Scan a document

Scanning turns paper into a clean, searchable document. Paperwise finds the page edges, straightens and cleans up each page, and reads its text, all on your iPhone.

What it is

A scan is a document made of one or more pages. While you scan, Paperwise:

finds the edges of the page and crops away the table behind it,
cleans up each page with the look you choose (see the filter picker below),
reads the text after you save, so you can search it, copy it and export it.

All of this runs on your iPhone. Nothing about the page leaves it while you scan.

Two cameras

When you tap Scan, Paperwise opens Apple’s document camera if your device has it. It shows the page edges live and can take the picture for you when the page is steady. If Apple’s camera isn’t available, Paperwise opens its own camera instead. Both lead to the same Review screen.

	Apple’s document camera	Paperwise camera
Edges	Shown live while you aim	Found after each photo; you can adjust them
Capture	Automatic or manual	Tap the shutter for each page
Extras	Apple’s own controls	Flash (off, auto, on), From Photos

When to use it

Letters, bills, receipts, contracts, forms, school papers, prescriptions: anything on paper you want to keep and find again. For an ID card or an open book, the dedicated tools give better results: see Scan an ID card and Scan a book.

Step by step

Scan your pages

Tap Scan at the bottom of the Vault (or + → Scan document).
Hold your iPhone over the page.
- In Apple’s camera, wait for the page to be captured (or tap the shutter). Turn to the next page and repeat. Tap Save in Apple’s camera when you’re done.
- In the Paperwise camera, fit the page in view (“Fit the page in view. Paperwise crops it for you.”) and tap the shutter for each page. A small stack in the corner shows how many pages you have. Tap Done.
The Review screen opens with all your pages.

The first time, iOS asks for camera access. If you said no, the camera screen offers Open Settings, or you can use From Photos instead.

Check and fix pages in Review

The title shows how many pages you have (“3 pages”). Swipe between pages. Under them is a strip of thumbnails, and a toolbar acts on the page you’re looking at:

Crop: drag the four corners to the page edges. A magnifier follows your finger. Auto finds the edges again; Full page uses the whole photo. Tap Done.
Rotate: turns the page a quarter turn.
Filter: opens the filter picker (below).
Retake: takes that page again with the camera, in the same place.
Reorder: moves the page you’re looking at (shown with two or more pages; see below).
Delete: removes the page.

To reorder pages, go to the page you want to move and tap Reorder in the toolbar (it’s there when the scan has more than one page). Choose Move earlier, Move to first, Move later or Move to last. As a shortcut, touch and hold a thumbnail for Move earlier, Move later or Delete page. To add pages, tap the + at the end of the thumbnail strip and choose Scan document, Camera or From Photos.

Choose a look with the filter picker

Tap Filter. You see a small preview of the current page in each look:

Auto: Paperwise picks the best look for the page. Recommended.
Original: the photo’s colours, just cropped and straightened.
Magic: bright white paper and crisp text.
Grayscale: shades of grey.
B&W: pure black and white, like a photocopy.
Lighten: brightens a dark photo.

Tap a look to apply it. Turn on Apply to all pages first to use it for every page. Tap Done to close the picker. To change the look new scans start with, go to Account → Scanning → Default look.

Save

Optional: turn on Save to Hidden (just above the toolbar) to put this scan straight into Hidden instead of your vault. See the next section.
Tap Save at the top right.
The document opens. Its title is the date and time (“Scan, 27 Oct 2026, 14:32”). Tap the title to rename it.

Text recognition finishes in the background on your iPhone. In a moment the document is searchable from the Vault’s search, and its text shows under Text.

To leave without saving, tap Cancel and then Discard.

Save straight to Hidden

The Save to Hidden switch sends the scan into Hidden, encrypted as it’s saved. No copy is ever written to your vault first.

If Hidden isn’t set up yet, Paperwise walks you through setting it up, then saves the scan there.
Paperwise asks for Face ID (and your Hidden passcode or pattern, if you have one). If Hidden stays locked, the scan isn’t saved anywhere and stays on the Review screen so you can try again, turn the switch off, or discard it.
Screenshots and screen recording are blocked while you scan for Hidden (best effort).

When you start a scan from inside Hidden, the switch is already on. See Add things to Hidden.

Pick up an unsaved scan

If you leave Paperwise in the middle of a scan, or it’s closed, your pages are kept. Next time you open the Vault, a banner at the top says “You have an unsaved scan. Resume it?” Tap it to go back to Review, then save or discard.

A resumed scan goes into your vault, even if you had started it inside a folder. A scan meant for Hidden is never kept this way: if the app is closed or Hidden locks, it’s dropped.

Free and Pro

Scanning, edge finding, clean-up, every filter, crop, rotate, reorder, text recognition and search are free.

Pro: with Name and sort new scans on (in Account → AI helper), AI gives new scans a proper name and a type, so they land on the right shelf. You’re told once, when you turn it on, that this sends new items to AI.

Privacy

Edge finding, clean-up and text recognition run on your iPhone. Scanning doesn’t send the page anywhere.
While a scan is unsaved, its state is kept in Paperwise’s encrypted database. Its page photos are readable only while Paperwise is open in front of you; when you leave the app they’re encrypted with Paperwise’s key until you save or discard the scan.
Saved documents are encrypted by Paperwise with its own key, kept in this iPhone’s Keychain for this device only. Readable copies exist only while you scan, view, edit or share. When the app lock is on, Face ID guards the app. Save to Hidden adds keys only Face ID, your Hidden passcode or your recovery key open.
Your scan only reaches AI if you’re on Pro, the AI helper is on (it’s off on new installs) and you allow it. Nothing goes to AI until you allow it. Before AI first reads a document we tell you it isn’t fully private. With Pro’s “Name and sort new scans” on, you’re told once for everything you add afterwards.

Tips

Lay the page on a dark, plain surface. Edges are easier to find.
Good, even light beats the flash. Use the flash only when the room is dark.
For a long receipt, use the Paperwise camera and fix the corners with Crop.
Add more pages later from the document: Edit → Add pages. See Edit pages.

What if…

What if a page has a small amber dot?

Paperwise couldn’t clean up that page. Your photo is kept as it is. Tap the page’s message to try again, or use Retake.

What if Paperwise says it wasn’t sure where the page edges are?

Tap Crop and drag the corners to the page edges, or tap Auto to try again.

What if Paperwise opens its own camera instead of Apple’s?

Apple’s document camera isn’t available on this device, or it couldn’t start. The Paperwise camera does the same job; you tap the shutter for each page.

What if I want the Paperwise camera even though Apple’s opens?

Scan the first page with Apple’s camera, then in Review tap + at the end of the thumbnails and choose Camera.

What if my scan doesn’t show on a shelf?

On the Free plan, a new scan isn’t given a type, so it has no shelf. Find it in All items, or file it in a folder. See All items and filters.

What if the text is wrong or missing?

See Scanning and text problems.