Open the scanned PDF and select All tools > Scan & OCR.
Last updated on
Sep 23, 2025
Learn how to recognize and make text searchable in scanned PDF documents using Adobe Acrobat.
When you scan a paper document to PDF, the resulting file contains only image data, not searchable text. Use Acrobat’s optical character recognition (OCR) feature to convert image text into selectable, searchable text.
Remove any security restrictions before editing a scanned PDF. Learn how to enable or disable protected view. Learn how to regain access to locked PDFs.
Tip
Save a backup copy of the original scanned PDF before editing, so you can restore it if needed.
Recognize text in a single document
Select In this file.
In the dialog box, select the page range and language for text recognition.
Optionally, select Settings to specify additional options.
Select Recognize Text.
Acrobat creates a searchable text layer in your PDF.
Recognize text in multiple documents
Select All tools > Scan & OCR.
Select In multiple files.
In the Recognize Text dialog box, select Add files and select the PDFs you want to process.
In the Output Options dialog box, specify a target folder for the processed files and set filename preferences. Select OK.
In the Recognize Text - General Settings dialog box, specify the options and select OK.
Acrobat processes the selected documents and creates searchable versions in the specified output folder.
After running OCR, review the document to ensure the text is accurate and complete. If necessary, correct any errors manually or rerun OCR with adjusted settings.
