Image to text: Google Drive, OnlineOCR.net or Adobe Acrobat
To copy text out of a screenshot or a sharp photo, paste it into a browser OCR tool and fix the few mistakes by hand. Google Drive does the same job and also reads multi-page PDFs in many languages, but the file goes into your Drive. Adobe's online OCR only takes PDFs, and OnlineOCR.net suits a quick upload when you want Word or Excel output.
Image to textText in a picture won’t copyDo it freeAt a glance
Limits are as published by each service at the time of writing (November 2026) and can change.
| Tool | Where your file goes | Sign-up | Free use | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Drive | Uploaded to your Google Drive | Google account | Free, file 2 MB or smaller | Many languages, multi-page PDFs |
| OnlineOCR.net | Uploaded, deleted after conversion for guests | Not needed as a guest | 15 MB per file, 5 files an hour | Word or Excel output |
| Adobe Acrobat online | Uploaded to Adobe servers, deleted unless you sign in | Sign in to download | PDF files only | Making scanned PDFs searchable |
| fixmint | Stays on your device | None | Free, no watermark | Screenshots and sharp photos in English |
Google Drive
Google's help page says Drive can convert PDFs and photo files (.jpeg, .png, .gif) to text. You upload the file, right-click it and choose Open with Google Docs. The tips are specific: a file of 2 MB or smaller, text at least 10 pixels high, right-side up, sharp and evenly lit. Drive detects the language, and the help page lists a long set of supported ones.
Bold, italics, font size, font type and line breaks are likely to be kept. Lists, tables, columns, footnotes and endnotes are not likely to be detected. The cost is that the image sits in your Google Drive, and you need a Google account.
OnlineOCR.net
OnlineOCR.net reads JPG, PNG, TIFF, BMP, GIF and PDF files, including multi-page PDFs, and returns Word, Excel or text. Guests can use it without registering, with a 15 MB file limit and, according to its page, 5 files per hour. Registered users get a 200 MB limit and 50 free pages to start. Its page says it supports 46 recognition languages, including European and Asian ones.
Its FAQ says files are protected by TLS encryption during upload and download and are deleted right after processing. The page headline describes the service as fully browser-based, while the FAQ describes uploading, so assume your file is uploaded and read its privacy terms yourself.
Adobe Acrobat online
Adobe's tool recognises text in a PDF and gives you a searchable PDF, so it fits scanned documents more than a loose screenshot: its drop zone asks for a PDF. The page says your file is handled on Adobe servers and deleted unless you sign in to save it, and you sign in to download or share the result.
Adobe's help page says free use of its online tools is limited, with one free transaction when you are not signed in.
When another tool is the better choice
- You have a scanned multi-page document, or text in a language other than English: Google Drive or Adobe. fixmint reads English and other unaccented Latin text, and does not support Arabic, Chinese or Cyrillic.
- You want the layout kept, or Word and Excel files back: OnlineOCR.net or Drive. fixmint returns plain text that you edit, copy or save as .txt.
- You have a PDF rather than an image: Adobe's tool is made for it. fixmint takes one image at a time.
- You have a table in a picture: Google says tables are not likely to be detected, and no free tool is reliable here. Plan to rebuild it by hand.
Do it free on fixmint
fixmint reads the text out of screenshots, photos and scans with OCR that runs in your browser, so the image is never uploaded and there is no sign-up. Paste with Ctrl+V, fix the words marked in red, and copy the text or save it as a .txt file. Copy text from an image free, in your browser, or read how to copy text from a screenshot or photo for tips on getting a clean read.
Quick answers
Which OCR is the most accurate? Accuracy depends on the picture more than on the tool. Sharp, straight, evenly lit text at a decent size reads well almost anywhere, and a blurry or tilted photo reads badly everywhere. Crop away everything that is not text before you start.
Is it safe to run a photo of an ID or a bank letter through OCR? The three online services above upload the file, so avoid them for personal documents. A tool that reads the image on your device keeps it with you.
What if the text is in a PDF I cannot copy from? If the PDF is a scan, it needs OCR first. Why you cannot copy text from a PDF explains how to tell a scan from a real text PDF.
How should I prepare the picture? Use sharp, straight, evenly lit text, and cut away everything that is not text. Google asks for text at least 10 pixels high. With a photo, hold the camera square to the page, and crop the image to the text before you read it.
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