Best OCR Software in 2026
Updated
In short: PaddleOCR is ranked #1 of 40 as of 5 October 2026, ahead of docTR and OCRmyPDF. The best-ranked option with a free plan is docTR. The lowest first paid tier on this page is FreeOCR.AI at $6.67/mo.
OCR software turns text in documents or images into machine-readable content for searching or reuse. Compared on supported inputs and languages, searchable PDF, and Word export, the entries offer ways to assess whether their outputs suit your workflow. Handwriting OCR and monthly page limits may matter for particular source materials or recurring workloads. Primary platform, free plans, and paid-from prices provide additional fit and cost points. PaddleOCR, OCRmyPDF, and FreeOCR.AI are among the options shown. Focus on the document types and formats you need.
40 OCR software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
12 of the 25 here have a free tier you can use, 0 have open-source code on record, and 0 have full bars: free, open, on most of your devices and documented.
| # | App | Signal | Free tier | Open code | Devices | From | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PaddleOCRAndroid · iPhone | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | Free | 8.0 | |
| 2 | docTRWindows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 7.8 | |
| 3 | OCRmyPDFWindows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 7.5 | |
| 4 | EasyOCRWindows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 7.3 | |
| 5 | FreeOCR.AIWeb · Windows · Mac · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | $6.67/mo | 7.3 | |
| 6 | i2OCRWeb | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 7.2 | |
| 7 | Tesseract OCRWindows · Mac · Linux · Android | Two bars | — | — | 4 of 6 | — | 7.1 |
| 8 | Scribe OCRWeb · Self-hosted | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 7.1 | |
| 9 | PrizmoMac · iPhone | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | Free | 7.1 | |
| 10 | NewOCRWeb · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.9 | |
| 11 | gImageReaderWindows · Linux | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | Free | 6.8 | |
| 12 | ABBYY FineReader PDFWindows · Mac · iPhone | Two bars | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 6.5 |
| 13 | OCRFeederLinux | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 6.5 |
| 14 | OnlineOCRWeb · API | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | $9.95/mo | 6.5 |
| 15 | ABBYY Screenshot ReaderWindows | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 6.4 |
| 16 | GNU OcradNo platforms listed | No signal | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 6.4 |
| 17 | CaptikaWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | $515/mo | 6.4 | |
| 18 | OOCRWeb | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.3 | |
| 19 | Readiris PDFWindows · Mac | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | $99/mo | 6.2 |
| 20 | Open-CaptureWeb | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 6.2 |
| 21 | SuryaMac · Linux | No signal | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 6.2 |
| 22 | Tungsten OmniPageNo platforms listed | One bar | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 6.0 |
| 23 | DocuOCRWeb | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 6.0 |
| 24 | ScanScanNo platforms listed | No signal | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 5.8 |
| 25 | PDFifyMac | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.8 |
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Searchable PDF | Word export |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PaddleOCR | 8.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 2 | docTR | 7.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 3 | OCRmyPDF | 7.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 4 | EasyOCR | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | No | No |
| 5 | FreeOCR.AI | 7.3 | Free plan | $6.67/mo | Yes | $10/mo | No | Yes |
| 6 | i2OCR | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 7 | Tesseract OCR | 7.1 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 8 | Scribe OCR | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 9 | Prizmo | 7.1 | Free plan | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 10 | NewOCR | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 11 | gImageReader | 6.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | No |
| 12 | ABBYY FineReader PDF | 6.5 | No | — | No | — | — | — |
| 13 | OCRFeeder | 6.5 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 14 | OnlineOCR | 6.5 | No | $9.95/mo | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 15 | ABBYY Screenshot Reader | 6.4 | No | — | No | $9.99/mo | — | Yes |
| 16 | GNU Ocrad | 6.4 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 17 | Captika | 6.4 | Free plan | $515/mo | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 18 | OOCR | 6.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 19 | Readiris PDF | 6.2 | No | $99/mo | No | $99/mo | Yes | Yes |
| 20 | Open-Capture | 6.2 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 21 | Surya | 6.2 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 22 | Tungsten OmniPage | 6.0 | No | — | No | — | Yes | Yes |
| 23 | DocuOCR | 6.0 | No | — | No | $24/mo | — | — |
| 24 | ScanScan | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 25 | PDFify | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | — |
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which OCR software is ranked first on Freedom251?
PaddleOCR is ranked #1 of 40 with a score of 8.0. docTR is second and OCRmyPDF third.
How many of these have a free plan?
12 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, FreeOCR.AI has the lowest first paid tier we found: $6.67/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked free-and-open first: a usable free tier and open-source code, then the platforms it runs on and its documentation.