Method 1: Scan With Your Phone (No Equipment Needed)

  1. 1

    iPhone — Notes app scanner

    Open the Notes app. Create a new note or open an existing one. Tap the camera icon at the bottom → Scan Documents. Point the camera at the document — Notes automatically detects edges and captures the page. Tap Keep Scan. Scan additional pages if needed. Tap Save. To email: tap the share icon → Mail. The scan attaches as a PDF automatically.

  2. 2

    Android — Google Drive scanner

    Open the Google Drive app. Tap the + button → Scan. Point at the document and tap the shutter button. Google Drive auto-detects edges and crops. Add more pages if needed. Tap Save — the scan saves to Drive as a PDF. To email: open Gmail, compose a new email, tap the attachment icon → Insert from Drive → select your scan.

  3. 3

    iPhone Camera app (for images, not PDFs)

    You can simply photograph a document with the Camera app and attach the photo to an email. This is faster but produces a JPEG image rather than a PDF — less professional and larger file size for text documents. Use Notes for PDF output.

Method 2: Printer/Scanner to Email

  1. 4

    Use the printer’s scan-to-email feature

    Most modern all-in-one printers (HP, Canon, Epson, Brother) have a Scan to Email function on their touchscreen. Set up your email address in the printer’s settings. Place the document on the scanner glass, select Scan to Email, enter the destination email, and press scan. The printer emails the PDF directly. Setup varies by printer — check your printer’s manual for the email configuration steps.

  2. 5

    Scan to computer then email

    Alternatively, scan to your computer (the printer creates a PDF or image file on your desktop), then attach that file to a new email in your mail client as you would any attachment.

For best results with phone scanningGood lighting is key — scan near a window or under bright overhead light. Place the document flat on a dark, contrasting surface. The app’s automatic edge detection works best with high contrast between the document and the surface underneath. Hold the phone directly above the document, not at an angle.

Frequently Asked Questions

Adobe Scan (free, iPhone and Android) is widely considered the best dedicated scanning app — excellent automatic edge detection, good OCR (text recognition), and saves to PDF. Microsoft Lens (free) integrates well with Microsoft 365. Apple Notes and Google Drive are excellent free built-in options that require no additional app. For most purposes, the built-in phone options are sufficient.
Phone scans are typically 1–3MB per page — usually fine for email. If the file is too large: use ilovepdf.com or pdf24.org to compress the PDF before attaching. In Adobe Scan, you can set scan quality to Standard (smaller) vs High (larger) before saving. Most email providers accept attachments up to 25MB (Gmail) or 10MB (Outlook).