Choose the scan quality
Scan quality has three levels: Low, Medium and High. Medium is selected when the form appears. The level sets the resolution the pages are drawn at and the blur and noise added, so lower levels give softer, grainier pages.
Scanner effect for PDF
or drop a file anywhere here
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Files other than PDF are converted first. Signing in raises the size limit.
Or start from a blank IRS form
Browse all IRS forms →- You add
- One PDF
- You set
- Scan quality, color and rotation
- You get
- A PDF with a scanned look
A scanner effect restyles a clean, digitally made PDF so that its pages resemble paper that went through a scanner. On this page you add one PDF and set three things: Scan quality, Color and Rotation (degrees). The form opens on Medium quality, Grayscale and a rotation of 0, so you can run it without changing anything. You download one PDF. The effect is a visual treatment only. Nothing is printed, signed or scanned, and the result is not evidence that a paper original exists. When someone asks for a signed and scanned copy, a restyled file does not meet that request, and you should say plainly what the file is.
What can you do with the scanner effect?
Go grayscale or keep color
The Color menu offers Grayscale and Color, and Grayscale is the starting choice. Switch to Color when the document has charts or a logo that should keep their hues.
Add a rotation angle
Rotation (degrees) takes a number from -180 to 180 and starts at 0. Whole numbers are used, and a decimal is cut down to its whole part before the effect runs.
Get one file back
The result is a single PDF, not a folder of page pictures. The pages come back in one document that you can send or archive as usual.
What the scanner effect keeps and what it changes
Stays the same
- Page count, page order and each page's size.
- How the page looks at a glance. Layout, images and text are all still there to read.
- The file on your device. You download a new, scanned-looking copy.
Changes
- Each page is drawn as a picture and saved back as an image page. The engine builds the new PDF from those pictures, so the words become part of the image and cannot be selected or searched.
- Quality sets the resolution the pages are drawn at, and the blur and noise added. Lower levels give softer, grainier pages.
- Grayscale removes color. Color keeps it.
- A small random tilt is added on top of your Rotation value, and a border is placed around each page, so pages do not line up exactly.
- The file size follows the new picture pages, so it can be much larger than the original.
Which settings for which look
| You want | Quality and Color | Note |
|---|---|---|
| A clean copy that still looks scanned | High, Grayscale | Closest to the original page, with light blur and noise. |
| A rough, photocopied look | Low, Grayscale | Draws pages at a lower resolution with more blur and noise. |
| A scan that keeps charts, logos or stamps in color | Medium or High, Color | Grayscale would remove the hues. |
| Pages that look as if they were put in slightly crooked | Any, Rotation 0 | The engine already adds a small random tilt. Set a Rotation value only for a larger one. |
How to apply the scanner effect in 3 steps
Add the clean PDF
Drop the clean PDF on the upload box above, or press Choose file to browse for it.
Set quality, color and rotation
Pick a level in Scan quality, choose Grayscale or Color, and enter an angle in Rotation (degrees) or leave it at 0.
Run the effect and download
Press Run Scanner Effect and wait for the job to finish. Choose Download, then look at the pages at full zoom.
Why use the indox scanner effect?
The effect has three controls and each one is a plain choice: a quality level, grayscale or color, and an angle. Because the form is prefilled, a first try needs no decisions, and later tries can change one setting at a time. One file can be processed without an account. The PDF is uploaded over HTTPS, and on the free tier the upload and the restyled copy are deleted automatically within 24 hours after the job finishes. This page is direct about what the effect is: a look, applied by software to a digital file. The page gives no preview, and the pages come back as pictures, so the text in the result cannot be selected or searched.
- Three scan quality levels
- Grayscale or color output
- Rotation from -180 to 180 degrees
- One effect job without an account
- Free-tier files cleared within 24 hours
What are the limits of the scanner effect?
- Size
- The free tier has a file size limit. Signing in raises it, and paid plans raise it further.
- Formats
- This tool works on PDF files. To change a file's type, use the PDF converter.
- Privacy
- Files are encrypted in transit and processed on indox infrastructure.
- Deletion
- Free-tier files are deleted automatically within 24 hours after the job finishes. Signed-in output stays in your history for your plan's retention period.
Limits worth knowing
- The effect changes appearance only. It does not sign a document, and it is no proof that a page was printed, signed or scanned.
- You cannot preview the effect. Each change of setting means another run and another download.
- Each page is drawn as a picture, so text in the result cannot be selected or searched. Run OCR PDF on the result if you need a text layer.
- All pages get the same three settings. The form has no page range.
- A rotation outside -180 to 180 is refused before the job starts, and a note under the field names the minimum or maximum.
When the result is not what you expected
| What you see | Why | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The text cannot be selected or searched | The pages were turned into pictures | Run OCR PDF on the result to add a text layer back. |
| The file is much bigger than the original | Picture pages take more space than text and vector shapes | Shrink it with Compress PDF. |
| Small print is hard to read | Lower quality draws pages at a lower resolution with more blur | Run the original again at High. |
| Pages look tilted even with Rotation 0 | The engine adds a small random tilt of its own | This is part of the effect. Check each page in the result. |
| The job fails on a large file | Every page is drawn as a picture, which is heavy for a long file | Split it with Split PDF, run the parts, and keep them as separate files. |
What do the free and paid plans add?
Free
- All converters
- Daily credit refresh
- Email support
Basic
- Access to all features
- AI Extract
- Priority conversions
- Email support
Highest priority
Premium
- Everything in Basic
- Highest priority queue
- Larger file limits
- Priority support
Pay-As-You-Go
- No subscription
- Credits never expire
- Opt-in auto-refill
- Access to all features
What else can you do with a PDF?
Who uses a scanner effect?
Designers making mockups
A mockup of a printed form or letter can call for a scanned finish. Run the layout through the effect and place the result in the presentation.
Teachers building practice material
Students who will work with scanned sources can practice on pages that look scanned. Restyle a clean worksheet and hand out both versions.
Developers testing document workflows
An OCR or archiving pipeline needs scan-like samples that hold no real data. Make a clean test PDF, apply the effect and feed the result to the system.
When to use the effect, and when not to
- A design mockup should resemble a scanned letter.
- Training material needs sample pages with a scanned look.
- You are testing how a document system handles scan-like input.
- Newly typed pages should sit beside older scanned pages without standing out.
- You were asked for a signed, scanned original. Print, sign and scan the paper, because this effect is a look and not a signature.
Where can I read more?
Sources
- ScannerEffectController source, v2.14.2Stirling-PDF on GitHub
- ScannerEffectRequest source, v2.14.2Stirling-PDF on GitHub
Facts checked on October 16, 2026
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Scanner effect FAQs
What does the scanner effect do to my PDF?
It restyles the pages so they resemble paper that went through a scanner, using the quality level, color choice and angle you set. You get one PDF back.
What do Low, Medium and High change?
They are the three Scan quality levels, and Medium is selected at the start. The level sets the resolution the pages are drawn at and the blur and noise added, so lower levels give softer, grainier pages.
Should I choose Grayscale or Color?
Grayscale is the starting choice. Pick Color if the pages carry colored charts, photos or a logo that you want to keep in color.
What is the rotation setting for?
Rotation (degrees) passes an angle to the effect. It takes a number from -180 to 180, uses the whole part and begins at 0. To turn pages by a clean quarter turn, use Rotate Pages.
Can I still select text after the effect?
No. Each page is drawn as a picture, so the words become part of the image. OCR PDF adds a searchable text layer back.
Does a scanned look make a document official?
No. The file is still a digital document with a visual effect. Do not present it as a scan of a signed paper original.
Do I need an account to use Scanner Effect?
No account is needed to run the effect on a single file. The tool is marked free.
Are my files kept after the effect runs?
Free-tier uploads and their scanner-effect results are deleted automatically within 24 hours after the job finishes. Download the restyled PDF before that window closes.