In this article, we will show you how to OCR a PDF document using Lido’s PDF importer tool. Simply follow the process below!
OCR stands for “optical character recognition”, which means extracting text from images. You might need to OCR a PDF if the PDF was scanned or formatted as an image and you need to extract text from it.
To OCR a PDF document, we will use Lido, a tool designed to simplify and automate repetitive spreadsheet tasks. You can create an account here for free: https://www.lido.app/go/signup.
Log into your Lido account and start with a new spreadsheet from the Files section. This new document will be where the extracted text from the PDF will be organized.
Navigate to the File menu at the top of your Lido interface and select "Import from PDF" to open the PDF Importer tool. This tool is equipped to handle OCR by extracting text from image-based PDF documents and translating it into editable text in your spreadsheet.
Use the PDF Importer's upload feature to select and upload the image-based PDF file from which you need to extract text. Ensure that this is the correct PDF.
After your PDF is uploaded, a preview will appear allowing you to select the specific area containing the text you want to OCR. Adjust the selection box to cover only the relevant text, ensuring precision, and then click "Extract data" to start the OCR process.
The PDF Importer is configured to format data into tables, assigning each line of text to a separate cell when the selected PDF area holds plain text. The text that has been extracted is now situated in the active cell of the spreadsheet.
At this point, you can click "Back" if you need to extract additional text from the PDF. If you're done, simply close the modal by clicking the X button at the top right corner.
After the text has been successfully inserted into the spreadsheet, you can manipulate it as needed within Lido or transfer it to another application. To copy the text, use Cmd-C on a Mac or Ctrl-C on Windows, and paste it using Cmd-V or Ctrl-V respectively into any application that supports text input.
We hope you now have a better understanding of how to OCR a PDF.
