How to scan documents on Android with tools already on your phone

Which scanner your phone has and where it saves

The main difference between Android's built-in scanners is where the finished file ends up.

If you want a PDF stored on the phone itself, use Files by Google. If you want the scan backed up and available on your computer as well, use Drive.

Google's Pixel help and Samsung's help don't say what file type their camera scanners produce or whether one file can hold several pages, and Google doesn't say where the Pixel's Save option puts the file. So for several pages in one PDF, Drive or Files by Google is the documented route.

Google Lens isn't on the list on purpose. Google's Lens help covers copying and translating text and saving details from things like business cards, but it doesn't describe saving a page as a document. Lens is useful for copying a reference number out of a letter. On a Pixel, though, the camera's own "Scan document" prompt is what turns a page into a file, and that's covered below.

How to scan with Google Drive

These steps follow Google's Drive help for Android:

1. Open the Google Drive app and tap Camera at the bottom right.
2. Point the camera at the page. A blue line outlines the document and shows where the picture will be cropped.
3. Take the photo. You can switch between Auto and Manual capture.
4. Tidy the page. Crop & Rotate adjusts the edges, Filter changes the colours or makes the page greyscale, and Clean removes stains and fingers.
5. Tap Add for each further page. Retake and Delete fix a bad shot.
6. Tap Done, type a file name or pick a suggested one, and choose .pdf.
7. Tap Location to choose a Drive folder, then tap Save.

If there's no Camera button at the bottom right, try Plus and then Scan. Google's Pixel help lists both routes into the Drive scanner, while the Drive help mentions only Camera. The Pixel help also describes a shorter ending to the scan, without the file name, format and Location steps above, so you may see either.

If you scan often, add the Drive scan widget. Touch and hold it in your phone's widget list, drag it onto your home screen and pick the folder it should save to. The widget then shows that folder's name and saves scans there.

How to get a Drive scan onto your phone as a PDF

A Drive scan is saved to your Google Drive, so you won't find it in your phone's file app until you download it. This gives you a PDF only if you chose .pdf when saving the scan. To put a copy on the phone:

1. In the Drive app, next to the file's name, tap More and then Download (Google's download help).
2. If there's no Download option, check whether Data Saver is on in your network settings. Google says Download isn't available while it's on.
3. Open your phone's Files app to find the PDF. Some manufacturers use a different file app instead (Android help). To send the PDF, touch and hold it and tap Share.

How to scan with Files by Google

Files by Google works much like Drive's scanner but saves to the phone:

1. Open Files by Google and tap Scan at the bottom right.
2. Photograph the page, using Crop and rotate, Filter and Clean as needed, and tap Add for more pages.
3. Tap Done. The scan is saved as a PDF automatically.

To find it later, tap Documents and then Scanned, or look under Recents on the app's home screen. On the phone's storage, it's in a folder called Scanned inside Downloads. If it still doesn't turn up, type "pdf" into the app's search bar.

How to scan with the Pixel camera

Open the Camera app, point it at the page and tap the Scan document prompt when it appears. Tap Clean, then Apply, to tidy the page if needed, then tap Done and choose Save, Download or Share (Google's Pixel help).

How to scan with a Samsung Galaxy camera

On a Galaxy S26, check the scanner is switched on. Open Camera, tap the Menu button, go to Settings, then Scanning, and turn on Document scan (Samsung's instructions, written for Australian models). On other Galaxy models, look for scanning options in Camera settings.

Then line the camera up with the page, tap Scan when it appears, and tap Save, or Retake if the shot is poor. Samsung's US support says the scanner detects the edges, straightens the page and can remove fingers and folded corners, and Save puts the scan in the Gallery app.

If you need a PDF, Samsung's own route goes through Samsung Notes:

1. In Samsung Notes, tap the pencil (new note) icon, then Attach, Image and Gallery. Select the scan and tap Done (Samsung's scanning help).
2. Tap More options (three dots), then Save as file and PDF file. Browse to a folder, tap Done, rename the file if you want, then tap Save (Samsung Notes help).

When a general scan isn't enough

Upload forms for IDs and passports often have their own layout and file rules, so follow the guides on scanning an ID card with front and back on one page and scanning a passport so upload forms accept it. If someone you're helping has an iPhone, Notes or Files does the same job there, and the steps are in how to scan documents on iPhone. If an upload form rejects your PDF because it's too big, the next step is to compress the PDF.