Image to Text (OCR)

How to extract text from an image

• Choose an image that contains text — a photo, screenshot, scanned page or receipt.
• The tool reads it with OCR (optical character recognition) and shows a progress bar the first time (it downloads the recognition engine once).
• Copy the extracted text and paste it wherever you need it.

Why it's private

Unlike most online OCR tools that upload your image to a server, this one runs the recognition entirely in your browser using open web technology. Your image never leaves your device — which makes it safe for screenshots, documents and anything with personal details in it.

Benefits

• Extracts text from photos, screenshots, scans and receipts with OCR.
• Runs entirely in your browser — your image is never uploaded, unlike most online OCR tools.
• Free and unlimited, with a copy button for the result.
• Handy for grabbing text you can’t select, like text inside a picture.

Limitations to know

• Accuracy depends on image quality — blurry, low-contrast or skewed text reads poorly.
• It reads English text; handwriting and stylised fonts are less reliable.
• The recognition engine downloads once on first use, so the first scan is slower.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using a low-resolution or dark screenshot and expecting perfect text.
• Photographing a page at an angle instead of straight-on.
• Assuming complex layouts (columns, tables) will keep their structure — OCR returns plain text.

Alternatives

Once you have the text, tidy it with Remove Line Breaks, count it with the Word Counter, or shorten it with the AI Text Summarizer.

Last updated: August 2026 · Reviewed by the AI Toolbox editorial team.

Frequently asked questions

Related tools