Best OCR Software in 2026
Updated
In short: PaddleOCR is ranked #1 of 40 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of Tesseract OCR and Prizmo. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Prizmo. The lowest first paid tier on this page is FreeOCR.AI at $6.67/mo.
OCR software can turn text in supported documents or images into output you can search or export. Compare supported inputs and languages with searchable PDF and Word export support. Handwriting OCR may matter for notes or forms, while a monthly page limit can affect recurring work. The entries begin with PaddleOCR, Prizmo and Tesseract OCR, with ABBYY FineReader PDF also among the early options. Consider primary platform, free-plan availability and paid-from pricing alongside the document types, languages and output formats relevant to your needs.
40 OCR software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
Recognised 40% · Phone app 26% · Documented 20% · Free plan 14% of the score
- 1 PaddleOCR iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 9.6Free Word export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 2 Tesseract OCR Android only RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.9 Searchable PDF: YesHandwriting OCR: No
- 3 Prizmo iPhone only RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.6Free Searchable PDF: YesWord export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 4 ABBYY FineReader PDF iPhone only RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.5
- 5 OCRmyPDF No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4Free Searchable PDF: YesHandwriting OCR: No
- 6 i2OCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.3Free Searchable PDF: YesWord export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 7 FreeOCR.AI No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.3$6.67/mo Searchable PDF: NoWord export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 8 ABBYY Screenshot Reader No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1 Word export: Yes
- 9 Scribe OCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1Free Searchable PDF: YesWord export: Yes
- 10 OnlineOCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.0$9.95/mo Searchable PDF: YesWord export: Yes
- 11 OCRFeeder No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9
- 12 Readiris PDF No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9$99/mo Searchable PDF: YesWord export: Yes
- 13 Tungsten Power PDF iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9$179/mo Searchable PDF: YesWord export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 14 GNU Ocrad No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.7
- 15 docTR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.7
- 16 DocuOCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.7 Handwriting OCR: Yes
- 17 Tungsten OmniPage No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.6 Searchable PDF: YesWord export: YesHandwriting OCR: No
- 18 Open-Capture No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.5 Searchable PDF: Yes
- 19 Surya No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.4 Handwriting OCR: Yes
- 20 EasyOCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.4 Searchable PDF: NoWord export: NoHandwriting OCR: No
- 21 Captika No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.2$515/mo Searchable PDF: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 22 ScanScan No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.1 Word export: YesHandwriting OCR: Yes
- 23 PDFify No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.1 Searchable PDF: Yes
- 24 NewOCR No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.0 Word export: Yes
- 25 gImageReader No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 5.9 Searchable PDF: YesWord export: No
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which OCR software is ranked first on Samsung Mobile US Press?
PaddleOCR is ranked #1 of 40 with a score of 9.6. Tesseract OCR is second and Prizmo third.
How many of these have a free plan?
7 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, FreeOCR.AI has the lowest first paid tier we found: $6.67/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked mobile-first: a phone app alongside the web or desktop product, a free tier and the depth of its documentation. Paid placements never change a rank.