How do I make a scanned invoice searchable in Adobe Acrobat?

Open your scanned invoice in Acrobat. Go to 'All tools' > 'Scan & OCR' > 'In this file'. Set the page range and language. Click 'Recognize Text' to add a searchable layer. This lets you find words in your invoice easily.

What is the difference between a scanned PDF and a native PDF when using OCR?

Feature Scanned PDF Native PDF. Origin Image of a document (like a photo) Created directly from a program (like Word) Searchable by default No, unless OCR is applied Yes, text is already selectable OCR needed Yes, to make text searchable No, OCR is not applicable

Capture Invoices & POs in Adobe Acrobat — How-to & AI prompts

AI prompts

2 ways to ask · copy any one

AExecute — “help me do it”Capture received invoices and purchase orders: combine supplier invoices, POs, and delivery…+

Capture received invoices and purchase orders: combine supplier invoices, POs, and delivery notes into one searchable PDF, compress it to email size, and send to [recipient=Luis] in bookkeeping by the end of the day.

when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed.

BImprove — “do it better”Before sending the monthly bookkeeping file to Luis, organize the combined PDF by vendor, run…+

Before sending the monthly bookkeeping file to Luis, organize the combined PDF by vendor, run OCR so line items are searchable, compress without losing legibility, and add a one-page index listing invoice numbers and totals to prevent follow-up requests.

when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed.

How to do it

the tool · the steps · what to avoid

1
Open the scanned PDF or image file in Adobe Acrobat.
2
Go to the Tools menu and select Recognize Text.
3
In the Recognize Text dialog, click Recognize Text and choose In This File.
4
Adjust language and page settings if needed, then click Recognize Text to start OCR.
Best practiceFor best OCR accuracy, scan documents at 300 dpi and ensure the image is clear and not overly bright or dark.
5
After OCR completes, select and copy text directly from the PDF, or use Export PDF to save as an editable format such as Word.
NoteYou can now search, select, and edit the recognized text within Acrobat.

In the appWith the API

After OCR, you can highlight, copy, or edit the text just like a regular PDF document.

This runs in the Acrobat app - there is no separate API for this task.

Glossary

words on this page

OCROCR stands for Optical Character Recognition. It is technology that turns images of text into real text you can search and copy.ExampleAfter scanning a paper invoice, OCR allows you to copy the vendor's name from the image.

DPIDPI means dots per inch, and it tells you how clear an image is when it is scanned.ExampleA scanned photo saved at 300 DPI will usually contain more detail than the same photo at 72 DPI.

Searchable text layerThis is an invisible layer of text added to an image-based PDF, allowing you to search for words in the document.

Who does this

3 roles

ArchivistResearcherAdministrative Assistant

FAQ

about this task

Open your scanned invoice in Acrobat.
Go to 'All tools' > 'Scan & OCR' > 'In this file'.
Set the page range and language.
Click 'Recognize Text' to add a searchable layer. This lets you find words in your invoice easily.

Renderable text means the document already contains actual text characters, not just an image of text. OCR is designed to convert images of text into real text. If the page already has renderable text, OCR sees no image text to convert, so it gives an error. This ensures you don't try to OCR a document that is already searchable.

If your scanned purchase order is blurry, OCR accuracy might be low. The clearer the scan, the better Acrobat can recognize the text. Try to rescan the document at a higher quality, ideally 300 dpi, to improve the chances of successful text recognition.

Selecting the correct language helps OCR recognize words more accurately. Different languages have unique letter shapes and common word patterns. If you choose the wrong language, Acrobat might misinterpret characters, leading to errors in the searchable text. Always pick the language of the document for the best results.

Feature	Scanned PDF	Native PDF
Origin	Image of a document (like a photo)	Created directly from a program (like Word)
Searchable by default	No, unless OCR is applied	Yes, text is already selectable
OCR needed	Yes, to make text searchable	No, OCR is not applicable

Capture Invoices & POs

When to use it

AI prompts

How to do it

Glossary

The real tasks

Who does this

FAQ

Sources

Adobe help

When it fails