The world is getting more and more digital. In turn, businesses are using printed documents less. That's especially true when sending files to coworkers. Rarely do people use Fax machines nowadays. Instead, they send files as PDFs. So, you may need a PDF scanner on your phone. It will let you convert printed files into digital copies.
There are hundreds of apps available on the App Store or Play Store. So, which app should you choose? You have come to the right place. Here are the 10 best PDF document scanners on Android and iOS.
Part 1. Best PDF Scanner Apps for Both iOS and Android
To start our list, here are the top 5 pdf scanners available on both Android and iOS.
#1: PDFelement
PDFelement is best for users who also need a mobile PDF editor with powerful features.
Latest Version
The latest version of PDFelement is 3.0.7 on Android and 3.0.12 on iOS.
Pricing
PDFelement for Android is free without any in-app purchases. For iOS, it is free, with in-app purchases starting at $6.99.
Features
- Create PDFs from scratch or from images.
- Extract and recognize text, images, and symbols from a scannable object.
- Offers batch scanning and recognition.
- Recognizes more than 18 languages.
- Automatically isolates the documents from cluttered backgrounds, resulting in high-quality scans.
Other (Not Related to Scanning) Features
- Edit text and images in the PDF.
- Add comments, shapes, notes, highlights, underlines, etc., to the PDF.
- Digital Signature.
Pros
PDFelement is an expert in handling PDF files. The developers imported the technology they used in the desktop version of the software. Thus, the mobile app is robust. Its scanner capability is amazing. There are no complications involved. Just launch the app, select the Scan tool, then start scanning.
PDFelement for iOS also comes with OCR. It will let you make scanned text editable text if you wish to do so.
Cons
OCR is not included in the free version.
The OCR feature is only available on iOS.
Comments/Reviews
- One reviewer on the Apple Play Store says they love how easy to use PDFelement is. They love how they can work on multiple PDFs simultaneously. With that, PDFelement has become their go-to scanner on mobile.
- Webtrickz writer Mayur Agarwal says PDFelement's image-to-PDF tool is one of the most valuable features. It lets you convert your scanned documents into editable documents. They say it's exceptionally handy when you need to send documents to others.
#2: Adobe Scan
Adobe Scan is a scanner app where you don't even have to press the capture button to scan documents.
Latest Version
The latest version of Adobe Scan for Android is v. 22.11.18-regular, while the latest on iOS is v. 22.11.15.
Pricing
Adobe Scan is free to download with in-app purchases. In-app purchases both on Android and iOS start at $3.99.
Features
- Precisely scan documents.
- Auto detects text and borders.
Pros
Adobe Scan is a very reliable mobile scanner. Its auto-detection feature lets it scan documents without you pressing the capture button. Put the paper in the frame, and Adobe Scan will scan it. This makes the creation of multi-page PDFs so much easier.
Cons
You can create PDF files by scanning. However, you can't edit the said PDFs. Using another tool is required for that.
The interface may make beginners confused.
Comments/Reviews
- A user put a review on the Apple Play Store saying that Adobe Scan is their go-to app when they need to scan multiple pages into one PDF. They like how the cropping tool is so sophisticated. Additionally, they liked the different scanning settings.
#3: CamScanner
CamScanner is best for scanning files you want to convert into Word, Excel, or Powerpoint.
Latest Version
CamScanner's latest version on Android is version 6.29.0.2211130000, and on iOS is Version 6.30.0.
Pricing
A premium membership for CamScanner starts at $3.99 for a week.
Features
- Different scanning modes for different document types.
- Convert files to PDF.
- Extract text from scannable objects.
- Easy sharing of scanned documents.
- Scanner OCR supports many languages.
Pros
CamScanner offers a powerful OCR tool that accurately recognizes text from printed documents.
Cons
You need a registered account to be able to use the scanner more than once.
The free version adds a watermark to pages.
Comments/Reviews
- A reviewer on Google Play Store says the app helped them organize their documents. They also loved how you could easily share PDFs to Gmail, Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, and even WhatsApp.
#4: OneDrive
OneDrive is the best scanner if you want to store documents on the cloud.
Latest Version
The latest version of OneDrive on Android is version 6.69. For iOS, the latest version is 13.44.
Features
- Scan different types of documents.
- OCR supports many languages.
- OCR recognizes handwriting.
- Export scanned documents as PDFs or other document formats.
Pros
It's super easy to use. There are different settings for scanning documents on Whiteboard, paper, business cards, and photos. Then, you can export directly to a cloud storage system.
Cons
Does not have an OCR function to make the scanned text editable.
You need to register to access the scanner.
Comments/Reviews
Reviewers on the App Store all agree that OneDrive is a great online storage system. You can use it to not just store your scanned PDFs but also share them with others.
#5: Microsoft Office Lens
Microsoft Lens is best for text extraction.
Latest Version
Microsoft Version's latest version on iOS is version 2.66.4, while on Android is version 16.0.15726.20076.
Features
- Different scanning modes for different documents.
- Different scanning modes for different documents.
Pros
Microsoft Lens lets you scan different types of documents and convert them into PDFs. The best thing about it is it supports the recognition of handwritten text.
Cons
Microsoft Lens' can only recognize handwritten text if it is in English.
Comments/Reviews
A user wrote on Google Play that Microsoft Lens is "one of the best scanner apps out there." They loved how it always created clear pictures. On top of that, they like how you can combine multiple photos into one PDF and share it in different ways.
Part 2. Best PDF Scanner Apps for iPhone and iPad
Here are the best document scanners available only on iOS.
#1: Notes
Apple's Notes App is the best free scanner on iOS. It is built-in into every iPhone and iPad. The app allows you to take notes, as expected. But a not-so-hidden feature lets you scan documents.
If you want to learn how to use the Notes App's scanner, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SpH4fAYObo.
Pros
Notes is a built-in program for every iPad and iPhone, and its scanner and PDF editing and creation tools are surprisingly advanced. You can markup or add signatures on the scanned files!
Cons
The lack of an OCR function means you can't make the scanned text editable.
#2: Scanner
Scanner for iOS is best for high-resolution scans.
Latest Version
The latest version of this app is version 2.5.3.
Pricing
Starts at $4.99.
Features
- OCR
- Organize scanned pages
- Adjust contrast, sharpen, or enhance scanned documents to ensure they're high-quality
- Easy document sharing
Pros
The Scanner App is a great choice if you want the scanned document to be as clean as possible. After scanning the document, you can use its photo adjustment features to ensure the text in the document is readable.
Cons
Without a Premium membership, you don't have access to unlimited scans.
Reviews/Comments
A reviewer on the App Store says the Scanner app is a great app if you want to go paperless. They praised the fast OCR and smart adjustment functions. The reviewer said that this app would make tedious scanning tasks into short work.
#3: Easy Scan PDF Scanner Document
Easy Scan is best for organizing scanned PDFs.
Latest Version
The latest version of Easy Scan is version 3.5.43.
Pricing
In-app purchases in Easy Scan start at $3.99.
Features
- It auto-detects document edges and adjusts perspective.
- Advanced image processing
- Batch scanning
- Page size options
- Page organization
- Add signatures to scanned documents
- Email the scanned PDFs
- Extract text with OCR
- Upload PDFs to the cloud
Pros
Easy Scan, as the name suggests, is easy to use. On top of that, it offers lots of powerful features, enabling you to do more than just scan a document. For instance, you can do color correction, remove noise, or lock the document. You can also fax the document to 30 countries.
Cons
Many features are locked behind a paywall.
Many features are locked behind a paywall.
Part 3. Best Document Scanner for Android
These are the best PDF scanners available only on Android.
#1: PDF Document Scanner
PDF Document Scanner is best for crisp scans on Android.
Latest Version
The latest version of PDF Document Scanner is version 5.3.
Pricing
Subscriptions start at $19.99 per month.
Features
- OCR
- Batch Processing
- Auto applies filters that make the words pop.
- Sign scanned documents
Pros
PDF Document scanner lets you scan a single-page or multi-page document. It also offers OCR, which ensures the words in the scans are readable. The images produced by scanning with this app are very crisp and clean.
Cons
The free version is full of ads.
No PDF editing features.
Reviews/Comments
A reviewer on Google Play said that if you can look past the ads that plague the screen, you'll see that it's a great app. That's because PDF Document Scanner works as intended and produces clear results.
#2: PDF Scanner
PDF Scanner is great for adding filters to documents while you are scanning them.
Latest Version
The latest version of PDF Scanner is version 4.0.1.
Pricing
The in-app purchases in PDF Scanner start at $3.99.
Features
- Auto-detects and crops document edges.
- Apply filters while scanning
- Enhances the scanned documents to improve readability
- Convert image to text using OCR
- Convert images from your gallery to PDF
Pros
PDF Scanner does what it is supposed to do. It lets you scan printed documents with auto-crop features that remove unwanted things from the scanned file. You can also apply filters while (not after) scanning, so you can see the output before you take a photo.
Cons
The free version has ads.
Reviews/Comments
A user on Google Play wrote that PDF Scanner is "clean, concise, and to the point". They hated how other apps bombarded them with permissions or options they didn't need. This one is simple and gets the job done quickly.
Part 4. People Also Ask
Here are some of the people's most asked questions about mobile scanners.
- Is there an online PDF scanner?
Yes, there is an online PDF scanner. You can try onlinecamscanner.com. It lets you take pictures of documents and then download them as PDFs, PNGs, or JPGs.
- How to change PDF Scans to Other Formats?
You can use PDFelement for iOS/Android to convert scanned PDF files to other formats. It supports many output file types. The best thing is that the conversion is lightning fast. It will be done in a few seconds.
Conclusion
These are the 10 best PDF scanners for smartphones. As you can see, each has its own strengths and limitations. We suggest starting with Wondershare PDFelement, as it has the most features out of this selection. Its scan function is also among the most robust. Top that with PDFelement's OCR and editing tools, and you can do many things with the documents you scan.