How to Instantly Copy Text from a Screenshot | An App That Skips the Retyping
Have you ever had to retype an address, phone number, or URL that appeared in a screenshot of a meeting document or webpage, purely by hand? This article explains how to copy text captured in a screenshot without typing it in yourself.
Why Screenshot Text Usually Has to Be Retyped
A screenshot is saved purely as an image, so you can't copy the text within it directly. If you want to note down an address, URL, or meeting passcode, you have to retype it while looking at the screen — and the longer the text or the more unfamiliar the mix of letters and numbers, the easier it is to make a mistake.
Ways to Copy Text Without Retyping It
1. Use your camera app's text recognition each time
Your phone's camera app or Google Lens can recognize text within an image, but every time you take a screenshot you have to open a separate app and load the image into it, which is a hassle.
2. Transfer it to a computer and process it with OCR software
Accuracy is high, but transferring the image to a computer takes effort, and it's not something you can do right away while out and about.
3. Use an app that automatically detects screenshots
The least effort comes from an app that automatically completes text recognition (OCR) the instant you take a screenshot. Everything happens right on your phone, with no need to switch to another app.
Steps to Copy Text with Readshot
- Take a screenshot as you normally would
- Text recognition runs automatically the instant you take it, and the result appears in a pop-up
- Drag to select just the part you want to copy (if you don't select a range, the entire text is copied)
- If the text contains a URL, tapping it opens your browser directly
Since there's no need to open an app or load an image at all, copying is done just seconds after you take the screenshot.
What Else Readshot Can Do
Beyond copying text, Readshot also offers a history feature that lets you look back through the recognition results of past screenshots in a list, a bulk cleanup that deletes unneeded history entries along with the screenshot images themselves, and a memo feature where you can freely write or paste in copied text to save. Whatever you need with screenshots — "I want to read the text" or "I want to organize them" — this one app has you covered.
Readshot
A screenshot management app with built-in OCR that automatically reads text the moment you take a screenshot. Free, with English support.
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