How to Extract Text With Snipping Tool in Windows 11

Previously, you could extract texts from images using the PowerToys app. But now, the in-built Snipping Tool will let you copy text from screenshots or photos. So, this post will show you how to use the Snipping Tool to extract text from photos or screenshots in Windows 11.

What’s the Text Actions Feature in the Snipping Tool?

As of now, the Snipping Tool allows you to do more than just capture and mark up screenshots. You can even use it to record your screen.

But there’s something new in the latest version of the Snipping Tool, particularly in the Microsoft Insider Dev and Canary channels – it’s called the “Text Action” feature. This nifty addition brings Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to your screenshots, which means you can now scan the text within your captured images.

With this feature, you have the option to either copy a selected portion of the recognized text or copy all the text from the screenshot before saving it. Additionally, you can also censor sensitive text and then copy the remaining part of the text from the image. It’s a handy tool for working with text in your screenshots.

How to Extract Text from Screenshots/Photos via Snipping Tool

This is going to come in handy! Microsoft is including a text recognition feature (OCR) in the Windows 11 Snipping Tool. With this new addition, you’ll be able to easily copy text from your screenshots and paste it into word processing programs, making tasks like this a breeze.

Here’s how to copy texts from an image using the Windows 11 Snipping Tool features:

1. Open the photo that contains text with Snipping Tools. To do so: right-click on the photo > Open with > Snipping Tool.

Open with > Snipping Tool

2. Once the photo opens, click on the Text actions button at the top.

Text actions

3. This feature will do the work of spotting all the text in your screenshot and making it stand out. If you want to choose a specific word or sentence from the screenshot, just click and drag your mouse to select it.

4. After that click on Copy all text button.

Copy all text

5. Finally, you can open any text document app like Microsoft Word and paste the copied texts.

You Can Also Ensure that Private Information Stays Private

This tool also lets you tweak the text, like getting rid of any confidential details before you paste it somewhere else or share it with others. If you want to quickly hide things like email addresses and phone numbers, just click on “Quick redact” in the toolbar, and it’ll do it for you automatically. Or, if you prefer to select the text you want to conceal, simply right-click and choose “Redact text” from the menu that pops up.

Quick redact

That’s all. These were the whole process to extract text from an image or screenshot using the built-in Windows 11 Snipping Tool feature. 

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