How to scan a document to PDF
Add a photo
Take a photo with your camera or choose an image from your device. Lay the page flat on a surface that contrasts with the paper — a white page on a dark table is easiest to detect.
Check the corners
The tool marks the four page corners automatically. Drag any corner that sits off the edge, tap its number and use the arrow buttons for small moves, or press Detect to try again.
Straighten and pick a finish
Press Straighten and the angled photo becomes a flat page. Color keeps photos and stamps looking natural, Gray is gentle on file size, and Black & White gives crisp, photocopy-style text pages.
Save pages and create the PDF
Save the page, then photograph the next one. Reorder the thumbnails if a page landed in the wrong place, choose A4 or Letter, and press Create PDF to download one document with every page inside.
Tips for a clean scan
- Light the page evenly. One lamp from the side throws a shadow gradient across the page, and shadows are what make Black & White mode blotchy. Two light sources, or daylight from a window, work best.
- Shoot from directly above. The straightener can fix a strong angle, but the less it has to stretch, the sharper the text stays.
- Fill the frame with the page. A page that takes up most of the photo scans at higher effective resolution than a small page in a big room shot.
- Flatten curled pages. A book spine curve or a folded corner bends the text lines, and no straightener can fully un-bend them.
An honest note about what this tool is
This is a camera scanner, so each page in the PDF is a cleaned-up photograph — exactly like a photocopy. The text is not selectable or searchable, and the tool does not read the words on the page. If you need editable text from a scan, create the PDF here and then run it through the free OCR tool, which turns scanned pages into text you can copy. Corner detection is also a best effort: it looks for a large light page shape in the photo, so on a white desk or a cluttered background it may miss — the draggable corners are there for exactly those photos.
Frequently asked questions
Is my document uploaded to a server?
No. The scanner runs entirely in your browser — photos are processed on your device and never uploaded anywhere.
Will the text in my scan be selectable or searchable?
No. Like a photocopy, each scanned page is an image inside the PDF. To turn a scan into editable text, use the free OCR tool after creating the PDF.
How many pages can one PDF have?
There is no fixed limit. The practical limit is your device's memory — very long documents at Fine quality can take a while to build. Standard quality suits most documents.
Why does black & white sometimes look blotchy?
Black & White mode splits the page into pure black and pure white, so shadows across the page can turn into dark patches. Photograph the page in even light, or use the Gray finish, which keeps shadows soft.
Which paper sizes are supported?
A4 and US Letter. Your scan is fitted onto the chosen page size; the shape of the paper in your photo does not have to match.
What if the corners are detected wrong?
Drag any corner onto the real page edge, tap a corner number and use the arrow buttons for small moves, or press Detect to try again. Detection works best when the page contrasts with the surface under it.