Scanned PDF vs Searchable PDF
A scanned PDF is usually made of page images. A searchable PDF contains selectable text that can be copied or extracted.
Quick answer
If you cannot select text with your cursor, the PDF may be scanned or image-based. OCR is required to turn scanned text into selectable text.
Scanned PDFs
A scanned PDF often looks like a document but behaves like a picture of a document. The page may contain pixels instead of real text.
Searchable PDFs
A searchable PDF contains text objects or an OCR text layer. That text can usually be selected, copied and extracted.
Why this matters for tools
PDF to Text can extract selectable text. It cannot read text from a scanned image-only page without OCR.
FAQ
Common questions
Can LiftPDF do OCR?
No. Current PDF to Text extracts text already present in the PDF and clearly says when OCR is required.
How can I tell if a PDF is scanned?
Try selecting a word. If the whole page behaves like one image, it is probably scanned or image-based.