Scanned PDF Converter

What is Scanned PDF Converter?

Scanned PDF Converter is a free tool that makes a digital document look like it went through a real scanner. Drop in a PDF, a Word file or a few images, choose a style, and the tool turns each page the way a sheet sits on the glass, softens it like scanner optics, adds sensor grain, a shadow along the paper's edges and a few specks of dust, then saves a scanned PDF. It is for the times someone asks you to "print, sign, scan and send" and you have no scanner, or no wish to use one.

PDFs and images are processed entirely in your browser, so they never leave your device; only Word files are sent to be converted to PDF first, and they are not kept. There is no sign-up, no page limit and no watermark.

Scanned PDF Converter before and after: a clean PDF page and the same page made to look scanned

What makes it different

• Styles to start from: Light scan, Office scanner, Photocopy, Old fax and Aged paper each set every effect at once. Open Scanner settings to fine-tune any of them.
• A real scanner’s flaws: tilt, a different tilt for each page, blur, grain, a warm paper tone, a shadow along the edges where the paper lifts off the glass, and dust on the glass.
• Paper to print on: keep it plain, or put the page on crumpled, creased, wrinkled, cream or recycled paper. The paper’s grain and creases show through the page, as if it had been printed on it and scanned.
• What you see is what you get: the preview runs the same scanner as the download, page by page, with each page’s own tilt and grain. New random rolls them again.
• Pages keep their size: Letter stays Letter, A4 stays A4, and landscape or rotated pages stay the right way round.
• Small files, like a scanner’s: every page is saved as a JPEG at 100, 150, 200 or 300 DPI, with the quality you choose. A page at 150 DPI is usually 100 to 200 KB.
• PDF or images: download the whole document as a PDF, one page as a PDF or a JPG, or every page as JPGs in a ZIP.
• Several images, one document: drop photos or screenshots of a few pages together and they become one scanned PDF, in the order you chose them.

How to use Scanned PDF Converter?

1. Drop a PDF, a Word (.docx) file or images into the box, or try the sample invoice.
2. Choose a style. Office scanner is a good start; Photocopy and Old fax are black and white.
3. Check the preview, page by page. On a phone, switch between Scanned and Original.
4. To fine-tune, open Scanner settings: color mode, paper, tilt, brightness, contrast, blur, grain, paper tone, edge shadow, dust, and the resolution and quality of the file.
5. Press Download PDF, or use More for one page or for JPGs.

Tips for a realistic scan

• Less is more: real scanners make small flaws. A tilt under 1.5° and a little blur look real; big values look edited.
• Let the pages differ: keep Tilt varies by at 0.3° to 0.8°, so each page sits a little differently, as pages put on the glass by hand do.
• Color, gray or black and white: many office scanners save in gray to keep files small; switch Color mode to Gray for that look. Black and white is for a photocopy or a fax.
• 150 DPI is usual: it is what most offices scan at. Use 300 DPI for small print you need to read.

Frequently asked questions

Is this scanned PDF converter free?

Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit on files or pages.

Why would I want a document to look scanned?

Because plenty of processes still ask for a "scanned copy" of something you only have digitally. Printing a file just to scan it straight back in is a waste of paper and of a trip to the office printer.

Is my file uploaded?

Not PDFs and images: they are read and processed in your browser. Word files are the exception, since they have to be converted to PDF first; the conversion does not keep them. Save a sensitive Word file as a PDF yourself and use that.

Does every page look the same?

No, on purpose. Each page is turned a little more or less than the tilt you set, by up to the amount in Tilt varies by, and gets its own grain and dust, the way pages scanned one at a time do. The preview shows each page as it will be saved.

Can I select or search the text in the scanned PDF?

No. Like a real scan, every page becomes a picture, so the text can no longer be selected, copied or edited. Keep the original if you need the text.

How big will the file be?

It depends on the resolution, the quality and how much grain there is. At 150 DPI and 80% quality, a page is usually 100 to 200 KB; 300 DPI makes files about four times as large. For a smaller file, lower the quality or the grain, or run the result through the PDF Compressor.

Which file types can I use?

PDF, Word (.docx), and images in JPG, PNG, WEBP or GIF. Drop several images together to make them pages of one PDF.

Can I sign it before making it look scanned?

Yes, and that is the usual order. Sign or fill it in with the Sign PDF or Fill PDF Form tool, then run the finished document through here. A note written with the Text to Handwriting Converter takes the same treatment.