An error message you cannot select, a table in a scanned PDF, a number in a video call screenshot — retyping it wastes time and invites mistakes. Windows can read text straight from the screen.
Option 1: Snipping Tool text actions (Windows 11)
- Press Win+Shift+S and select the area.
- Click the notification to open the snip in Snipping Tool.
- Click Text actions — the text is recognised; choose Copy all text or select just part of it.
Text actions are available in updated versions of Snipping Tool on Windows 11 — update it from the Microsoft Store if you do not see the button.
Option 2: PowerToys Text Extractor (Windows 10 and 11)
- Install Microsoft PowerToys (free, from the Microsoft Store or GitHub) and enable Text Extractor.
- Press Win+Shift+T, drag a box around the text.
- The text is copied to the clipboard — paste it anywhere.
💡 Pasting a table into Excel? Paste into Notepad first, then into Excel and use Data → Text to Columns to split it.
Both tools work offline for common languages, but always proofread numbers — recognition can confuse 0/O and 1/l. More Windows tricks: 12 shortcuts I use every day.