Search PDF

What this tool does

Search PDF finds words inside a PDF and shows you where they are. It lists every match with its page number and a short piece of the sentence. It also highlights the match on the page.

First the tool reads the whole document. Pages with normal text are read directly. Pages that are scans, with little or no selectable text, are read with English text recognition. This is why a scanned file can be searched here even when a normal viewer finds nothing.

Nothing is saved to the PDF. If you want a new file that stays searchable in other programs, use Searchable PDF instead.

How to use it

1. Select Select PDF, or drop your file on the page.
2. Wait while Indexing document... runs. A progress bar shows how far it is. Select Cancel to stop.
3. When the document opens, type a word or a phrase in the Search document... box. Results appear after a short pause.
4. The counter shows your place, for example 2 / 5. Use the up and down arrow buttons to move between matches, or press Enter for the next one and Shift and Enter for the previous one.
5. Click any item in the results list to jump to that match. The match is highlighted on the page.
6. Select the ✕ button to clear the search and try another word.

Privacy

The reading and the searching happen in your browser. Your PDF is not sent to DocsBee. Like any website, DocsBee may log that you visited, but it never receives your document.

Tips

• Capital letters do not matter. A search for "invoice" also finds "Invoice".
• You can search for a phrase, such as two or three words in a row. A short part of a word also matches.
• Scanned pages take longer than normal pages because each one is read as a picture. Big scans can take several minutes.
• Blurry or crooked scans give weaker results. If a word you can see is not found, the reader probably misread it. Try another part of the same sentence.
• To pull out all the text at once, use Extract Text.

Frequently asked questions