How to search for text in a PDF
Search finds every place a word, name or number appears in the document, which is useful before redacting, highlighting or editing it. It works on any page that has real text.
Step by step
Open search
Click the search icon in the top bar or press Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac).
Type what you are looking for
Type a word, name or number. The editor finds matches as you type.
Jump between matches
Press Enter for the next match and Shift+Enter for the previous one.
Act on the result
Select the found text to highlight, redact or copy it with the mini toolbar.
Tips
- Searching for an account number or name before redaction helps make sure you do not miss any occurrence.
- If search finds nothing on a scanned document, run OCR first.
Frequently asked questions
Why does search find nothing?
The document is probably scanned, so the text is an image. Run OCR (O) to make it searchable.
How do I go back to a previous match?
Press Shift+Enter in the search box to move to the previous match.
Can I search and replace?
There is no automatic replace. Use Edit text (E) to change each line you found.
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