Summarize PDF online
Upload a digital or scanned PDF and get a concise brief in seconds. OCR handles image-based documents automatically — works in your browser for reports, memos, and long documents.
Distill long business, technical, and research PDFs into clear actionable briefs
Upload digital or scanned PDFs and receive clear briefs with key points you can copy, export, or save. OCR support for image-based documents — built for reports, research papers, and technical documents.
- Secure Stripe billing
- No PDFs stored permanently
- OCR for scanned PDFs
- Business, technical & research docs
Built for professional PDF workflows
DistillBrief helps teams and individuals turn long documents into clear, shareable briefs — without replacing careful human review.
AI PDF summarizer for professionals
DistillBrief extracts text from digital PDFs or runs OCR on scanned documents, then produces structured summaries with key points you can copy, export, or save to your account history.
Summarize research papers
Turn dense academic PDFs into readable briefs. Ideal for literature reviews, paper skimming, and sharing takeaways with colleagues.
Executive PDF briefs
Convert board packs, quarterly reports, and strategy documents into executive summaries your team can act on faster.
Technical PDF summaries
Distill specifications, engineering docs, and technical whitepapers into clear briefs without losing the essential details.
Summarize scanned PDFs
Automatic OCR for image-based PDFs — contracts, signed forms, and legacy scans — before AI summarization.
How it works
From long PDF to actionable brief in three steps.
📤
Upload PDF
Digital PDFs or scanned documents — reports, proposals, whitepapers, and image-based PDFs. Max 10 MB.
📝
Extract text
DistillBrief reads selectable text instantly. Scanned PDFs are processed with automatic OCR.
✨
Get your brief
Receive a clear summary with exportable key points. Save to history when signed in.
Simple, transparent pricing
Start free. Upgrade when your brief volume grows.
- Secure Stripe billing
- No PDFs stored permanently
- OCR for scanned PDFs
- Business, technical & research docs
Free
$0
No credit card required
- 5 PDF briefs per month
- OCR for scanned PDFs (up to 10 pages)
- Sign in to save history
- Export summaries and text
Pro
$9/mo
Billed securely via Stripe · cancel anytime
- Unlimited PDF briefs
- OCR for longer scanned PDFs (up to 25 pages)
- Saved extraction history
- Professional export formatting
Manage billing anytime from your account page. See our Terms and Privacy Policy.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about summarizing PDFs, OCR, and generating briefs online.
- What is an AI PDF summarizer?
- An AI PDF summarizer extracts text from a PDF and produces a shorter brief of the key points. DistillBrief works with digital PDFs and scanned documents for business, technical, and research use cases.Read the AI PDF summarizer guide →
- How do I summarize a PDF online?
- Upload a PDF to DistillBrief, click Extract & Summarize, and receive a clear brief in seconds. Digital PDFs extract instantly; scanned PDFs use OCR automatically. Copy, download, or save results to your history when signed in.Upload a PDF →
- Can DistillBrief summarize research papers?
- Yes — for digital research PDFs and scanned papers. DistillBrief distills papers into executive briefs and key takeaways. Image-based or scanned PDFs are processed with OCR before summarization.Research paper summarization guide →
- Can DistillBrief extract text from PDF files?
- Yes — from digital PDFs with selectable text and from scanned or image-based PDFs via OCR. Reports, proposals, whitepapers, ebooks, and scanned contracts all work.Extract key points guide →
- Is DistillBrief a PDF brief generator?
- Yes. DistillBrief turns long PDFs into concise briefs with key points you can copy, download, or export. Pro users get unlimited briefs and saved history.Executive brief workflow →
- Do I need an account?
- No — you can try DistillBrief without signing in. Accounts unlock saved history, usage tracking, higher OCR page limits, and Pro subscriptions billed securely through Stripe.
- Are scanned PDFs supported?
- Yes. DistillBrief automatically detects scanned or image-based PDFs and runs OCR to extract readable text before summarizing. Free users can OCR up to 10 pages per document; Pro supports longer scanned PDFs.Scanned PDF guide →
- How accurate is OCR on scanned PDFs?
- OCR quality depends on scan resolution, contrast, and page clarity. DistillBrief works best with 300 DPI scans and readable text. Always review AI summaries before high-stakes decisions.OCR PDF summarizer guide →
- Are my PDFs stored on your servers?
- Original PDF files are processed in memory and not permanently stored. When signed in, extracted text and summaries may be saved to your account history. Extracted text is sent to OpenAI for summarization and chat.
- Can I ask follow-up questions after summarizing?
- Yes. After a brief is generated, you can ask questions about the same document. Chat uses the extracted text. Free and anonymous users have per-document question limits; Pro includes unlimited chat.
- Can DistillBrief summarize RFQs and vendor proposals?
- Yes — RFQs, RFPs, and vendor proposal PDFs are a common workflow. Summarize each response, export briefs for comparison, and use chat to query specific clauses or pricing terms.RFQ summarization guide →
Ready to start? Upload a PDF · Try sample PDF · Read guides
Ready to distill your next document?
- Secure Stripe billing
- No PDFs stored permanently
- OCR for scanned PDFs
- Business, technical & research docs
Free accounts include 5 briefs per month. Questions? support@distillbrief.com