Our conversion tools can also extract text from JPG images with the help of Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. While using this function, you can rest assured knowing every bit of text and every number visible in an image will be extracted, reconstructed, and placed in a brand-new Excel file.

Better yet, this tool isn’t limited to text in scanned documents. It can also process text in JPG photos taken using your mobile phone or a standalone digital camera.

OCR technology works by analyzing the pixels that make up an image and looking for patterns that resemble characters like letters and numbers. By comparing the patterns it finds to the patterns listed in a database, OCR systems can “read” the text appearing in an image. This technology can also use context clues like punctuation and word spacing to increase its odds of correctly converting text.

However, OCR-powered text conversion isn’t available to all Smallpdf users; instead, this option can only be accessed by people with a Smallpdf Pro subscription. If you’re a free Smallpdf user interested in seeing how OCR can help you convert an image to Excel format, you can give this feature (and other Pro-exclusive capabilities) a test run with our seven-day free trial!