With so many best OCR software generator products out in the market today, it is important to understand what you should consider when choosing the most suitable product for your requirements. In this article, we will look through the most crucial aspects to consider in your purchase decision that can help you. Here are the top 21 OCR software generator selections that help you choose wisely.
Docparser
Docparser is an OCR program that can be used to extract text from scans and other images. DocParser includes a copy of the original document and an edited version, both in Unicode format. This allows you to search through your text even if it has been edited with Microsoft Word. The software is available in all languages, and it comes with customer support.
Free OCR software
Extract important data from Word, PDF and image files. Send to Excel, Google Sheets and 100’s of other formats and integrations.
Readiris
Readiris is a program that allows you to edit, convert, and transform paper files into multiple digital formats with just a few clicks—as well as annotate and aggregate PDFs. The tool allows you to add comments, annotations, and hyperlinks directly from Microsoft Office so that documents can be edited easily. It also lets you convert images, PDFs, or texts into editable formats such as Word or PowerPoint. The new recognition engine offers faster document management.
Readiris offers three sub-products:
Readiris PDF 17: $49
Readiris Pro 17: $59
Readiris Corporate 17: $89
IRIS products and solutions use proprietary technologies like OCR, PDF compression, AI-driven classification, and data extraction to streamline and secure organizational processes.
DEVONthink Pro
DEVONthink Pro is a powerful OCR software tool for organizing and analyzing data. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or a researcher, the software allows you to access and read documents all in a single application. Rather than having to switch between images, Word and Excel, etc., DEVONthink Pro gives you the ability to sync and analyze files between your Apple devices while working on other projects.
DEVONthink is an exceptionally powerful and versatile software tool that enables you to capture, organize, edit, and efficiently locate virtually any type of data imaginable.
Pricing
DevonThink is available at three price points:
Standard ($99)
Pro ($199)
Server ($499)
Picatext
While Picatext doesn’t offer great OCR accuracy, it’s a user-friendly tool that makes it easy to extract text from images and scanned documents. The developers wanted to focus on ease of use and simplicity so that you can save time re-typing information from images and scanned documents. As such, Picatext doesn’t recognize formatting (like underlining), uncommon fonts, or low-resolution imagery.
Pricing
Picatext costs $3.99.
Google Docs
While Google Docs is best for most things, it’s not great at converting scanned documents into text. Many people report that the OCR tool doesn’t work well enough for business documents, so they prefer to use another option. That’s where PDF Converter Free comes in. Google Docs is free to use and offers simple features like styling and editing. It also lets you convert text into searchable PDFs. Google Docs’ drawback, however, is that it may not detect important sections like tables or footnotes when doing conversions from word processor files—so if this matters to your needs then other online tools would be better options for you.
Pricing
Google Docs is free to use.
Google Doc AI costs $65 per 1000 pages.
LightPDF
LightPDF has two versions of its online portal: Basic and Pro. The site is free to use, with the pro option offering much more flexibility in managing PDFs quickly and easily—features like speech-to-text are available only through upgrading. LightPDF’s other program, Speech-to-Text, can be used to make note-taking easier and more efficient. It also allows you to extract content from video or audio files. Additionally, PDF Management functions allow you to add or remove passwords as needed—for document security!
Pricing
The basic package for Light PDF is entirely free.
Light PDF’s VIP OCR software costs $9.99 per 100 pages.
SmallPDF
SmallPDF is a program that can convert Excel spreadsheets or extract data from other file formats such as PowerPoint and JPEG. It can be accessed anywhere without needing an internet connection to function, making it especially useful for converting files when you’re offline.
Pricing
Free to use.
There is also a Pro version that costs around $5-6 per user, with a 14-day free trial available.
OmniPage Ultimate by Kofax
With Omnipage Ultimate, you can scan paper documents and PDFs into your computer to turn them into editable files. However, the software is only compatible with Windows operating systems. In addition, once you have transformed your PDF files into other formats—such as Word or Excel documents—you can send them to pre-programmed workflows automatically by using the OCR software. The eDiscovery Assistant makes it easy to convert either individual PDF files or entire batches of them into searchable documents.
Pricing
OmniPage Ultimate comes at a one-time cost of $499. Initially, you also get a 15-day free trial to get familiar with the OCR software.
ABBYY FineReader PDF 15
ABBYY FineReader 15 is a PDF solution that combines artificial intelligence (AI)–based OCR technology to create, enhance and convert all types of PDF documents. It also helps you digitize, retrieve, protect and share your data in the same workflow. ABBYY allows you to make corrections and comments on any part of the document, as well as include a broad set of drawing and mark-up tools. You can also reply to comments made in other people’s annotations or add your own comment next to theirs. Make it easier for your collaborators to understand who’s responsible for what.
Pricing
ABBYY FineReader PDF 15 offers three paid plans:
Standard: $199 one-time payment
Corporate: $299 one-time payment
Volume Licensing: quote-based (for large organizations)
SimpleOCR
SimpleOCR is a free, open-source OCR application. It comes with its own SDK that developers can use in their own applications to make them able to read text directly from documents. It has an extensive dictionary of over 120,000 words to recognize words reliably in your documents. In addition, you can add new entries through the text editor. Moreover, you can use SimpleOCR’s despeckle or “noisy document” option to improve clarity on copies and faxes with poor resolution. It retains the formatting applied to documents and recognizes italic, underline, or bold elements.
Pricing
The software is free to use. However, the paid versions cost $25 and range up to $2500.
Rossum
Rossum is an AI-based OCR software that helps you extract data from your invoices and reduces manual entry. They claim to capture 98% of any document’s information, reducing errors in the process while helping you save time. Rossum doesn’t require templates or a specific style of the document in order to capture data. You can add, change, and revise information at any time during the conversion process.
Pricing
Quote-based plans.
Soda PDF
The Pro plan allows unlimited monthly conversions, removes watermarks from converted documents, and enables users to convert files in Microsoft Office formats like DOCX into popular image file formats. Soda PDF can help you streamline your workflow. For example, suppose you have to fill out an online form but don’t want to type in your information manually—you can simply use Soda’s OCR feature and enter the text that way. If you don’t have a scanner, you can use your phone to take a picture of the document and convert it into text using OCR (optical character recognition) software like Snap & Convert or uploading Image Converter Plus.
Pricing
Free plan
The standard plan costs $4.15/per month
Pro plan $7.50/per month
Softworks OCR
This software can easily convert scanned files into editable formats like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. Plus—it converts photographs of slideshows into PDF format so you can share them online. Softworks OCR is available for both Windows and Mac operating systems with a 30-day free trial period, so you can try the software first to see if it works for your needs. However, one con is that Softworks has size limitations on documents and books—so this may not work well if you need large scans. On the other hand, Softworks is one of the more expensive options available. For some people, this might be a deterrent because there are other free programs that could meet their needs.
Pricing
Contact Softworks for pricing details
PDF Reader
With Mobile’s PDF Reader, you can convert a scanned document into readable text in just one click and share it with others. In addition, you can view and edit original PDF files on your mobile phone or tablet. Using this app, you can take a photo of text and convert it into a more readable form. Best of all: the edited result is saved so that anyone with the same document will be able to read what’s there easily!
Pricing
Free trial, then $89.99 for the PDF Reader Standard and $119.99 for PDF Reader Pro. This is a one-time purchase and is currently at a discount.
Nanonets
Nanonets is an AI-based OCR software that extracts data from documents or images and exports it into customized files. Nanonets can understand all kinds of documents, across languages and independent of templates. Its artificial intelligence learns constantly—as it extracts/validates data from your documents; Nanonets continuously improves accuracy as a result. Extract and export data from invoices, tax forms, purchase orders, bank statements—any kind of form. Capture just the information you need from all kinds of documents.
Pricing
Free trial available
$499 per model per month after the trial.
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC is software that allows you to convert PDF files into editable text. This makes it possible for you to copy/paste the converted texts directly into Microsoft Office 365 or Google Docs. Adobe Acrobat DC is not free, but if your company produces large volumes of paper documentation—and the associated costs that go along with manual data entry—it may be well worth investing in to save money down the road.
Pricing
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC cost $14.99 per month
Acrobat Standard DC is $12.99 per month
PDFelement
PDFelement provides users with a simple and easy way to edit, create and organize PDF files. The app allows you to organize PDF documents on iOS devices as well. It is not free, but its features make it worth the price. The app has a low learning curve that allows you to create and manage PDF documents.
Pricing
PDFelement Pro: $69.99 per year
PDFelement Pro Bundle: $89.99 per year
Easy Screen OCR
Easy Screen OCR is a great OCR app that lets you extract text from scanned images and screenshots. You can use the app to translate foreign-language websites or use your own translation tools. The app is available for both PC and mobile platforms. Easy Screen OCR software has a simple user interface that allows you to easily convert images to editable text. The price of this app is low compared to other paid OCR apps.
Pricing
Lifetime: $15
Half-yearly: $29
Yearly: $49
Trial: Yes | 3-day
Boxoft Free OCR
Boxoft Free OCRapp is an advanced image-to-text converter that supports multiple languages, including German, Italian, French, Dutch, Basque, Portuguese, Spanish, and English. You can use the app to convert scanned documents into editable files. Boxoft Free OCR software offers great value for money due to its advanced features at affordable pricing.
Pricing
Basic: Free
Pro: $27
OCRSpace
OCRSpace is a free online tool for converting scanned images and PDFs to editable documents. You can upload the document or paste the URL to convert a document to editable image files. The OCR software app will automatically detect orientation and auto-enlarge images if required.
Pricing
Free
Free OCR to Word
Free OCR to Word is an app that converts scanned images to MS Word documents. The app can convert many types of images containing text, such as BMP, GIF, TIFF, JPG, and others to editable documents. Free OCR to Word is the best free OCR software for converting scanned images to editable Word documents because it scans edited documents with high accuracy.
Pricing
Free
How do I convert a document to OCR software?
There are a number of ways you can convert a document to OCR software, including using free OCR software and paying for professional solutions.
The best way to convert your document is to use an image-to-text converter or OCR software that can recognize text in images and turn them into searchable documents.
You can do this manually by scanning the images yourself and then using OCR software to make the words searchable. But it’s much easier if there’s no need for manual labor on your part — especially if you’re dealing with thousands of documents.
Here are some ways to convert documents into text
Use a free OCR software tool like Google Docs or ABBYY FineReader. Both of these tools are great for converting documents into text because they’re completely automated and easy to use. Just upload your image file (PDF, JPEG, PNG), select “Document Recognition” from the menu bar, and click “Start Recognition.” In just seconds, Google Docs will convert an image file into a searchable document with all of its original formatting intact. It’s free and easy!
Use an online service like Scannable or DocuSign that converts documents into clean PDF files with text recognition built in automatically when you scan them
FAQ
Why is OCR software needed?
There are many reasons why you might need OCR software: You want to create searchable PDFs from paper documents, You want to save time by processing large numbers of images quickly and you want to extract data from images (like receipts) by using OCR.
Which image format is best for OCR software?
The answer is PNG. PNG (Portable Network Graphics) is a bitmap image format that supports lossless data compression. PNG was created as an improved, non-patented replacement for Graphics Interchange Format (GIF). A PNG file can contain multiple interesting images that may be tiled together or overlaid on top of each other. PNG has support for palette-based color reduction and transparency.
What is the best resolution for OCR software?
The best resolution for an OCR software depends on two factors: how much detail you want in your results, and how much time you want to invest in processing them. If your goal is simply to convert a document into editable extracted text with no changes or edits then higher resolutions will give you better-quality results without requiring any additional effort from you at all.
