2 Ways to Make PDF Editable in No Time

It is not uncommon to have a PDF document that is scanned such as an invoice or the handwritten minutes of a meeting. Yet, it can be very difficult to make any necessary changes to the document unless you can first convert the scanned document to an editable format.

One of the best ways to do that is to use Optical Character Recognition (OCR). OCR is designed to analyze the text on the scanned document and convert the letters into code that can then be used to process the information on the document.

In this article, we will look at two ways you can make a PDF editable, which are supported by OCR technology.

When Do You Need to Make a PDF Editable

The PDF file itself is not editable, this time it reflects the importance of a PDF editor. A good PDF editor allows you to easily edit PDF text, images, links, and so on. If you are scanning PDFs, editing PDFs will become more difficult. But don't worry, OCR will help you extract the contents of scanned PDF and make it editable, let's take a look at how to do it.

How to Make a PDF Editable with PDF Editor

If you are looking for an easy and effective way to make any PDF including a scanned PDF document editable, UPDF offers the best possible chance. This very easy-to-use PDF document management tool will allow you to convert PDF documents to editable formats and use the OCR function to ensure that even scanned PDFs can be easily edited. If you want to try it, you can download it directly by clicking the download button below.

UPDF is one of the most complete PDF editors in the market with numerous functions to help you manage and edit your PDFs like a pro. These include the following;

• UPDF can very easily convert a PDF document to any one of the many editable formats including Word, Excel, Text, and more. It provides "bunch convert" to convert a number of PDF files into different formats simultaneously.
• UPDF also has very powerful OCR capabilities to ensure that you can just as easily convert a scanned PDF to these formats mentioned above.
• It is also one of the best solutions to read and annotate any PDF document. Easy and user-friendly navigation tools and a wide range of annotation tools make that possible.
• UPDF also offers unmatched text and image editing capabilities, allowing you to edit the text and images on the document without leaving the PDF.
• It also offers one of the easiest and most effective page management tools. You can use UPDF to split PDF pages, rotate them, replace them, add new pages to an existing document and so much more.

Let's dive into how to make a PDF writable:

Step 1: Open the PDF with the PDF Editor

Before editing PDF, we need to download UPDF-PDF Editor first. Then click "Open Files" in the main interface to open PDF files. Or you can directly drag the PDF file to the UPDF interface, it will also be opened automatically.

Step 2: Edit PDF Effortless

Now, you can tap the "Edit PDF" icon on the left panel to enter into edit mode. This mode can allow you to edit the size, type, color, and alignment of the font. The image and link in PDF can also be edited too. Not at all, UPDF also allows you to edit the PDF background, watermark, header, footer, and forms.

Also Read: How to Convert Scanned PDF to Editable PDF with OCR - 3 Methods Explained

How to Make a PDF Editable with OCR?

If your document is a scanned PDF, then you come to the right place. UPDF has a great OCR function for you to scan PDFs and make it editable. Let's see how you can make PDF editable with the OCR feature of UPDF:

Step 1: Specifying Layout for OCR

When you open the scanned PDF, click on "Recognize Text Using OCR". Specify the "Layout" of the PDF document by selecting "Text and pictures only", "Text over the page image" or "Text under the page image" from the available options (Click here for detailed clarification among these three choices). You can also make use of the advanced layout settings available from the "Gear" icon.

Step 2: Select Language for Detection

Proceeding to the next section, define the language that OCR has to detect. Under the list provided in "Document Language," select any of the 38 languages to execute the function.

Step 3: Provide Image Resolution and How to Create an Editable PDF

Next, you must define the "Image Resolution" by selecting any of the values available in the list. For users who are not sure, they can click on "Detect Optimal Resolution" and proceed.

You can specify the page ranges and work through the options to select "Perform OCR" to conclusively perform the method. Select the location where you want to save the converted PDF, and execute the process successfully.

Above are the steps to make PDF editable. You can download UPDF for a trial of these steps.

Also Read: How to Edit a Scanned PDF Document

How to Make a PDF Writable with Adobe Acrobat

As one of the most useful PDF editors in the market, Adobe Acrobat also comes with an OCR function and other document conversion features that can help you make a PDF editable.

The following guide shows you how you can use these features to make a PDF editable with Adobe Acrobat;

Step 1: Open Adobe Acrobat on your computer and then open the scanned PDF in Acrobat.

Step 2: Then click on "Tools" and select "Edit PDF". If the document you have opened is scanned, Acrobat will automatically apply OCR to convert the document to a fully editable format.

Step 3: You will see a prompt at the top-right corner of the screen showing the language that the OCR has detected. If you would like to change the language, click on "Settings" in the prompt for more options.

Step 4: In the settings window, you will also be able to specify the range of pages that you want to convert as well as the font. Just check the "Make all the pages editable" and "Use available system font" to make the changes.

Step 5: Once the document is editable, you can use Adobe Acrobat's extensive editing tools to make changes to the text and images on the document.

Step 6: Then click on "File > Save As" to save the edited document.

FAQs on Making PDF Editable

1. How do I Change a PDF from Read-Only to Editable?

Read-only PDF had Permissions Password set up before, so if you remember the password, then correct password will unlock the file to make it editable. If you forget the password, then ajoysoft could remove the password of the PDF file. After removing password successfully, you can use UPDF to edit file again.

2. Can PDFs be Editable?

Yes, but it has two circumstances. Firstly, PDFs can be directly editable if it is standard PDFs. If it is scanned PDF, then you can edit it after applying OCR feature to recognize words. To ensure that you can edit all aspects of the document easily, you will need to use a professional PDF editor with all the necessary features. UPDF is a good option.

3. How Do I Make an Editable PDF without Acrobat?

The process of OCR in Adobe is complicated, massive lag and also far expensive for ordinary users. One of the best alternatives to Acrobat is UPDF which is cost effective and smooth. UPDF has all the features in Acrobat but is far simpler to use.

4. How to Make PDF Editable Online?

There are several free resources can edit PDF online. However, free websites may not provide full functions as users need. To work and study high efficiently, UPDF is your best choice that provides best results inexpensively.

Conclusion

Making a PDF document editable can be a very simple process if you have the right tool. Of all the solutions available in the current market, UPDF presents the best option since it is nicer for starters and has all the features that users need, while it also has high standard of low cost.