Is my image sent to an outside service?

No. Recognition runs on ConvertNicely's own workers, in the same place every other conversion runs. Nothing is sent to a third-party API, the file is deleted automatically after processing, and you can delete it yourself from the result panel the moment you have the text.

Which languages can it read?

English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch and Russian. Pick the one the text is actually written in — it matters more than any other setting, because the recogniser uses the language to decide between letters that look alike.

Can it read handwriting?

No, and it will usually produce nonsense if you try. The engine is trained on printed and typeset text. Neat block capitals occasionally come through, but handwriting is not what this is for and you should not trust anything it returns from a handwritten page.

What kind of image works best?

A straight-on, sharp, well-lit picture of printed text. A 300 DPI scan is close to ideal, and ordinary screenshots read well too. Before reading, a slightly tilted photo is straightened, a dark-mode screenshot is inverted, a transparent PNG is given a solid background, and small text is enlarged to the size the recogniser reads best. What it cannot fix is detail that was never captured: blur, very low resolution, steep angles and busy backgrounds behind the text are where it still struggles.

Why is my text in the wrong order?

The recogniser works out the layout of the page as well as the letters. Columns of prose are read one after the other, and a table or receipt is read row by row, so each price stays beside its item. An unusual layout — text scattered around a design, or labels on coloured buttons — can still come out in a different order or be missed, so that is the case where checking the result really matters.

Does it keep the formatting?

The structure, yes. Paragraphs come back whole rather than broken wherever the image wrapped, headings and paragraphs are separated by blank lines, bullet points come back as bullets, table rows keep their columns lined up, and indented text such as code keeps its indentation. Bold, italics, font sizes and colours are lost — the result is plain text, which is what makes it usable everywhere.

Is this converter free?

Yes. Every conversion on ConvertNicely is free to use, with no account, no watermark on the result and no limit on how many files you convert.

What happens to my files?

Your uploaded file is deleted from our servers the moment the conversion finishes, whether it succeeded or failed. The converted result is deleted automatically one hour later, and you can delete it yourself at any time with the Delete button.

Is there a file size limit?

Files up to 25 MB are accepted for this conversion. Larger limits apply to paid plans in future, but the free limit is generous enough for the overwhelming majority of TXT conversions.

Do I need to install anything?

No. ConvertNicely runs entirely in your browser and on our servers, so there is nothing to download or install. It works the same on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes. The whole site is built mobile-first, so you can upload from your camera roll or files app, convert, and download the result without leaving your browser.

Free

Extract Text from an Image

Optical character recognition turns a picture of words back into words. Point it at a scanned page, a screenshot, a photographed receipt or a sign, choose its language, and the text comes back on screen ready to copy — or as a .txt file. It runs on our own servers, so the image never goes to an outside service, and your upload is deleted as soon as processing finishes.

Also known as: OCR · extract text from image · picture to text · screenshot to text

Files up to 25 MBTypically under a minute

Drop your file hereor choose a file from your deviceJPG, PNG, WebP, TIFF, BMP or HEIC · up to 25 MB

Encrypted upload · deleted right after conversion

Your files are deleted automatically

Uploads are removed as soon as processing finishes, and converted files are deleted after 1 hour. Read our privacy policy.

How to extract text from an image

Step 1
1. Add your file
Drag your JPG, PNG, WebP, TIFF, BMP or HEIC file into the box, or choose it from your device. It can be up to 25 MB.
Step 2
2. Choose your settings
Adjust Language (English) and Detect rotated text (on), or keep the starting values in brackets, which suit most files. More are under Advanced options.
Step 3
3. Press Extract text
The work happens on our servers, and you can follow its progress.
Step 4
4. Copy or download the text
The text appears on the page, ready to copy, or download it as a TXT file. Your upload is already deleted, and the result is deleted after one hour.

Worth knowing

Recognition is a best effort, not a transcription service. A sharp, straight, well-lit picture of printed text reads very well; handwriting, unusual fonts, very blurry or tiny images and photos taken at a steep angle read poorly or not at all. Always check the result against the image before relying on it — especially names, figures and anything you would not notice being wrong.

Why extract text from an image?

Copying text out of a screenshot instead of retyping it
Getting the contents of a scanned page into a document you can edit
Pulling the numbers off a photographed receipt or invoice
Reading a sign, label or notice from a photo taken on a phone

What changes

What extract text from an image changes, and what it leaves alone
Property	Before	After
Contents	A picture of text	Text you can select
Format	JPG, PNG, WebP, TIFF, BMP or HEIC	Plain text (.txt)
Layout	Original	Paragraphs, lists and table rows kept; styling lost
Accuracy	—	Depends on how clear the image is

Frequently asked questions

Page updated 3 October 2026

All Image converters

Extract Text from an Image

How to extract text from an image

1. Add your file

2. Choose your settings

3. Press Extract text

4. Copy or download the text

Why extract text from an image?

What changes

Frequently asked questions

Remove Background

JPG to PDF

Compress Image

TXT to PDF

Extract Text from an Image

How to extract text from an image

1. Add your file

2. Choose your settings

3. Press Extract text

4. Copy or download the text

Why extract text from an image?

What changes

Frequently asked questions

Is my image sent to an outside service?

Which languages can it read?

Can it read handwriting?

What kind of image works best?

Why is my text in the wrong order?

Does it keep the formatting?

Is this converter free?

What happens to my files?

Is there a file size limit?

Do I need to install anything?

Does it work on a phone?

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