How to Scan Documents on iPhone

Finding the best printer entirely depends on your needs. Many of the best all-in-one printers allow users to scan documents directly to mobile devices like an iPhone. To help you understand the process, we’ll explain how to scan from a printer to an iPhone below using the Notes app as well as third-party apps.

All-in-one printers handle a wide range of tasks, as it provides the option to print, scan, copy, and more.

For more info on general use, check out our article explaining how to connect a printer with an ethernet cable.

Scanning a Document on Your iPhone

You can easily scan a document using the Notes app that comes pre-installed on your iPhone. Please note that the exact steps may be different for different versions of iOS.

Below is a quick video guide on how to scan a document, or if you prefer, we have a step-by-step guide below the video that you can follow as well.

1. Open the Notes App.
2. Select a note or create a new one.
3. Tap the Camera button.
4. Select “Scan Documents“
5. Position the document to have a clear view.
6. Tap the Shutter button.
   • You can also select “Auto” in the top right corner, and the phone will automatically take a photo when the document is in clear view.
7. Drag the corners to adjust the scan to fit your needs.
8. Select “Keep Scan” if you are happy with the scan.
   • If you don’t like how the scan turned out, you can select “Retake“
9. Select “Save” to add it to your notes, or tap the Shutter button again to take more.

You can also sign a document in the Notes app if the document needs a signature.

1. Open the Notes app.
2. Select the document you need to sign.
3. Tap the Share button
4. Select “Markup“
5. On the Markup menu, tap the Add button (Will look like +)
6. Select “Add Signature“
7. Write your name with your finger in the space provided, or use your Apple Pencil.
8. Adjust the size of the signature by dragging the corners to the appropriate size.
9. Tap Done.

How to Scan on an All-In-One Printer with Your iPhone

If you would prefer a normal scanned image, you can still use your iPhone with your all-in-one printer to scan documents.

The only requirement needed to print from your iPhone is that you download a brand-specific app to create a connection between the phone and the computer.

The following steps explain how to print from a Wi-Fi- network connection.

But if you want to learn more about connecting your phone to your printer, we have another article that shows you how to print from a mobile device without Wi-Fi.

STEP 1 Download a Compatible Print App for Your iPhone

Research which print app is needed to work for your printer brand. For example, a Brother machine will require a different app than a Canon or HP printer.

STEP 2 Connect Printer and Phone

Open up the brand-specific mobile app and see that your printer model appears. You may have to click an “Add Device/Machine” button to open the list of available printers.

STEP 3 Scan the Document

Place the pages in question into your printer’s document scanner.

Then, in the phone app, press the scan icon. The scan will arrive as a separate file on your phone screen; from there, you can save it to the files app.

You can also press the share button to share it to an email.