Made for screenshots and real-world photos
Much of the Chinese text people want to copy is locked in images: WeChat and Xiaohongshu posts, video subtitles, slides, and menus. Paste a screenshot straight into the tool with Ctrl+V and the text comes back in a few seconds, with full-width punctuation and line breaks kept.
Common uses
- Copying sentences from Chinese textbooks and graded readers for flashcards
- Pulling text from screenshots of social media posts or subtitles
- Digitising printed documents, contracts and notices
- Reading product labels and instructions
- Getting the text out of vertical-layout pages (read top to bottom, right to left)
Vertical text and mixed layouts
Traditional books and some signs run in vertical columns from right to left. The tool reads these in the correct order instead of jumping across columns. Pages that mix Chinese with English or numbers keep each part as written.
No script conversion
Simplified text stays Simplified and Traditional stays Traditional. If you need to convert, do it afterwards with a dedicated converter, which handles regional vocabulary differences better.
Mostly handwritten pages? Try Chinese handwriting to text.
Frequently asked questions
Is this Chinese OCR free?
Your first image is free. A free account gives 3 credits and 1 free credit per day.
Does it support Traditional Chinese?
Yes, both Traditional and Simplified, kept in their original form.
Can it read vertical Chinese text?
Yes. Vertical columns are read top to bottom, right to left.
Does it work for Japanese kanji?
It reads kanji, but Japanese pages also contain kana. Use the general handwriting OCR, which detects the language automatically.
Can I OCR a Chinese PDF?
Only as images. Screenshot the pages and upload up to five at a time.