Optical Character Recognition (OCR) is the technology that converts images of text — like scanned documents or photos — into machine-readable, editable text.
What it means in plain English
OCR looks at an image containing text and figures out what the letters and words are, producing digital text you can search, copy, and edit. It bridges the physical and digital worlds, turning paper documents, receipts, signs, and screenshots into usable data. Modern OCR, powered by deep learning, handles varied fonts, handwriting, and imperfect images far better than older systems.
It is often the first step in digitising and automating document-based workflows.
A simple example
Photographing a printed receipt and having an app automatically extract the store, date, and total is OCR at work — reading the text from the image so software can process it.
Why it matters
OCR is essential for digitising records, automating data entry, and making printed information searchable. It quietly powers everything from depositing a cheque by photo to translating a foreign menu with your camera.
Related terms
- Computer Vision — the field OCR belongs to.
- Deep Learning — powers modern OCR accuracy.
- Object Detection — a related visual-recognition task.
Frequently asked questions
What is OCR?
Optical Character Recognition converts text in images or scanned documents into machine-readable, editable text.
Where is OCR used?
Digitising documents, reading receipts and invoices, extracting text from photos, license-plate reading, and making scanned content searchable.
