Best Android Free Scanner Apps 2020

You don’t have to run after an Internet Cafe every single time you get to scan something or invest your hard-earned money on buying a document scanner. You can literally use your android Smartphone to comfortably scan all your documents at home for absolutely free. Yes, you heard me right! The camera on your smartphone can outperform most typical desktop scanners in the market.

There are many applications available for your Android Smartphone which does the task. Some of which are feature-rich while the rest are crappy pieces of software. Well, the real challenge is to pick the right fit for all your mobile scanning needs. Worry not! To help you make the best scanner out of your Smartphone, we have curated the Best Android Scanner Applications list here

Top Free Android Scanner Apps 2020

Please do note that each application that we have cited here is personally tested putting it through a series of tests to come up with an opinion. Make sure to read to the end of the post to decide which application best suits your needs. Also, do check for an exclusive expert tip at the end of the post.

#1.Adobe Scan: PDF and Business Card Scanner with OCR

When we think of a document, the first thing that comes to our mind is Adobe. Adobe has really been innovative in producing a bunch of exceptional software tools across various domains. Adobe pdf reader, for instance, is one such masterpiece that is being used by millions and millions of people across the globe. With the same kind of innovation, Adobe has come with a nifty piece of android software called the Adobe Scan which has a whooping download of over 10 Million on the play store.

The Adobe Scan android application is packed with an individual preset for a different document form. Be it a whiteboard, business card, form or a plain document, Adobe has it all. With the preset, you don’t have to make manual adjustments to your scans. The app does it all for you provided you let the app know about the type of document that you are going to scan. Cool! Isn’t it? The game doesn’t end here.

It is equipped with Optical Scanning Recognition (OCR) feature which lets you detect and extract the text from your scans. It comes handy while scanning documents like business cards that contain important data. Another cool feature is that the scans can be directly saved to Adobe’s cloud storage and can be accessed from anywhere in the world.

Final Word

Not to brag but the Adobe Scan is a one-stop solution for all your scanning needs. Apart from the above-mentioned features, there are tones of other cool features. Of which, erasing elements from your scanned document is something I love the most.

#2. Microsoft Office Lens – PDF Scanner

I don’t think I need to introduce you to the Microsoft eco-system as there are many products in the market that speaks volumes about it. Microsoft has contributed a lot to the documentation industry with its revolutionary Office suite which is still the best set of applications for creating and editing documents online.

Even before Android reaching the milestone of the most used operating system in the world, Microsoft has expanded its wings to Android and developed a whole bunch of tools for the android. Out of which, Microsoft Office Lens turned out to be the most adored android scanning application with over 10 Million download count on the Play Store.

It offers pretty much everything a typical user looks for in a portable document scanner application. Like the Adobe Scan, the Office Lens has also got a whole bunch of presets for different forms of documents. It also offers various cloud storage options like the OneNote and the One Drive. With the support for OCR, scanning and extracting information from various document types is now a cakewalk.

Final Word

With a sleek user interface, adjustable scanning resolutions and document sizes, this scanning app is a totally reliable option. The best thing about it is the fact that it is offered for free. If you are looking for an app to fulfill your scanning needs, give this a shot.

#3. Cam Scanner – Scanner to scan PDF

I bet, each one of us has already heard the name Cam Scanner once in our digital journey so far. Cam Scanner is an age-old application that has been on the Play Store right from the start of the android era. Being a senior player in the industry, it has evolved through a lot of challenges.

Installed on over 380 million devices in over 200 countries around the world and featured in many digital magazines. Enough of bragging! Let us understand its technicalities. The application employs a special image cropping algorithm for precisely detect and crop the scanned images. It also boasts its OCR feature to read and extract text from the scanned documents. However, you need to have a premium subscription to the application to access the OCR feature.

Scanning, exporting and printing is made easy. The sync feature enables users to access the documents easily from different platforms. Documents can be protected with passwords to secure it from unauthorized access while sharing them on public platforms.

Final Word

Cam Scanner is in the industry for so long, making it a reliable option. It has got a bunch of exclusive features like digital signature and digital password protection for scanned documents which most other android scanner apps don’t provide. However, to access most of these features, you will have to purchase a premium subscription of the application. It is for the user interest to decide if you kind of need those features

#4. Fast Scanner: Free PDF Scan

With over 10 million android users, Fast Scanner is one of the most used android scanning applications on the Play store. As the name says, it is fast and super easy to scan a document. Just open the application and point to a document to be scanned, ta-da! The scanned documents can be exported to an image or pdf format.

There is an option included for uploading the scanned documents to third-party cloud storage like Google Drive or OneDrive.

Final Word

This android scanner application is pretty much straight forward. It does what it says. There are no complex algorithms involved. It scans your documents at a decent quality. You will reserve the ability of manually adjusting your scans. If you are a rare user or you own a phone with a lower RAM, this should work like a charm for you.

#5. Clear Scan: Free Document Scanner App, PDF Scanning

Clear Scan is yet another decent scanner application on the Play Store with over 5 million installs. What makes this scanner noteworthy is its ability to scan multiple documents and exporting options. In spite of being lighter and simple, it is very productive

It also offers OCR feature for easier extraction of text from scanned documents. The filters, editing ability, manual page sizes, backing up and restore of app data are few of the other highlights about the app. All and all, a decent application with a minimalistic user interface.

Final Word

The Clear Scan android scanner app is a simple and innovative piece of work that just does the job right. If you are a decent user who only scans something once in a while, this could be the cherry on your cake.

#6. Scanbot – PDF Document Scanner

I’m kind of impressed with the design and user interface of Scanbot has. It is a simple yet effective program on the Play Store with over 1 million downloads and binds a pretty decent user rating and feedback

Apart from the basic features that most scanners offer in the lineup, Scanbot is a step ahead by including features like QR Code scanning and Bar Code scanning. It also supports various cloud services, from the most common ones to not well-known services

Final Word

Scanbot is pretty decent both in terms and performance and design and is one of the best scanner apps for android. The app itself is not so bulky, it feels lighter and ran smoother even on the phones with lower configurations. Give it a try if you are in search of a decent application that does the job.

#7. vFlat – Your mobile book scanner

Yet another mobile scanner with a minimalistic design. vFlat makes your scanning super easy. As the name suggests, it is intended for scanning large volumes of papers such as books. From my first impression using this application, I felt it is easy to use and faster in scanning but the scanning and processing quality could have been better.

It is evolving with every update. The developers of this application are trying to make it more interactive and productive. However, give this application a try. You might possibly like it.

Final word

With a constant effort being put, this application is evolving to be the best. It does the basic scanning work right. The best thing about the application is its ability to organize the scanned documents. Give this a try, chances are that you like it.

[Also Read: Best Negative Scanner 2020 ]

Expert Tip 1

Be it bloatware or user-intended, most of us have the Google Drive application installed on our phones. Did you know that google drive can be used to scan your documents?

Yes! You can use the Google Drive application to scan your documents in the times when you need to quickly scan something.

To scan using Google Drive Application, >Open Google Drive and Click on the + symbol at the bottom of the screen >You should find a Scan option from the bunch of options. Click on it. Ta-da! You’re good to go.

Expert Tip 2

You can use PhotoScan by Google Photos which is again a minimal application from Google that lets you scan your old photos or even your ID cards without losing their quality.

[Also Read: Best Receipt Scanner 2020 ]

Frequently Asked Questions