Screenshot to Text — extract text from any capture
Screention's built-in OCR engine converts screenshots to editable text on your computer. Copy text from error messages, code snippets, PDFs, or any unselectable content — offline, no uploads, no accounts.
How to convert a screenshot to text
Capture any region
Use your global hotkey (Ctrl+Alt+A / Cmd+Option+A) to select the area containing the text you want to extract.
Press Ctrl+E to extract
Hit the OCR shortcut or click Copy text in the toolbar. Screention's bundled Tesseract WASM engine processes the image entirely on your device.
Text copied to clipboard
The extracted text is automatically copied to your clipboard, ready to paste into any application. No retyping needed.
Why offline OCR matters
Privacy First
Text recognition never sends your screenshot anywhere. Unlike online OCR tools that upload your images to remote servers, Screention processes everything locally using a bundled Tesseract WebAssembly engine. The only download is a language you turn on, once.
No Upload Wait
No waiting for uploads or server processing: text extraction runs on your own computer. Works even without an internet connection — on planes, in secure networks, or offline environments.
Stop retyping. Start extracting.
Bundled OCR Engine
Tesseract WebAssembly with English trained data included. 22 more languages, such as Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, and Spanish, are a one-time download in Settings. No API keys.
Copy Any Text
Error messages, terminal output, code snippets, UI labels, PDF text, video subtitles — if you can see it, you can copy it.
Instant Clipboard
Extracted text is automatically copied to your clipboard. Just Ctrl+V to paste anywhere.
Works on Code
Extract code from screenshots, Stack Overflow images, or documentation screenshots, then check symbols and indentation after pasting.
Small Text Enlarged
Small selections are enlarged up to three times before reading, which helps with small interface text. Works best with clear, high-contrast text.
Cross-Platform
Same OCR workflow on Windows (.exe/.msi), macOS (.dmg), and Linux (.deb/.rpm/.AppImage). One tool, all platforms.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert a screenshot to text?
With Screention, capture any screen region with your hotkey (default Ctrl+Alt+A), then press Ctrl+E (Cmd+E on Mac) or click Copy text to run OCR. The extracted text is automatically copied to your clipboard, ready to paste.
Can I extract text from a screenshot without uploading it?
Yes. Screention runs OCR on your computer using a bundled Tesseract WebAssembly engine, so text recognition never uploads your screenshot. There is no cloud processing and no account, and English works without an internet connection. Other languages need a one-time download.
What platforms support screenshot to text?
Screention works on Windows 10/11 (.exe/.msi), macOS 11+ (universal .dmg), and Linux (.deb/.rpm/.AppImage) including Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, and more. The same OCR feature is available on all platforms.
Is the screenshot to text feature free?
Yes, completely free. Screention is 100% free with no paywalls, no subscriptions, and no feature restrictions. OCR text extraction is included for all users.
How accurate is screenshot OCR?
Screention's OCR works best with clear, high-contrast text at readable font sizes, such as code, terminal output, UI labels, error messages, and documents. It enlarges small selections before reading them, but very small text or heavily stylized fonts may still reduce accuracy.
Can I extract text from a screenshot of code?
Yes. You can extract code from tutorial screenshots, Stack Overflow images, documentation, or IDE screenshots. Check symbols and indentation after pasting, since OCR can misread them.