Pictures are all over the place – WhatsApp forwards, restaurant receipts, shopper emails, and your worker ID card. Pictures are the commonest type of communication throughout channels.
However how do you exchange these photographs into editable Phrase recordsdata?
On this article, we are going to be taught how one can convert a picture to textual content utilizing Microsoft Phrase.
Whereas this technique doesn’t use OCR, we can even convert a picture right into a Phrase file utilizing OCR and perceive the variations.
Want a sensible answer for picture to textual content, picture to desk, picture to excel, Phrase OCR, PDF to Phrase, PDF to textual content?
Take a look at Nanonets’ pre-trained information extraction AI for financial institution statements, invoices, buyer orders, buy orders, receipts, passports, driver’s licenses & or PDFs!
Utilizing Microsoft Phrase
Before everything, Microsoft Phrase doesn’t have a direct choice to convert an image to textual content.
Nonetheless, utilizing this hack, you may convert a picture to editable Phrase by changing it right into a PDF first.
Changing a easy picture to textual content in Phrase
Let’s take a look on the steps.
I’m taking a picture (Determine A) in PNG format to transform into an editable textual content Phrase doc. You can too apply the identical course of for JPG to Phrase.
Step 1: Open a brand new doc in Microsoft Phrase and Insert the picture.
Steps to comply with:
Proper-click on the picture > Click on Copy (Ctrl/Command + C) > Click on Paste (Ctrl/Command + V) (Determine B)
OR
Go to a New file on Phrase > Open/Insert > Choose the picture you need to convert

Copy the picture in to a brand new Phrase file. (Determine C)
Step 2: Save the Phrase doc as a PDF
Steps to comply with: File > Save as > Rename the file > Select the format as PDF > Select the placement

Save the Phrase doc with the picture as a PDF file. Keep in mind to save lots of by a reputation you may bear in mind in order to find it simply later.

I renamed the doc SaveImageAsPDF and exported it to the desktop.
Phrase will course of the picture in a number of seconds to a minute and save the doc as a PDF in your chosen location. (Determine F)

I double-checked the saved PDF doc on my desktop. (Determine G)

Step 3: Open the saved PDF file in a brand new Phrase doc
Steps to comply with:
Return to Phrase > Search for the beforehand saved PDF file by its title > Open
Phrase will now detect the textual content within the PDF and present it on the Doc. (Determine H)

That is how one can convert a picture into editable textual content utilizing Microsoft Phrase. Now you can tweak the textual content as per your desire.
Changing a posh picture to textual content in Phrase
Now let’s strive the identical exercise with a extra advanced picture. (Determine I)

I adopted the identical steps as above. Right here was the end result:
As you may see that whereas Phrase detected some textual content, the accuracy is extraordinarily low. There are additionally a number of snips of the picture as Phrase was unable to extract textual content immediately, to not point out the formatting points.
Utilizing OCR
Now, let’s strive utilizing OCR on the identical two photographs that we used above.
OCR on a easy picture
I attempted Nanonets‘ on-line Picture to Textual content converter that makes use of an in-built OCR engine. (Determine 1).

I downloaded the textual content in a TXT file and opened it in a brand new Phrase file. And this was the end result. (Determine 2)

Fairly neat and correct, proper?
💡
OCR on a posh picture
Now, time for the real-test.
I attempted the OCR on the identical receipt we used earlier. It has advanced formatting with logos, some handwritten textual content, and totally different layouts.

The OCR captured all of the textual content exactly inside a number of seconds. As soon as I downloaded the textual content, I opened it in a Phrase doc; and this was the ultimate output:
I used to be shocked to see that the OCR detected the handwritten textual content and was in a position to populate totally different line gadgets within the Phrase file pretty precisely.
Microsoft Phrase vs OCR
As you noticed above, whereas it was straightforward to transform a easy picture to textual content utilizing Phrase, the identical course of didn’t work nicely on a posh picture.
Word that Microsoft Phrase doesn’t use OCR, so it typically provides inaccurate outcomes if you happen to attempt to convert advanced photos or photographs into editable textual content paperwork. You additionally have to spend a big period of time to manually edit the formatting earlier than you should utilize the textual content for additional computation or evaluation.
Whilst you do not want further software program or an web connection to transform photos on Phrase immediately, you want a paid Microsoft subscription. The Learn-only Microsoft model doesn’t assist you to use options like Save, Open, and so on.
In contrast to Microsoft Phrase, Nanonets OCR works with close to 98%+ accuracy on each easy and complicated photographs. It is extra dependable and processes PDFs in a number of seconds or minutes.
Tips on how to convert advanced photographs into editable Phrase recordsdata
As we noticed above, changing a picture to correct editable textual content in Phrase is extraordinarily tough.
Whereas many image-to-word or image-to-text converter instruments can be found on-line, they work finest solely on a number of easy photographs. Most lack the highly effective OCR and deep studying capabilities to convert a whole bunch of advanced photographs.
That is the place AI-enabled OCR software program involves the rescue.
Whereas a number of easy photographs might be transformed to editable textual content paperwork by utilizing Phrase or on-line converter instruments, the challenges come up in changing:
Whereas Microsoft Phrase will not have the ability to precisely you exchange these photographs to textual content, Nanonets OCR makes use of deep studying capabilities to extract textual content from them.
All it’s a must to do is:
- Join on Nanonets.
- Select from both a zero coaching AI mannequin or one of many pre-built AI fashions relying on the kind of picture.
- Add all of your photographs and watch for Nanonets to extract textual content from them.
- Open the transformed picture to confirm the transformed textual content and line gadgets.
- Make customizations as per your wants.
- Export the info in your most popular format (Phrase, TXT, CSV, XML, XLSX)
Last phrase
We discovered how one can convert photographs into editable textual content on Phrase. Whereas it’s not a single-step course of, changing photographs into textual content is far simpler utilizing Phrase than getting into it manually utilizing Copy + Paste.
Nonetheless, whereas changing photographs into editable textual content is feasible in Phrase, the accuracy is low. The post-processing requires important guide effort. Utilizing OCR and Deep Studying, extracting textual content precisely from photographs is way more correct, environment friendly, and dependable.