PDF Content Search
Find everything – even inside your emails.
The Problem
500 invoices. Your tax advisor asks for the Telekom bill from March 2024. How long does it take you?
How it works
Select a folder
Choose a folder with your documents.
Wait for OCR analysis
The app automatically recognizes text in all documents.
Search — done
Find any amount, any IBAN, any word.
And when you're not at your Mac?
Scan documents on the go with your iPhone or Android. If you like, an AI service suggests a file name (credits in the scanner app). Encrypted sync to your Mac. Next time you search — it's already there.
Free Scanner Apps — included with purchase
Android
Coming soon to Google Play
Ready to bring order to your documents?
EUR 89.99 incl. VAT · One-time purchase · No subscription
Includes free scanner apps for iOS and Android
"The tool is worth every cent." — M63G, App Store
Description
Screenshots
What's New
Version 1.20 • NEW: Apple Mail is searchable – subjects, body text and attachments (PDF, images, Office) • Attachment access in detail view, reveal mail in Finder with one keystroke • Smarter search (also finds partial words and pasted snippets) • Visible indexing progress and many refinements
Features
Your AI assistant searches your documents (MCP)
PDF Content Search speaks the Model Context Protocol – works with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, VS Code and Cursor. Ask your assistant for an amount, a contract or an invoice: it finds the passage in the full text of your scans, PDFs and mails and opens the document. The connection runs locally over 127.0.0.1 – no relay server, no extra account. Two-minute setup in Settings → Integrations.
REST API for your own scripts
Query search, document text, folders and processing status over an HTTP interface on your Mac – token-protected, 127.0.0.1 only. Documented in the manual under “API & Automation”.
Search Apple Mail
Full-text search across subjects, body text and the contents of PDF and image attachments – completely local. Office attachments only if you turn on the conversion on our server.
Fast Full-Text Search
Search PDF documents, images, and text files in seconds.
OCR Text Recognition
Automatic text recognition in scanned documents and images.
Name Suggestions in the Scanner Apps
In the free scanner apps for iPhone and Android, an AI service suggests a file name on request — an invoice becomes "250401 Invoice Telekom.pdf". For this, the recognized text of the first page goes to OpenAI via our server. Some suggestions are free, more are available as credits in the scanner app. The Mac app itself does not use AI.
iPhone & Android Scanner — free
Free companion apps for iOS (App Store) and Android (Google Play). Scan documents, optional AI name suggestions (credits), encrypted transfer to your Mac. No subscription, no ads.
Real-Time Mac Sync
Scanned documents are automatically synced between your devices with encryption.
Advanced Filters
Filter search results by date, file type, and size.
What users say
What problem did you have?
Running the association means countless emails, documents, letters, bank statements and administrative correspondence every day, so it is easy to lose track when searching.
How had you tried to solve it before?
I created all sorts of folders, subfolders and sub-subfolders in the file manager of my MacBook. But then more keywords and categories came along. Some files simply did not fit the scheme. On top of that I never knew which file to file in which folder. Sometimes a file belongs to more than one category. So how do you deal with that? When all of these attempts failed, I first tried a different piece of software. But it required typing terminal commands and moving every single file into a folder on the desktop to be indexed. How cumbersome is that?
How did PDF Content Search help?
After I came across PDF Content Search, I simply put ALL the association's files into one searchable folder and let the software index them. With a very large amount of data that takes a while at first, but from then on the software keeps everything up to date automatically. On my very first search I was blown away that within fractions of a second I found a file where the term I was looking for appeared somewhere in the text.
What would you recommend to others?
I can only recommend this to everyone: do not search around for long, go straight for PDF Content Search. Anyone who likes order and does not want to spend time searching will find the one tool that does it all, because it indexes the full text automatically. Even all emails are included in the search. That gives you complete full-text research, and the long search is finally over!
PDF Content Search is recommended without reservation, especially as you can turn to Mr Koller directly with questions or problems at any time and rely on friendly support. What more could you want?
The self-help group uses PDF Content Search under a free licence for non-profit organisations. Translated from the German original, which was published unchanged with the author's consent.
Privacy & Security
You decide what your assistant reads
The interfaces for AI assistants and scripts stay off until you switch them on in the settings. What your assistant reads through the connection goes to your assistant's provider – exactly like a document you drop into a chat window.
Local on Your Mac
Indexing, text recognition and search run locally on your Mac; your documents and emails do not leave it for this. The app only converts Office files and Office attachments on our server if you explicitly turn this on and accept the terms for it — otherwise they are not searched. Also only if you want: syncing with your phone and the name suggestions in the scanner apps. The app needs an internet connection for purchase, activation and licence checks, for the licence check at least every 40 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a subscription?
No, one-time purchase.
What file formats are supported?
PDF, images (JPG, PNG, TIFF), text files. OCR for scanned documents.
Does search work offline?
Yes, indexing, text recognition and search run locally on your Mac. The app only converts Office files on our server if you explicitly turn this on and accept the terms for it. The app needs an internet connection at least every 40 days for the licence check.
What are the companion apps?
Free scanner apps for iPhone and Android. Scan documents, optional AI name suggestions (credits), encrypted sync to Mac.
Which macOS version is required?
macOS 14 Sonoma or later.
News by email
Roughly every two to three months: new versions and new Mac apps. No tracking, unsubscribe anytime.
Goes well with
FreezeTextText a document will not hand over: FreezeText freezes the screen and makes any visible text copyable — even in viewers that block selection.View product page
DistillDistill renames incoming files automatically — "scan_0421.pdf" becomes "250401 Invoice Telekom.pdf". It sharpens your search before you even start it.View product page
Free alongside
Convert Pages, Numbers and Office files to PDF first so the search can find them: DocPort →