Online OCR PDF to Text
OCR and extract text from scanned PDFs online — no install. RatPDF browser workflow: OCR first, then PDF to Text.
Quick steps
- Check text selection — If you cannot highlight text, the PDF is scanned.
- Run OCR — Use OCR PDF to add a searchable text layer.
- Extract text — Upload the OCR'd PDF to PDF to Text.
- Verify output — Spot-check numbers and names before reuse.
Online vs desktop OCR
RatPDF runs OCR in the browser — upload a scan, download a searchable PDF, then extract text. No Acrobat or command-line Tesseract install required.
Typical online workflow
- Upload the scanned PDF to OCR PDF.
- Download the OCR'd PDF (now searchable).
- Upload to PDF to Text and save the .txt file.
Limits
Free tier: 3 uses per tool per day, 200 MB per file. Very large books may take longer — split with Split PDF if needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
The PDF likely has no text layer — run OCR first.
Clean 300 DPI scans are highly accurate; handwriting and low contrast reduce quality.
Results vary by script — verify critical fields manually.
Use Word when you need headings and tables; use Text for scripts and search.