How to Extract Text from Images Using OCR

Renamed in Helperbird 2026.7.28: Extract text (OCR) is now called the Screenshot Reader. It now reads equations automatically alongside ordinary text in the same capture, so there is no separate maths mode to switch on, and each capture goes to a single destination you choose rather than to several at once.

What is the Screenshot Reader?

Extract Text uses OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to read text from images. This means you can take text that is stuck inside a picture and turn it into real text that you can copy, edit, read aloud, or translate.

Listen opens Helperbird's text to speech, so the voice, speed and other reading settings are whatever you have chosen there. See how to use text to speech.

This is useful for text in screenshots, infographics, scanned documents, or any image where you cannot select the text normally.

Who is This For?

This feature is helpful for:

• People who need to copy text from images or screenshots
• Anyone who wants to listen to text that is in an image
• Students who need to work with text from infographics
• People who want to translate text in images
• Anyone who encounters inaccessible text in pictures

Step 1: Open Helperbird

Click the Helperbird icon in your browser toolbar. It looks like a small owl and is usually in the top-right corner of your browser.

This will open the Helperbird menu.

Step 2: Find the Screenshot Reader

Scroll down to the bottom of the Helperbird menu. You will see a section called All Features.

Click the arrow next to All Features to expand it. Look through the list until you see Screenshot Reader, then click Open on that row.

If you are looking for the old name, searching the popup for "extract text" or "ocr" still finds it.

A panel will appear with several options you can configure before capturing text.

Step 3: Configure Options

Before extracting text, choose what happens with the extracted text:

• Explain mode (under Settings) - Turn this on to get a plain-language explanation of what you capture instead of the exact text. Great for confusing paragraphs, charts, diagrams, tables, and formulas. The explanation appears in a card on the page with buttons to listen, copy, or close it. This is a beta feature.

• Immersive Reader - Open the extracted text in Immersive Reader for easier reading.

• Translate - Automatically translate the extracted text to your chosen language.

• Listen - Have the extracted text read aloud. This opens Helperbird's text to speech, so it uses the voice and speed you have chosen there.

• Save as Note - Save the extracted text as a sticky note on the page.

• Copy to clipboard - Copy the extracted text to your clipboard automatically. This is on by default.

After choosing your options, click the Start button.

Step 4: Select the Area

After clicking Start, your cursor will change to a crosshair.

Click and drag to draw a rectangle around the area of the screen that contains the text you want to extract.

Helperbird will show "Extracting text..." while it processes the image.

Step 5: Use the Extracted Text

Once the text is extracted:

• If you left Copy to clipboard turned on, the text is copied to your clipboard so you can paste it anywhere
• If you turned on Explain mode, a card appears with a plain-language explanation
• If you turned on Immersive Reader, the text opens there
• If you turned on Listen, the text is read aloud
• If you turned on Translate, the text is translated
• If you turned on Save as Note, a sticky note appears with the text

Tips

• For best results, make sure the text in the image is clear and readable. Very small, blurry, or handwritten text may not be recognized accurately.
• Use Explain mode for charts, diagrams, and formulas. It gives you a plain-English breakdown instead of raw text.
• You can also access Extract Text from inside the PDF Reader via the Quick Tools menu.

Using Screenshot Reader in the PDF Reader

Screenshot Reader is also built into Helperbird's PDF Reader, so you do not have to leave your document to use it.

Open your PDF, then click the round button with the dots grid icon in the toolbar. It is the last button in the group, and it is labelled More options.

Choose Screenshot Reader from the menu and you can capture a region of the page and pull the text out of it.

It behaves exactly the same way there as it does on a website, and it uses the same settings, so anything you have chosen here carries over. See how to use the Tools menu in the PDF Reader.

Guides for Each Part

• Use Explain mode to get a plain-language explanation instead of the raw text.
• How equations are handled - automatically, with no mode to choose.

Video Tutorial

Need Additional Help?

If you have any questions or run into any issues, please contact the Helperbird support team. You can reach us at Helperbird support. We are happy to help you get the most out of Helperbird.