation which slightly irked me . Otherwise , all was good .
Pros : OCR operate as promote with some errors , patronise 100 + languages .
con game : Too many ads ruin the experience .
Verdict : PDF Scanner is a robust app that offers a free OCR image scanner . If the ads are annoying , you could upgrade for $ 2.99 to remove them .
InstallPDF Scanner(Free )
6. Adobe Scan
Adobe is a known entity when it comes to papers management apps , so it comes as no surprise that they have a scanning app too . Point the television camera and the app will automatically detect and scan it . With the OCR technical school , you could scan for text inside documents . It has a build - in editor so you’re able to annotate , highlighting , and scuttlebutt on textual matter in the scanned documents on the tent-fly . Adobe Scan is a time rescuer .
The app has a minimalist feel to it and comes with 5 GB of on-line reposition on the Acrobat website . 5 GB is more than enough as scanned document usually do n’t take a lot of outer space .
Pros : The is free , act really well , offers 5 GB swarm memory , and OCR tech is one of the best .
Cons : Adobe Scan does n’t support third - party cloud storage services . I could n’t feel an choice to save as JPEG . There was only PDF .
Verdict : Adobe Scan is a nerveless lilliputian app that is focused on taking scans and extract school text from it . It is dependable and gratuitous but does n’t represent well with third - party apps .
InstallAdobe Scan(Free )
7. Smart Lens
Smart Lens will not only allow you to scan written document and convert it from image to text , but you’re able to also read it to other languages . you may apply it to scan business carte and it will detect number , name , email i d , and other info and sort it systematically .
you’re able to also scan and convince a document or image with text in a strange language . So , you could use it while you are travel to foreign countries . There is also a QR code reader . The pro edition , $ 9.99 , will transfer ad and allow you to use the app for as many CAT scan as you wish .
pro : backing for alien languages and comes with a linguistic communication translator .
inmate : The only drawback is that it does n’t substantiate handwritten notes like Adobe Scan and CamScanner .
Verdict : Smart Lens is a ripe app which can arrive in handy while traveling abroad but lack of handwriting backing bound ’s the app ’s capability by that much .
InstallSmart Lens(Freemium )
8. Post-It
If you take a lot of post - it notes , this app is for you . You know how hard it is to digitize those . You take a moving picture and then either manually range out individual notes or soar in and adjudicate to make out what you ’ve written . The post - it app solves this job and lease you scan the note using the Android ’s camera .
Using it is fairly easy , just get the app from the Play Store , point the camera towards your Emily Price Post - It notes and you ’re done . It can work with any type of colored notes and they do n’t needfully have to made by 3 M but the app sometimes disapprove the note if they ’re not completely flat against the surface . you may divide the note into different group so that everything stay organize , it also allows you to rotate the notes which makes the app really effective .
Pros : Detects multiple eminence at once , option to manually detect eminence if the app skip it , an choice to rotate , edit and group notes .
Cons : Doesn’t observe the notes if it is n’t flat on the surface , does n’t transform the picture to editable text .
Verdict : It is a great app to digitalise your mail service - It notes you may have take during a meeting or are get on the fridge at your domicile .
InstallPost - It(free )
Best OCR Scanner Apps for Android
If you are an Office 365 user , Office Lens is the unspoilt pick for you . Same way , if you are heavy using Google Docs , Google Keep is a really in force option . If you are an periodic drug user who needs a safe OCR digital scanner without all the bells and whistles , Text Fairy will help you out . Adobe Scan is powerful , free , works with hand too , and comes with 5 GB storage .
If you need a rich text file scanner with OCR feature , CamScanner , though expensive and a slight buggy , is still better because it offer so many other feature film that you will not find elsewhere .
