Scan to PDF

Any modern mobile browser with camera access works — Safari on iOS 14+, Chrome on Android, Firefox, Edge. The tool uses the standard Web getUserMedia API to access the camera, the same API video chat apps use, so no install is needed. On desktop laptops with a webcam, it works there too, though phone cameras typically produce much better document scans because of higher resolution and better focus at close range. iPad with the rear camera works very well. The first time you visit, the browser asks for camera permission — grant it, and the camera preview appears. Permission persists for the site after the first grant, so subsequent visits open the camera immediately.

The tool runs a real-time edge-detection algorithm on the camera frames using a Canny-style filter, looking for the document's rectangular outline against the surrounding background. Good lighting, a contrasting background (a desk surface that is darker or lighter than the paper), and holding the camera roughly perpendicular to the page all help. If detection fails (no green outline appears), the most common causes are poor lighting (too dim), low contrast (white paper on a white desk), motion blur (hold steady), or the document being tilted too far. As a fallback, you can manually drag the four corner handles to define the document area before capture. The manual mode is also useful when scanning irregular shapes like ID cards or receipts.

Just an image by default. Scan to PDF produces an image-based PDF where each page is a photo (auto-cropped and corrected) of your paper document. To make it searchable, run the result through OCR PDF after scanning, which adds an invisible text layer using Tesseract.js. OCR works best on the kind of output Scan to PDF produces (cropped, perspective-corrected, contrast-enhanced) because the text is large and clear. Combined, the two tools produce a searchable PDF rivaling what dedicated scanner apps deliver — without any server upload or subscription. The OCR pass takes 5-30 seconds per page depending on text density and device speed.

Yes, that is a primary use case. After capturing the first page, tap Add page and capture another, repeating for as many pages as you need. The tool stores each captured page in browser memory until you tap Save PDF, at which point they all get assembled into one multi-page document. There is no fixed limit on page count, though phone RAM is the practical ceiling — typical multi-page scans (10-50 pages) work easily; very long documents (100+ pages) may slow down on older phones. The page order is the order you captured them in, but you can reorder later using Reorder PDF pages on the saved file.

Often yes, for documents that need to be readable and presentable rather than perfectly archival. The perspective correction and contrast enhancement produce clean, sharp output that is acceptable for emailing receipts to accounting, sharing signed contracts, or filing tax documents. For legally binding archival use (court filings, regulatory submissions), check the destination's requirements — some require minimum DPI (typically 300), color or grayscale, or specific format like PDF/A. Scan to PDF outputs depend on your camera resolution; modern phones produce equivalent of 300-600 DPI at letter-size paper distance. For maximum quality, hold the camera close and ensure even lighting; for legal archival, use a dedicated scanner instead.

The camera permission is needed because document capture requires reading frames from the camera. The frames are processed entirely in your browser by JavaScript: edge detection runs on the live preview, capture grabs a single still frame, and perspective correction transforms it into a flat rectangle. None of this data goes to any server. PDFChamp has no backend for image processing — the tool literally cannot upload because the code is all client-side. You can verify by opening the browser's Network tab while scanning and watching that no images are sent anywhere. When you close the tab, the camera turns off and all captured frames are discarded. Permission grants are revocable at any time in browser settings.