Bangla OCR: How to Convert Bangla Text in Images to Editable Text

The easiest free ways to convert Bangla text in an image to editable text are Google Lens (on Android, or in the Google app on iPhone: point at the text or open a photo, tap Text, then Copy) and Google Drive (upload the image, right-click, Open with Google Docs, and Drive’s OCR adds the recognised text below the image). Both handle printed Bangla reasonably well. Accuracy drops with handwriting, old or decorative fonts, and complex conjunct letters (juktakkhor), so always proofread, and note that the result is Unicode Bangla, not Bijoy.

The 40-page notice nobody wanted to type

Imagine a school office in Rangpur that receives a printed government circular in Bangla and needs to put parts of it into a Word document for teachers. The usual solution is for someone to type it all out, letter by letter, juktakkhor by juktakkhor, for an entire afternoon.

With OCR, the office assistant photographs each page, lets Google do the recognition, and spends that afternoon proofreading instead of typing. It is not perfect, but it is many times faster.

Method 1: Google Lens (phone)

1. Open Google LensFrom the Google app, Google Photos (Lens button) or your camera on many Android phones.
2. Point or open a photoPoint at the page or choose a photo from your gallery.
3. Tap TextLens highlights the recognised text.
4. Select and copySelect all or part of the text and tap Copy. Paste it into WhatsApp, Docs, Word or anywhere.
5. Optional: translateTap Translate to see the text in English.

Method 2: Google Drive and Docs (computer or phone)

1. Upload the imageUpload a JPG, PNG or PDF to Google Drive.
2. Open with Google DocsRight-click the file, choose Open with, then Google Docs.
3. Find the textA new document opens with the image at the top and the recognised text underneath.
4. Clean upDelete the image, fix errors and format the text.

Getting better Bangla OCR results

• Photograph straight onwith even daylight and no shadows across the page.
• Crop each pagewith the Image Cropper so only text remains.
• Higher resolutionhelps conjunct letters; do not compress images heavily before OCR.
• One column at a timefor newspapers and multi-column notices.
• Printed fontsare far easier than handwriting or stylised headings.

Common Bangla OCR errors to check

Unicode vs Bijoy

OCR tools output standard Unicode Bangla, which displays correctly on phones, websites and modern documents. Some offices still use Bijoy fonts (such as SutonnyMJ) that use a different encoding. If you need to paste the OCR text into a Bijoy-based document, use a Unicode to Bijoy converter first, otherwise the text will appear as gibberish.

English text instead?

For English text in photos and scans, our free Image to Text tool runs in your browser and downloads Word or text files. See also how to copy text from a screenshot and 10 OCR accuracy tips.

Sources

• Google Drive Help: Convert PDF and photo files to text
• Google Lens

Frequently asked questions