Scanning documents isn't fun, but we all have to do it sometimes. Thankfully, using your Android device, you can quickly scan documents without whatsoever special equipment.

Side by side time yous need to digitize a receipt for reimbursement, scan a government form so you can email information technology, or want to save business cards to your calculator, here'due south a simple guide covering how to scan documents on Android.

The Uncomplicated Android Scanner Method: Google Drive

Android doesn't offering a built-in way to scan documents, so the easiest choice is using the Google Bulldoze app. Since information technology's installed on almost every Android device out of the box, it'southward every bit good as a default method.

Scanning with Google Drive also offers several benefits. As information technology uploads your scan to your Bulldoze account, you don't have to recollect to support your documents manually. Information technology'due south also easy to share your scans with family or colleagues by sending them a Drive link.

How to Scan Documents Using the Google Drive App

If you don't accept the app already, install Google Drive from the Play Store, open up the app, and sign into your Google account. On any of the app'due south tabs, tap the Plus push button at the lesser-right of the screen to show the Create new panel. Choose Scan in one case this appears.

If this is your first time using Google Bulldoze, you'll have to grant permission for the app to apply your photographic camera. Once y'all've done and so, the camera will launch and allow y'all to snap a photo of the certificate you want to scan. Use the photographic camera interface as normal to take this picture show. Common options similar zoom and a timer are available, if needed.

You'll see a preview of your photo; tap the redo button to effort over again, or the Check button if you're satisfied. After striking the Check push, yous'll have the selection to make several edits to your scan.

Editing Your Scan in Google Drive

Google Drive offers 4 icons at the lesser of your scan folio. From left to right, these are:

  • Redo: Tap the arrow to scan the document over again, which is useful if it came out blurry or similar.
  • Color: The palette icon lets y'all choose between 4 color enhancement options. Black & White and Colour are the nearly mutual, depending on whether your document has color. But you can try the other two to see if they better the browse quality.
  • Rotate: Utilize this to rotate the scan in xc-degree increments.
  • Crop: Google Drive'due south scanner should automatically crop the browse to what information technology detects as the edges of your document. But in case it didn't get this right, use the Ingather tool to suit the edges yourself.

If you desire to add together boosted scans, tap the Plus icon in the bottom-left corner to scan another document. Finally, there are a few options accessible using the three-dot carte at the summit-right. Use Rename scan to change the generic name that uses the date and time.

There are a few options under Settings worth looking at, too. Paradigm enhancement lets you prepare the default colour enhancement. Newspaper Size lets you lot change the size of document the final PDF uses, while Paper Orientation can be Landscape or Portrait if you don't like the Automatic option.

Finally, change the Prototype Quality if you lot want college-quality scans, or to drop the quality for smaller file sizes.

Viewing and Saving Scanned Documents in Google Drive

When you lot're all done, tap the Save button dorsum on the main scan page. Here, yous'll have a chance to modify the certificate title if you haven't already, as well as pick which Google Drive account the file goes to (if you have multiple). Pick a Binder, and information technology will upload to Drive when you tap Save.

You can view the PDF in your Google Drive anytime. If yous want to access it even without a network connection, tap the three-dot push button on the file and choose Make bachelor offline. You tin can also choose Download to salvage a local copy anywhere on your phone's storage.

How to Scan Documents on Android Using Microsoft Lens

While scanning documents on Android with Google Drive is like shooting fish in a barrel, you might not like the app for any reason. Perchance yous don't want to use a Google account, or peradventure yous don't like the idea of every browse you make uploading to the cloud.

In that case, there are tons of mobile document scanner apps worth using. We'll highlight i of the all-time: Microsoft Lens. It's a simple Android document scanner that lets you hands save your scans as local files, which fixes the biggest hangup with Google Drive.

Install Microsoft Lens, then open it to first. During the brief intro, you'll see some basic info about the app and will be asked to grant permission to your photos and photographic camera. One time you've done this, Lens lets yous jump right into scanning.

Microsoft Lens Scanning Modes

Unlike Google Drive, Lens provides modes for scanning different types of media. Along the bottom, you can switch to Whiteboard, Document, Deportment, Business concern Card, or Photo. Most of these are cocky-explanatory, except for Actions, which houses several tools.

Within Deportment, you tin can utilise the sub-carte to choose from the following OCR tools:

  • Text: Extract the text from a motion-picture show and then you can copy or share it.
  • Table: Grabs a printed tabular array from an epitome.
  • Read: Speaks text in your image out loud.
  • Contact: Grabs the info from a business carte and saves it to a contact on your phone.
  • QR Lawmaking: Browse a QR lawmaking with your phone to open up the information it holds. This isn't OCR, merely it's grouped into the aforementioned card.

Capturing and Editing Using Microsoft Lens

No matter which mode you're using, scanning the document is the same: just point your camera at it and snap a film equally usual. For all-time results, use a groundwork that contrasts with the document you're scanning, and hold your phone right above the media for the cleanest capture.

Afterward capturing with Lens, you can arrange the borders in case the app doesn't detect them properly. Once yous hit Confirm, you'll see a folio with all sort of options.

Add opens the scanner then y'all can add more than images to the certificate. Use Filters to modify the look of the epitome, and then Crop and Rotate if it doesn't look right.

Under More, yous can select Ink to depict on the document, Text to overlay typed text, or Reorder to rearrange the items in a scan. When you're happy, tap Done to motion on.

Saving and Uploading With Lens

At present, you can choose where to save your scanned file. Adjust the Title at the top, so check the box for every location y'all desire to salve the file to. Your Gallery is selected by default, which saves the scan every bit an image.

But you can too save the scan to a PDF in your OneDrive, an OCR document in Word, or other Microsoft apps like OneNote and PowerPoint. These aren't necessary, only if you already use Microsoft Office products, they'll brand your workflow more efficient.

Tap Relieve when done, and your Android browse is complete. You'll find information technology in the Part Lens binder on your phone, which should appear in your Gallery app.

Scanning Documents Made Easy With Android

You accept a handy PDF scanner right on your Android telephone. Next time you accept to scan something, save the trip to the library or getting a home scanner. Information technology'south easy to apply these two Android document scanner apps to capture and alter documents.

This isn't the only kind of scanning your phone tin can practice, though. Did you know your telephone tin scan barcodes to learn more about them?

The 7 Best Barcode Scanner Apps

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Almost The Author

Ben Stegner (1807 Articles Published)

Ben is the Editor in Principal at MakeUseOf. He left his Information technology job to write full-time in 2016 and has never looked back. He's been covering tech tutorials, video game recommendations, and more than as a professional writer for over eight years.

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