While the native notes app lets you scan documents, you do not have OCR for scanned documents yet. And let’s be honest, without OCR, document “scanning” is simply taking a photo and cropping it. So today, we are going to look at some of the best iOS smartphone OCR apps for scanning images to text. You can easily replace your office scanner now.
There are other reasons why you should have an OCR app on your iPhone. You are a student and you want to copy notes from a friend’s book or from the blackboard directly. You are a professional and need to copy and edit text from your presentation or whiteboard. Quickly scan recipes or other important text from a book. You get the picture. The list is endless.
Let’s start.
Best OCR Apps for iPhone
Read also: Top 5 OCR Apps for Android
1. Text scanner
Text Scanner is an OCR application that supports more than 50 languages. Just point the camera at the text and scan. You can scan multiple images at once, in which case the scans are read and converted in the background. Too many scans? You can search for text within scanned images.
Text Scanner is a bit expensive. You pay $ 7.99 a month or $ 60.99 a year and get 50 ad-free scans. Yes, the ads are not completely removed in the premium version.
Pros:
- Folder support
- Language Pack
Cons:
- Ads in the premium version
- No handwriting
- No cloud storage
2. Scanner for me + OCR
Scanner for Me supports and reads both printed and handwritten text, which is great for students especially. Scanning paper notes and receipts has never been easier. It only supports about 10 foreign languages at the moment. Where this OCR app for iOS really shines is the ability to create and save your digital signatures. Now you can sign official documents on the go. You can upload and save scans to various cloud storage sites like Drive, iCloud, and OneDrive.
One-time payment is much cheaper than subscription payments. Scanner for Me will cost you $ 6.99 but it doesn’t come with a trial or free version.
Pros:
- Language Pack
- Writing
- Sign documents
- Cloud storage
Cons:
3. Scanbot
Scanbot is the most powerful brother of Scanner for me. You can not only scan images, but also PDF files with a resolution of more than 200 dpi. If you don’t know what that means, know that the scan quality is high and this is what most premium OCR scanner apps use. You can further improve scan quality by changing your scans with color or black and white filters. It supports not only cloud storage sites, but also FTP and webDAV.
Scanbot is a powerful application and there is a reason why it is so popular. It comes with beautiful themes that not only change the appearance of the application, but also improve the user experience.
Scanbot Lite (OCR supports Lite and Pro version only) will cost $ 4.99 but we recommend the Pro version which costs $ 6.99 and adds features like annotation and signaling, filters, security, and more. Please note that you will need to purchase credits to send faxes.
Pros:
- Cloud storage with FTP, WebDAV
- Topics
- Filters
- Sign documents
- Handwriting support
- Barcode and QR scanner
- Send fax
- Support for iOS 12 shortcuts.
Cons:
Read also: Top 5 OCR Programs for Large Documents – 2018
4. Microsoft Office lens
Microsoft Office Lens is a really powerful app when it comes to handwriting OCR support. Whether you’re scanning whiteboards or handwritten notes, Office Lens does a stellar job of scanning and converting images into text that you can then easily edit. Because it works with Microsoft, you can also edit these scanned images in Docs and PowerPoint.
There is support for popular cloud storage sites and one of them is OneNote. Yep. Many people use Office Lens to scan business cards and save them to the popular note-taking app. The biggest appeal of Office Lens is that it is completely free, which means that if you are an Office 365 user, this is a no-brainer for you.
Pros:
- Integration with Office 365
- Support for OneNote, Docs, PowerPoint
- Cloud storage
- Writing
- Annotation tools
Cons:
Download Microsoft Office Lens
5. Adobe Scan
Adobe is the leading authority when it comes to PDF files and documents. They built a whole business on it. It goes without saying that its image-to-text scanner with OCR technology is one of the best in the industry. Adobe Scan works with Microsoft Office so you can convert images into Office documents and edit in the respective format. You can scan business cards to save documents or just sign documents.
Images are sharp, and Adobe automatically detects most elements that correctly render high-quality text. The only caveat is that Adobe is, and always has been, a closed platform. You pay $ 9.99 to be able to export PDF files. Adobe Scan makes the most sense if you are immersed in the Adobe ecosystem and are a paying subscriber.
6. Scanner Pro
Readdle is known for developing some of the best applications in the world. I mean Spark Mail is the best mail app right now! Scanner Pro is no different. Besides scanning handwritten and printed notes, Scanner Pro is the only iOS OCR app that comes with Workflows. What’s that?
Workflows allow you to define a series of actions that will be carried out with a single touch. For example, you can scan an image, send it to a recipient via email, and then save that scan to a Google Drive folder with one click. This makes life easier for people who work with scans day after day.
Scanner Pro will cost you $ 3.99 and you can purchase additional credits to send faxes. Unfortunately, to annotate and sign PDF files created with Scanner Pro, you need another of their applications called PDF Expert. While it is a good application, it is not for everyone.
Pros:
- Work flows
- Cloud storage
- Handwriting support
- Fax
Cons:
- No document sign
- No annotation
Read also: Take a photo of handwriting and convert it to text – Android Apps
7. CamScanner
CamScanner is probably the most famous OCR app for iOS smartphones and tablets. In terms of features, it has it all. You can scan just about anything and convert it to an image or PDF, sign documents, store these documents in the cloud storage of your choice, add or edit text, annotate and fax. An additional feature that CamScanner offers over others is the ability to add watermarks to your documents.
This opens up new possibilities as a watermark for the company logo, confidential, etc. Another unique feature is a collaboration where you can invite others not only to view these documents, but also to comment on them. Finally, you can share documents after password protecting them.
CamScanner is also the most expensive of all and most ideal for companies looking for a business solution, although it is also used by individuals. It will cost you $ 1.99 to just remove the ads, $ 4.99 / mo for the premium version, and the fax credits are extra (just like other OCR scanner apps).
Pros:
- Cloud storage
- Sign documents
- Handwriting support
- Annotate
- To collaborate
- Password protected sharing
- Add watermarks
- Fax
Cons:
8. Scan to PDF
Scan to PDF is another powerful OCR application for iOS smartphones to scan images into editable text. Like other apps mentioned in the list, you can get a corporate license. It comes with a special book mode that scans twice and removes bent or curved book lines and then joins it together again. The effect is a more attractive digital book.
It comes with a monthly subscription, but I would suggest the lifetime plan which will cost $ 59.99, still better than paying monthly or annually.
Pros:
- Sign
- Annotate
- SIRI commands
- Password protected sharing
- Cloud storage
Cons:
9. Speak
Speechify is not exactly an OCR application, rather it is a text-to-speech application focused on dyslexic people. The way it works is that it will read you a document or a book like an audiobook using OCR. Just take photos of handwritten text or physical box and publish them using OCR and then read them. Useful if you want to listen to your document while driving, walking, eating, etc.
Pros:
- Text to speech
- Handwriting support
Cons:
Best OCR Apps for iPhone
There are a number of OCR apps to help you take care of your paper clutter and convert every note, receipt, invoice, and document into its digital version. Depending on your needs, you can opt for free apps that offer basic features, paid apps that allow you to scan and share with the world, and scanners that offer business solutions.
