Scan to PDF with your camera — no app needed
A free PDF scanner that runs in your browser: scan to PDF from a photo or straight from your camera. Each page is found, straightened and evened out so it reads like a flatbed scan, then saved as one PDF — on your own device.
Scan to PDF
Fit meter
Settings appear once you add a photo.
Your settings are saved on this device.
Color, grayscale and black & white even out shadows so the paper reads as white. Black & white makes the smallest file — ideal for text.
Ctrl + Enter runs it ·
Bytes of your files sent anywhere: 0 B · nothing leaves this tab
Every request this page makes is listed as it happens. You’ll see our own code loading, and for some formats a codec engine, but never your file going out.
- Waiting for network activity…
Check it yourself: open your browser’s developer tools on the Network tab, or turn off Wi-Fi once the page has loaded. The tools keep working.
- 100% private Your photos never leave this device. Everything runs in your browser.
- No limits No file-size cap, no watermark, no sign-up and no daily quota. Free.
- Batch ready Add as many photos as you like; each one is handled and saved in one go.
How to scan to PDF with your phone
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Add your photos: Press Use your camera and photograph each page, or choose photos you already took. Lay the page on something darker than the paper and fill most of the frame.
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Check the settings: Each page is found, straightened and cleaned up. Tap Adjust on any page to move its corners, or turn it the right way up.
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Save the result: Pick color, grayscale or black & white, then save one PDF with every page in order.
Why it doesn’t upload
What people scan is exactly what they should not hand to a stranger: ID cards, bank letters, signed forms, medical notes. Scanning apps upload to their cloud; this one never sends a photo anywhere — the camera feed and every page stay on your device.
Check it in your browser’s Network tabWorth knowing
- The page is found by its contrast with what is behind it. A white page on a white desk may not be detected — use Adjust to set the corners, or lay it on something darker.
- A page curled like an open book is straightened as a flat quadrilateral, so the curve near the spine stays.
- The text is not made searchable here. Run the saved scan through OCR PDF to make it searchable and copyable.
- The camera needs a secure page and your permission; it works in current Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge on phones and laptops.
Under the hood
What happens to your file
Each photo is searched for the page: its edges and corners are found, the page is straightened with a perspective correction, and uneven light is evened out. Black-and-white pages are stored as 1-bit images, a fraction of the size of a color photo, and every page is placed in a PDF of the size you pick.
Reference: pdf-lib documentation
Why use a PDF scanner in your browser?
Scanner apps want an install, an account or a subscription, and many add a watermark or upload your pages to their cloud. Here you take a photo or use your camera directly; each page is found, straightened and evened out so it reads like a flatbed scan, then saved as one PDF on your own device.
No app, no account and no watermark — just a scan of your document that stays yours.
Common reasons to scan a document with your phone
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ID and proof of address
Scan an ID card or a utility bill for an online application.
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Signed paper forms
Scan a form you signed by hand to send back.
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Combining scanned receipts into one PDF
Photograph each receipt for an expense claim in the order of your form; Black & white keeps a stack of them small and legible — see combine receipts into one PDF.
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Homework and notes
Submit handwritten work as a clean PDF.
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Letters and certificates
Keep digital copies of paper documents.
Tips for a sharp phone scan
- Lay the page on a darker surface so the edges are easy to find.
- Shoot from directly above in good, even light; avoid your own shadow.
- Use Black & white for text documents, Color for photos and stamps.
- Use Adjust to set the corners if the page isn’t found exactly.
- Need the scan searchable? Run it through OCR PDF afterwards.
Questions
How do I scan to PDF on my phone without an app?
Open this page, press Use your camera and photograph each page. The pages are straightened and cleaned up here, in your browser, and saved as one PDF — nothing to install and nothing uploaded.
Can I scan to PDF with my laptop webcam?
Yes. The same button uses a laptop or desktop webcam. Hold the page flat and fill the frame; webcams are lower resolution than phones, so black & white usually gives the most legible result.
Why does my scan have shadows or a gray background?
It shouldn’t with Color, Grayscale or Black & white: the lighting across the page is measured and divided out, so the paper reads as white. Photo as taken keeps the photo exactly as it was.
Which look makes the smallest PDF?
Black & white, by a long way: each page is stored at one bit per pixel, usually 30–100 KB, where a color page is several hundred. Use it for text; keep color for anything with photos, stamps or highlighting.
Are my photos uploaded to scan them?
No. The camera feed and every photo are processed inside this browser tab. You can switch off Wi-Fi once the page has loaded and it keeps working.
How do I scan multiple pages into one PDF?
Photograph each page in turn with Use your camera, or add photos you already took. Put them in order with the arrows and press Make the PDF: every page is saved in one file. To make that scan searchable afterwards, run it through OCR PDF.