While searching for a topic for research, students can come across scanned PDF articles from which they may need to extract data. Most PDF converters, online or offline, do not allow you to convert scanned PDFs into editable formats directly.
To recognize and extract text from these PDFs, students need access to scanned PDF converters. In this article, we will talk about some OCR converters to help you get familiarized with these valuable tools.
Part 1: 5 Best Scanned PDF Converters
If you're a research student or professional, these scanned PDF converters can assist you in drawing out essential data from scanned PDFs. Your research process will never be restricted due to the unavailability of the data. In this section, we'll introduce you to the top 5 scanned PDF converters to boost the efficiency of your workflow.
1. UPDF
UPDF is one the best-scanned PDF converters in the market, helping users extract data from their PDFs. With its state-of-the-art OCR converter, it allows you to retain the formatting of scanned documents after completing the conversion. Moreover, you can define the image resolution in the scanned PDF to optimize the output file size.
In addition to that, users have the option to pick from the 38+ document languages supported by UPDF. They can apply all these changes to a custom page range or to a single page. To perform all these operations, all you have to do is access the recognized text using the OCR feature of UPDF.
Pros:
- This unique scanned PDF converter performs the entire process in a few seconds because of its fast processing.
- UPDF can work on every operating system available, including Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android.
- With a progressive team of developers, this scanned PDF converter keeps on adding new features to stay on top of the game.
To take advantage of all these OCR conversion features, download UPDF by clicking on the "Free Download" button. After installing UPDF on your device, try this scanned PDF converter to extract text from images and scanned files.
Windows • macOS • iOS • Android 100% secure
2. Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat helps you to OCR scanned PDFs with the help of only a few clicks. One can easily recognize text from these files without having to go through a lengthy conversion process. Additionally, you can choose document language and output file type to optimize the OCR process. After optimizing the settings, you can apply OCR to a custom page range to convert only a specific page.
Pros:
- In addition to OCR conversion, you can also enhance the scanned PDFs with multiple features. These features include deskew, background removal, and sharpening scanned PDFs.
- Users can also downsample images while converting the documents with the help of this scanned PDF converter.
Cons:
- Irrespective of its multifunctionality, Adobe Acrobat is too expensive compared to other PDF converters available in the market.
- The user interface of this scanned PDF converter is outdated needing a learning curve.
3. PDFelement
PDFelement provides a smart OCR converter for people from every field, including education and IT services. It gives high-quality and accurate OCR conversion services, making text recognition easier for the system. Moreover, this scanned PDF converter can recognize text written in over 20 languages for global utility. You can even recognize the content in tables and charts to extract important figures from them.
Pros:
- This scanned PDF converter supports the batch OCR conversion feature, making operations easier.
- The processing speed of this PDF conversion tool is relatively fast compared to other tools available.
Cons:
- With all the unnecessary features on its interface, users have to go through the learning curve to utilize this tool properly.
- The customer support of this tool needs to be improved in solving the users' problems.
4. iLovePDF Desktop
iLovePDF Desktop allows you to convert scanned PDFs into editable documents with a few clicks. All you need to do is access the optimized PDF section to make use of the OCR PDF tool. With the help of this tool, users can even convert multiple files by selecting numerous scanned PDFs at a time. Moreover, you can increase the accuracy of text detection by correctly choosing from 100+ document languages.
Pros:
- You can find detailed information about each feature on the interface of this scanned PDF converter.
- It is a multi-featured tool that allows you to handle each aspect of the PDF without any hassle.
Cons:
- There is no custom page range option in the OCR conversion tool.
- The free version of this tool only allows 10 free tasks, after which you have to purchase this tool.
5. Nitro
Nitro PDF is a multi-dimensional scanned PDF converter with the ability to extract texts from any PDF or image. After accessing the OCR dialog box, choose whether you want output text as only searchable or searchable/editable. Users can also change the OCR preferences in the advanced settings, including skew correction and page orientation settings. In addition to that, you can apply these multiple settings to custom pages in the scanned PDF.
Pros:
- Users can downsample images in the scanned PDF to optimize the output document size.
- With the help of this scanned PDF converter, you can rotate the pages before starting the OCR conversion process.
Cons:
- There are no regular updates for the system of this PDF conversion tool.
- Sometimes, users face formatting issues in the output file.
Part 2: Comparison Between 5 Scanned PDF Converters
After going through the article, you should be able to choose the scanned PDF converter that suits your needs. However, if you still have some lingering doubts, go through the comparison table given below to compare each and every OCR feature in detail:
Metrics | UPDF | Adobe Acrobat | PDFelement | iLovePDF | Nitro |
System Support | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS | macOS, iOS, Windows, Android | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS | Windows, macOS, and iOS |
OCR Conversion | |||||
Apply OCR Settings to Custom Pages | |||||
Fast Processing Speed | |||||
User-Friendly Interface | |||||
Cost-Effective OCR Conversion | |||||
Conversion Formats | Office Formats, Images (JPG, PNG, TIFF, GIF, BMP), HTML, PDF/A, XML, Text, CSV, RTF | Office Formats, Images (JPG, PNG, and TIFF), Spreadsheet, HTML, RTF, Encapsulated Postscript, Postscript, Text, XML | Images (JPG, PNG, TIFF, GIF, BMP), HTML, Office Formats, Epub, TXT, RTF, XML, PDF/A, HWP, HWPX, OFD | JPG, Word, Excel, PPT, PDF/A | Office Formats, Images (JPG, PNG, TIFF), PDF/A, Rich Text, Plain Text |
All these comparison points prove that UPDF stands at the top of the PDF market with its optimal PDF conversion tool. Using this scanned PDF converter, anyone can extract essential data from scanned documents within a few seconds. You will get the following other benefits from UPDF:
- With its cross-platform usage, multiple devices can access from a single account at once.
- You can make use of its presenter mode to view documents as slideshows during presentations.
- In contrast to other multi-functional scanned PDF converters, it is budget-friendly.
- The AI assistance enables users to summarize and explain PDF content before conversion.
Conclusion
All-in-all, we can conclude that a scanned PDF converter is a perfect feature for extracting data from any research paper without restricting your workflow. All of the above-mentioned conversion tools are good enough to recognize content written in various languages to allow smooth research.
However, if you are a research professional and deal with such scanned articles daily, UPDF is the best tool to boost your efficiency. With its fast processor and user-friendly interface, anyone can easily carry out the PDF conversion process. So, click on the "Free Download" button to take advantage of this efficient tool and upgrade to UPDF Pro to transform your document experience.
Windows • macOS • iOS • Android 100% secure