Every now and then, we need to edit or search for an image from a book excerpt or a PDF with a lot of content. Other times, we have to find and extract tables from images and paste them into Microsoft Excel or a CSV file. OCR software is needed in such situations in order to recognize the characters accurately and convert them into text. It is faster and more convenient than typing the whole document manually.
So, in this article, we are going to discuss OCR technology and some image-to-text converter tools.
What Is Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Technology and How Does it Work?
Computers can convert paper documents, handwriting, or static images into text and editable PDFs using OCR or Optical Character Recognition. In the early days of OCR, the software was pretty inaccurate, so it wasn’t reliable.
Today, thanks to the advancement of technology, OCR software has become a productivity tool for students, researchers, teachers, doctors, lawyers, and office workers. Despite the fact that 100 percent accuracy hasn’t been achieved yet, there is usually a close approximation that works for everyone.
In general, OCR works by scanning and analyzing documents and saving them as JPEGs or PDFs after they have been scanned. The OCR software then processes the scanned and saved file. In this process, the numbers and letters are recognized and converted into text, such as a Word file or a PDF that can be searched.
In addition to OCR software, a spell checker is employed to guess any and all unrecognized words. Today, converting text from an image to something you can edit in a word processor is considered as one of the fastest methods.
How We Can Use OCR Technology to Convert Images into Text?
As we discussed briefly in the beginning, OCR technology allows us to accept the paperless culture. But is that the only reason why we need the OCR? The answer is: no. It can take a lot of time to rewrite a document to make it digital.
Therefore, it would be best to let the OCR do the work rather than spending enormous amounts of time on it. It removes the burden of copying written text. Moreover, it reduces search time and storage space for paper-based documents while improving workflow efficiency at the same time.
Aside from being environmentally friendly, OCR software also helps reduce paper consumption. As a result, fewer trees will be cut down, and more oxygen will be available to all.
After learning about OCR and its uses, let’s take a look at three of the best online tools for converting images to text:
1. Prepostseo
At the top of our list is a converter that converts images to text offered by Prepostseo.com. More than 200 tools are available for writers, data entry experts, developers, and SEO experts on this platform.
Many tools can be used freely from this platform without any problems. In addition to other tools, it offers an image to text converter that is considered to be the best.
We ranked it in the top spot mainly due to its simplicity. It only takes a few clicks of your mouse to use this tool. In order to obtain data in the document format, you must first insert the image.
The image can be saved to your device’s internal storage, uploaded to G-drive, or directly inserted via a link. In the next step, click the Submit button to initiate the tool’s processing.
After a few seconds, your text will appear in a box in a couple of seconds, where you can copy or download it. Format. It does not require you to follow multiple steps or undergo complex methods when using the tool.
As a result, we have ranked it in the number one spot for image text converters because people find it useful.
Furthermore, you can insert up to three images at once so that you can get data from each of them quickly. As a result, you will save time, and you will be able to extract data within a short period of time.
2. OCR Space
The OCR.space tool is a good choice for just about any image-to-text operation, and it should cover nearly everything. Among the best OCR tools that support WEBP files, OCR.space ranks high. In addition, PNG, JPG, and PDF files are also supported. Additionally, if you have an online file, you can link to it remotely instead of uploading it.
Furthermore, autorotation, receipt scanning, table recognition, and auto-scaling are available. The only online OCR tool that provides searchable PDF output (with visible or invisible text) is OCR.space (also known as Online OCR Services). It is possible to select between two different OCR engines to get the most accurate results.
To start OCR, you must upload a file or link a file! On the same page, you will see a preview of your results once you click the button. If you choose a searchable PDF as your output, you will also find the Download and Show Overlay buttons.
You can output your OCR.space extraction as JSON, which is one of the most unique features of OCR.space. Each word in the text will have its own JSON field containing its coordinates on the image. This feature is very valuable for coders trying to extract text from images.
3. OnlineOCR
One of the easiest and fastest ways to convert an image or PDF file into multiple text formats is with OnlineOCR. You can convert up to 15 files to text per hour without an account using OnlineOCR.net. When you sign up for an account, you can access features like converting multi-page PDF documents.
It is possible to convert PDF, JPG, BMP, TIFF, and GIF formats to DOCX, XLSX, or TXT using OnlineOCR.net. OnlineOCR.net can recognize text in English, Afrikaans, French, and many more languages.
Three simple steps are required to complete the conversion. The process involves uploading a file, which is capped at 15 MB, selecting the language and output format, and clicking the Convert button.
In addition to choosing the output format, you can preview the converted file in plain text. It prevents users from downloading an extraction that may not be accurate, thus saving them time and bandwidth.
Conclusion
We have discussed OCR technology in detail and we have also listed the 3 best OCR tools that convert images into text. However, by using these three tools, it should be easy to extract text from almost any clear and legible image.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a fast typist with multiple monitors, there’s no need to struggle through typing text images yourself.
