Can Google Translate Scanned Document? (Effective Way)

Google Translate has become one of the most used options for translating. It not only allows translating text or voice, but you can also translate pictures and documents with it. It offers convenience and wide accessibility across all devices.

However, if you want to use Google Translate for scanned document, you will not find any option to do that as it does not support that.

We have some tricks that involve using UPDF as a companion for Google Translate to translate your scanned documents. So, download UPDF on your devices and get started.

Part 1. How to Translate Scanned Documents with Google Translate?

If you want to translate your scanned document with Google Translate, a good option will be converting scanned documents into images and then translating them.

You might be thinking of taking screenshots of scanned documents but that can take a very long time and effort. Instead, you can use UPDF which is an efficient PDF software.

It can instantly convert scanned PDFs to images no matter how long the document is. Then you can use those images to translate the document with Google Translate.

This method can be used for free UPDF users as it allows the first 2 file conversions for free per day. So, download UPDF for free and see how it makes things very easy and efficient for your document translating needs with the steps below:

Step 1: Run the UPDF application on your computer by clicking its desktop icon. Now, open your scanned PDF document in UPDF by clicking "Open File” and selecting the PDF then click “Open" in File Explorer and the PDF will open here.

Now, click the "Export PDF” button and select “Image”. Now, you can click “Export” on the pop-up window and follow the steps to save the converted images on your computer. Click “Save” and the scanned PDF will be converted into images.

Step 2: Open your browser and go to Google Translate Website. Click the “Images" button from the top, select “Detect language” in the source part, then, select target language, and click "Browse your files" to select and open the images of scanned PDF documents. It only allows one image at a time.

Google Translate will take a few moments to process the translation and then it will show you the translated document with features like "Show Original”, “Copy Text”, and “Download Translation”.

Part 2. How to Translate Scanned Documents without Google Translate?

Using Google Translate for translating scanned documents comes with a lot of cons. For example, when you use images of scanned documents, it means only one page can be translated at once.

Moreover, it does not let you make changes to the document if needed. The worst part is that you need to use multiple tools together which makes the process very complex and lengthy.

Instead, when you use UPDF, you get a great experience without needing to use any extra tools. For instance, you can open a scanned document in UPDF and translate it directly into it with the UPDF AI features. It means that you can translate any part of the PDF without having to convert it into smaller parts.

Additionally, the translation is immediate, and you can edit it into the document or copy it when needed.

So, if you want to get such benefits then you can download UPDF and follow the below guide to translate scanned documents with UPDF now.

Way 1. Translate Scanned Documents with OCR + UPDF AI

The first method for translating your scanned documents with UPDF is with the help of its OCR and UPDF AI features combined. The OCR feature helps make the scanned documents searchable and editable. After that, you can use the UPDF AI feature to recognize the text in your document and translate effortlessly.

Below are the detailed steps on how you can use UPDF OCR + AI features for translating scanned documents.

Step 1: Open UPDF software on your computer with its desktop icon. Now, open the scanned document in it by clicking “Open File" then selecting the PDF from File Explorer and clicking the "Open” button.

Step 2: Now, perform OCR on this scanned document by clicking “Recognize text using OCR” and clicking “Perform OCR” in the popup window. Select the location where you want the OCRed file to be saved and click “Save” to begin the process.

Step 3: The OCR file will open in a new UPDF tab after the processing is complete. Now, you can translate it by clicking the "UPDF AI” button. Click “Ask PDF” and then click “Get Started”. Click on the “Bulb” icon, select “Translate by Page”, choose the desired language, and the page range you want to translate. Click on the “Go”. It allows you to translate your document by page.

Alternatively, you may copy the text and click “Chat" in UPDF AI. Now, select the "Translate” prompt and set your language. Finally, you can paste the text and click “Send” to translate it.

Step 4: Another easy way of translating with UPDF AI is selecting text in the document. It will give you a popup menu with quick tools where you can click the “Translate” button.

After that, you can select the target “Language” from the dropdown list and UPDF AI will start translating your document. This step is better if you only want to translate a small section of text in the document.

Way 2. Translate Scanned Documents with Screenshots + UPDF AI

When you are using UPDF for translating scanned documents, you do not necessarily need to use the OCR feature unless you want to edit the contents.

So, if you only want to translate the contents of a scanned document then the screenshot feature in UPDF AI will be good enough for you. Using it removes the extra steps to perform OCR.

However, this method is not good for translating large parts or multiple pages of text. This is because you will need to take multiple screenshots.

Here are the steps on how you can use the screenshot feature of UPDF AI to translate your scanned documents:

Step 1: Click the “UPDF AI" button from the bottom right of the screen and select the "Chat" option from the top. In the UPDF AI Chat mode, you will click the "Screenshot” option. Allow UPDF to take screenshots if asked (It will be asked when you use this feature for the first time.)

Step 2: Now, use your mouse’s cursor to take the screenshot of the area that you want to translate. It will automatically upload in UPDF AI, and you can type your prompt like “Translate to French” and hit “Send”.

UPDF AI will now recognize the text from that document and translate it for you in no time. Here you can use the “Copy” button to copy the translation and paste it somewhere else.

Hence, with these 2 efficient methods, UPDF makes translating scanned documents nothing but a breeze for anyone. Now, you do not need to use multiple tools for different tasks as UPDF brings multiple features to satisfy all your documentation needs. You can check the below video to learn more about this PDF document translator.

Read this expert review about UPDF to learn what type of value it offers.

Moreover, if you plan to enjoy these features yourself then you must Purchase UPDF Pro and unlock all its premium qualities.

Final Words

Trying to use Google Translate to translate scanned document and only find ingthat such documents are not supported? No worry, with the help of UPDF's PDF-to-image conversion features, you can do that with ease. However, why to use UPDF and Google Translate when you can use UPDF to do it directly?

Download UPDF via the below button and translate scanned documents with ease now.