Kempt
In short
You don’t need a scanner: with an iPhone nearby, Control-click in a Finder folder and choose Import from iPhone › Scan Documents. The cropped PDF lands in that folder. With a scanner, use Image Capture. Kempt then reads each scan with on-device OCR, names it from what it says and makes its text searchable.
Without any app
Scan with your iPhone (Continuity Camera)
In Finder, Control-click inside a folder, choose Import from iPhone › Scan Documents, and photograph the pages. The Mac receives a cropped, straightened PDF.
Scan straight into a document
In Preview, choose File › Import from iPhone › Scan Documents. In Pages or Notes, Control-click where the scan should go.
Use a scanner with Image Capture
Open Image Capture, pick the scanner, choose PDF, pick the destination folder at the bottom, and scan.
Make the text usable
In Preview, Live Text lets you select and copy the words of a scan. Rename the file before you forget what it was.
With Kempt
Named the moment it lands
Kempt reads the date, sender and type on the page and names the scan: “2026-09 Electricity bill.pdf”.
Searchable like any document
Every scan is read with on-device OCR, so Ask finds it by what it says, with the page cited.
Straight into a dossier
A scanned ID or payslip fills the right line of your rental or visa dossier.
Questions people ask
Can I scan documents with a MacBook Air without a scanner?
Yes, with an iPhone or iPad nearby: Continuity Camera turns it into a document scanner for your Mac, for free.
Can I scan with the MacBook’s built-in camera?
It isn’t made for document scans. Use an iPhone with Continuity Camera, which crops and straightens pages automatically.
Can I search the text of a scanned PDF on Mac?
Preview’s Live Text lets you select it. Kempt reads every scan with on-device OCR so you can search all of them at once.