Need to Sign or Scan Papers? Here's How To Use Your iPhone's Hidden Document Scanner
These days, it's pretty easy to digitally sign important documents, but sometimes you just need to sign a physical piece of paper and scan it to send over email. When you just have to put your signature on a physical document and digitally upload it, and you don't have a standalone scanner handy, the easiest method to do it is right in your pocket — using your iPhone to turn images into PDFs.
Yes, your iPhone doubles as a document scanner. It may not produce images as sharp as a dedicated scanner would, but it does a respectable job, even when the phone is positioned at odd angles trying to capture text. iPhones have had this hidden feature since iOS 11 launched in 2017, but as the cameras built into Apple phones have improved, so has their ability to take decent scans of documents and turn them into PDFs you can email.
You won't need to download additional software or pay for a third-party app — Apple's Notes app that comes preinstalled on iPhones does the trick. The good news is that it's quick and easy to scan a document, save it, and send it wherever it needs to go. Keep in mind that the new iOS 18 changes the icons you use to select document scanning, which we've noted below. If you've upgraded to iOS 18, the process will be different, but we'll walk you through it.
Here's how to scan a document with your iPhone.
James Martin/CNET
Scan a document with your iPhone or iPad
To scan a document with your iPhone or iPad, first place the document on a flat surface in a well-lit area.
Open up the Notes app and either open an existing note or start a new one by tapping the New Note button in the bottom right corner (pencil-in-square icon). On iOS 17 versions and older, tap the Camera button at the bottom of the screen (or if you're editing a note, the same Camera icon will be above the keyboard) and tap Scan Documents. If you're on iOS 18, instead of a Camera icon, you'll tap the Attachments button (the paperclip icon) and likewise tap Scan Documents.
This will open a version of the Camera app that just looks for documents. Once you position your iPhone over the document that needs scanning and in view of the camera, a yellow rectangular layer will automatically appear over the document showing approximately what will be captured. Hover over the document for a few seconds and the iPhone should automatically capture and scan the document, but you can also tap the Shutter button in the bottom center.
James Martin/CNET
Sign, share or save your scanned document
Once you've captured a document, you can tap it, and others you've captured in the same session, to edit them before saving them. You can also tap Retake in the top right corner to start again.
When you edit the document, you can re-crop it from the original photo captured (if you need to tweak its edges), switch between color filters (color, black and white, grayscale or the unedited original photo). Then you can save the scanned document.
Once it's saved into a note, you can tap the Markup button (circled pen icon) at the bottom to sketch or scribble with different colors. If you tap the Add button on the bottom right (plus sign icon), you can add text, your signature, shapes or even stickers.
To send or locally save the document, tap Share button at the top (the square-and-arrow icon) to send it via Messages or apps, copy it, save it locally to the Files app, print it out via linked printer or other options.
How to export your scanned document as a PDF
Understandably, you may want to send your scanned document as a PDF. Tap the Share button at the top (the square-and-arrow icon) and scroll down below the contact and app roulettes to the additional list of options.
The easiest way to send your scanned document as a PDF is a bit convoluted: among the aforementioned list, tap Print and then tap the Share button at the top (square-and-arrow icon) once more -- this will share your PDF-converted document. Then pick your share method of choice, most easily via email, though you can also upload it to cloud storage or send it via text message if you want.
You can also use a third-party app to convert your document to PDF if you so choose. Scroll down past the Print button to find your app of choice. For instance, if you have the Adobe Acrobat app downloaded to your device, you can select Convert to PDF in Acrobat to do so -- though you'll need to wade past several screens attempting to upsell you on Adobe subscriptions first.
Why can't I find the camera button to scan documents?
If you're running iOS 18, the Camera button has been replaced with an Attachments button (paperclip symbol). It should function just the same: Tap it and choose Scan Documents from the dropdown menu
If you can't see the Camera or the Attachments button, check to see if you've opened the note in either the iCloud section or the On My iPhone section — you'll only be able to scan documents and save them in either of these places. If you can't tell, tap Folders in the top left corner of the Notes screen and select either iCloud or On My iPhone.
The documents scanner is just one of many unnoticed iPhone features that come prepackaged in Apple's handsets, often nested in the apps that come with your phone. Some hidden iOS 18 features add even more surprising capabilities already on your iPhone. But you can also find ways to do other tasks, like making a GIF on your iPhone, using third-party apps and through your browser.
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