How and Where to Find Scanned Documents on Mac

Almost every user needs to scan documents and save them on the computer at some point in time. Scanning a document is easy; the only prerequisite is that you know how to do it the right way. Even if you do not have a scanner, you can use your smartphone or computer to scan the documents.

After scanning a document, users often wonder where to find scanned documents on Mac. The location of the scanned files varies based on the method you have used to scan them. The article is your guide to finding scanned documents or images on your Mac without any hassle.

Table of Contents

How to Scan Documents or Images on Mac?

Scanning any image or document is not difficult on macOS. You may not require any special software to scan an image if you have a scanner or a printer with a scanner. Open your scanner before starting the scanning process.

Connect the scanner to your Mac, plug it in, and turn it on. Select the Apple menu and System Preferences. Tap Printers & Scanners and choose your scanner. Now click Open Scanner. Last, follow the scanning instructions.

Save Scanned Document as PDF

After scanning a document on your iPhone, you can store it as a PDF on your Mac. For this, open the required document and then select File. Now, click the Print option. Tap on the PDF pop-up menu and select Save as PDF.

Select a name and a particular location for your PDF file. Tap Security Options to protect the scanned document with a strong password. Compressing PDF files is recommended to save storage space on your Mac. You can learn how to compress PDF files to save even more storage on your device.

Use iPhone as a Scanner on Mac

You can use your iPhone as a scanner for scanning documents and images. Control the iPhone’s scanner from your Mac using Camera Continuity. Open a compatible app on your Mac. Right-click on a document and select Import from iPhone or iPad, and then Scan Documents.

If you can’t see Import from iPhone or iPad, select Scan Documents. Align the position of the document on your phone screen. When you see the image on your phone screen, click the preview image. Make adjustments and hit Done. Click Save and send it on your Mac.

By default, the scanned files or documents are saved automatically in Mac’s Pictures folder. You can find this location as user-specified in the ‘Save in’ area of the Save Settings option. To access these settings, go to Finder and choose Applications from Go Menu.

Let’s now discuss how to find scanned documents on the Mac computer.

Search in the Saved Location

While scanning a document, image, or another file on Mac, you will be asked to choose the storage folder. Make sure to remember the location you choose to store the file. After this, simply access the location you have saved the scanned document.

As mentioned earlier, by default, scanned documents are available in the pictures folder. So, go to Finder, select Go, and click on Home. Find the pictures folder in Finder when the Home window appears.

Find Scanned Document on Mac

If you have added a scanned document from your iPad or iPhone to Notes, you can find it on your Mac easily and quickly. Open Notes and click View, then Show Attachments Browser from the menu bar. Or you can tap the Attachments button in the Notes toolbar.

Now, choose Scans and then find and click the scan to open it in the editing window. Alternatively, right-click and select Show in Note, and then tap Open Attachment or Quick Look Attachment.

Use Finder or Spotlight

To know where to find scanned documents on Mac, use Finder by clicking the blue smiley face. Click All My Files on the left of the Finder window. Now, enter your search criteria, such as file name or extension.

You can also use Spotlight to find the scanned documents. For this, click Magnifying Glass on the upper right side of the menu bar. Then, mention your search criteria. You can search scanned files ending with .jpeg, .pages, and .pdf.

Edit Scanned Document on Mac

Notes have several editing tools for scanned documents on Mac. For rotating a scan, hit Rotate in the toolbar. To crop a scan, tap on the Crop button and drag the corners to enclose the document section you want to keep. Then, click the Done button.

However, scans are named Scanned Documents by default. You can rename them by selecting the document and clicking Edit. Next, select Rename Attachment, add a name, and tap Save.

The Conclusion

So, you can see finding scanned documents is simpler on Mac using different methods. Hence, if you have accidentally deleted scanned images or files, you can go to the Pictures folder.

If you don’t find it there, access the saved location of that document or use Finder or Spotlight. You can also use some reliable recovery software to find and recover the lost scanned documents on your Mac hard drive.