Convert a scanned PDF to searchable text

A scanned PDF is just images — you can't select, search, or copy the text. PDFjet runs OCR and adds an invisible, accurate text layer on top of the original pages. The result looks pixel-identical to your scan, but the text is now real: selectable, searchable, copy-pasteable.

1. curl

curl -X POST https://pdfjet.dev/extract/searchable \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pj_live_..." \
  -F [email protected] \
  -o searchable.pdf

2. Python

import requests

r = requests.post(
    "https://pdfjet.dev/extract/searchable",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer pj_live_..."},
    files={"file": open("scan.pdf", "rb")},
)
open("searchable.pdf", "wb").write(r.content)

What you get back

The original page image is preserved exactly — no re-rendering, no quality loss — with an OCR text layer underneath. Open it in any viewer and you can select the text or hit Ctrl/Cmd-F to search. It's the difference between an image of a document and a real, digital one.

Try it on your own scan first — drop it into the free tool and select the text right in your browser, no signup.

FAQ