# How do I find text in an image? — DocFind Last reviewed: October 1, 2026. HTML version: https://docfindapp.com/answers/find-text-in-image **Two different jobs hide in this question. To find which picture contains a word, type the word into the search box of Google Photos or Apple's Photos app; both search text inside photos. To get the words out of one picture, use Google Lens or Apple's Live Text and copy them.** Here is what each vendor documents, including the switch that makes Google Photos match text exactly. ## Find the photo that contains a word: Google Photos

Open Google Photos, tap Search (or Ask, if you have opted in to Ask Photos) and type. The detail that makes this work for text is the quotation marks: Google says to "Use quotation marks if you want to find exact text matches in filenames, camera models, captions, or text within photos", and that "Without quotation marks, you’ll get a wider range of results not limited to text." So searching `"invoice 4471"` with the quotes is the way to find a photographed receipt by its number. Google's own example of a good classic search is "A photo of a pet’s vet invoice by the vet clinic’s name." It also notes that "Some features aren't available in all geographic regions, all domains, or all account types" ([*Search by people, things & places in your photos — Google Photos Help*](https://support.google.com/photos/answer/15235862?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid), read 1 October 2026).

## Find the photo that contains a word: iPhone Photos

In Apple's Photos app, tap the search button in the bottom-right corner and type. Apple's list of things you can search for includes "Text (an email address or phone number, for example)", alongside dates, places and people. You can then sort the results by date added or date captured, or filter them ([*Search for photos and videos on iPhone*](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/search-for-photos-and-videos-iph392d77d5f/ios), read 1 October 2026). Apple's page does not say how much of an image's text is searchable, or whether it covers every language, so a miss does not prove the word is absent.

## Copy the text out of one picture: Google Lens

In Google Photos on Android, open the photo and "At the top, tap More > Google Lens." Lens offers actions based on what it sees, and Google's tip for text is simple: "To copy text, tap and select the words you'd like to copy." Lens can also translate, and Google says it "can translate text into all Google Translate languages." One privacy note from the same page: Lens activity can be saved to your Google Account; "If you don't want your Google Lens activity saved to your Google Account, turn off Web & App Activity" ([*Get info about your photos & surroundings — Google Photos Help*](https://support.google.com/photos/answer/7539151?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid), read 1 October 2026).

## Copy the text out of one picture: Live Text on iPhone

Apple says "Live Text recognizes text within your photos, videos, and images you find online", and that you can use it "in Safari, Photos, Camera, Quick Look, and more." Open the photo, tap the Live Text button, then touch and hold the text and drag the grab points; the options include Copy Text, Select All, Translate and Search the web. Apple's caveat: "Live Text isn’t available in all regions or languages" ([*Interact with content in a photo or video on iPhone*](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/interact-text-subjects-photos-iph37fdd714b/ios), read 1 October 2026). For using the camera directly, and for scanning a page into a PDF, see [OCR on iPhone](https://docfindapp.com/answers/ocr-on-iphone).

## Our advice: check the result before trusting it

None of these pages gives an accuracy figure. Text recognition is guessing at shapes, and a guess can be wrong without telling you: a 1 read as an l, a smudged digit dropped. For a phone number or an account number you are about to use, compare the copied text with the picture before you rely on it. [What OCR is doing under the hood](https://docfindapp.com/answers/what-is-ocr) explains why.

## Where DocFind fits

Photo libraries are good at finding pictures. When the pictures are pages of documents that you keep as PDFs — scanned contracts, manuals, statements — [DocFind](https://docfindapp.com/) is built for that side: search scanned PDFs too — DocFind reads them on your device, then searches them like any other document. It searches PDFs only, not JPG or PNG photos, so a picture has to be [saved as a PDF](https://docfindapp.com/answers/make-a-photo-pdf-on-android) first. On Android it reads printed Latin-script text only, and on both platforms it is made for print rather than handwriting.

Related: [How do I OCR on iPhone?](https://docfindapp.com/answers/ocr-on-iphone) · [What is OCR?](https://docfindapp.com/answers/what-is-ocr) · [Turn a photo into a PDF on Android](https://docfindapp.com/answers/make-a-photo-pdf-on-android) · [Is there an OCR app?](https://docfindapp.com/answers/is-there-an-ocr-app)