What is Image-Based PDF?
A PDF whose pages are scanned images with no underlying text layer — meaning text cannot be searched or selected.
Image-based PDFs are created by scanners, smartphone camera apps, or 'print to PDF' on raster sources. They look like documents but behave like pictures. Running OCR converts them into searchable PDFs so the contents become usable in editors, spreadsheets, and search.
Also known as
- scanned PDF
- raster PDF
Related terms
- Searchable PDF — A PDF that contains an invisible text layer behind the scanned image, making the document searchable and selectable.
- OCR (Optical Character Recognition) — OCR is the technology that converts text inside an image or scanned PDF into machine-readable, searchable, editable text.
Category: PDF Format