Microsoft Lens can no longer create new scans. If you still have the app installed, keep it installed and stay signed in to the last account you used while you copy any important scans to another location. Microsoft retired Lens in 2026: retirement began on January 9, the app was removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play on February 9, and new scanning stopped on March 9. Microsoft says previous scans remain accessible only while the app stays installed and you are signed in to your last active account.
What the retirement means for existing scans
Files that were previously saved to OneDrive, OneNote, your photo library or device storage should be available from those locations without Microsoft Lens. The priority is any scan that appears only in Lens and cannot yet be found elsewhere.
Do not uninstall Lens, sign out, clear its app data or reset the phone until you have checked your scans and made copies. Microsoft has removed the app from the official app stores, so reinstalling it may not be possible. Changing camera permissions, restarting the phone or installing another Microsoft app will not restore the retired scan function.
Avoid installing an old Android application package from an unofficial source. It is not Microsoft’s supported migration path, may not restore retired functions and can expose your device or data to security risks.
Find and save old Microsoft Lens scans
Open Microsoft Lens without changing accounts. Review the scans you need, then use any available save, share or export option to place copies outside the app. Open each exported file before considering it recovered.
- Scans visible in Lens: Export important items as a PDF or image where that option is available. Save them to a location you can open independently, such as device storage, Files on an iPhone or iPad, OneDrive or another trusted cloud service.
- Local files and photos: On Android, check your Gallery or Google Photos and search the Files app for PDF files. Check common folders such as Documents, Downloads and Pictures, along with any folder you chose when saving scans. Microsoft’s Lens documentation confirms that Android PDFs could be saved locally and that the save location could be changed. On an iPhone or iPad, check both Photos and Files, including On My iPhone or On My iPad, iCloud Drive, Downloads and Recent.
- OneDrive: Sign in to every personal, work and school account that you may have used with Lens. Search by document name, date and file type. Microsoft’s Lens documentation says Android files saved as Word, PowerPoint or PDF were placed in the OneDrive Documents folder; other saved files may be elsewhere, depending on the destination you selected.
- OneNote: Open OneNote with the same account and look through relevant notebooks and pages. Allow sync to complete, then confirm the page opens on another device or in OneNote for the web. For an important record, export the page as a PDF or save its attachment separately. A Microsoft personal OneDrive notebook can also be exported as a backup from OneNote for the web.
Keep at least two copies of essential records in different places, such as cloud storage plus a computer or external drive. For a multipage PDF, inspect several pages, including the first and last, to make sure the export is complete and readable.
Download independent copies from OneDrive
Files already in OneDrive are no longer dependent on Lens, but a separate download is still useful if you could lose access to a work or school account. Only download organizational files when your employer or school policy allows it.
- On a computer, sign in to OneDrive on the web with the account used for Lens.
- Check Documents and the folders where you normally kept receipts, notes or scanned paperwork. Use search to narrow results by file name, date or file type.
- Select the files or folders you need, then choose Download. When multiple items are selected, OneDrive normally downloads a ZIP file.
- Save the download outside your computer’s synced OneDrive folder if you want a genuinely separate copy.
- Extract the ZIP file, if applicable, and open a sample of PDFs, images and Office documents before deleting or moving any originals.
OneDrive can make files available offline on mobile devices, but offline access is not the same as an independent backup. The files remain managed by OneDrive and can be removed from offline storage later. Use a downloaded or exported copy for a separate archive.
Use the OneDrive scanner or another built in tool
Microsoft recommends the scanner in the OneDrive mobile app as the Lens replacement. In OneDrive, tap Scan, or tap Add and then Scan. Choose a mode such as Document, Whiteboard, Business Card or Photo, capture the item, make any edits, tap Done, name the file and select its OneDrive folder.
| Feature | Microsoft Lens | OneDrive scanner |
|---|---|---|
| Where scans are saved | Could save or export to several Microsoft, photo and local destinations | Saves new scans to OneDrive |
| File format | Could create images, PDFs and some Office file types | Automatically saves scans as PDF files |
| Multipage limit | Android Lens supported up to 100 images in a locally stored scan on eligible devices | Up to 10 pages or images on Android and 30 on iPhone or iPad |
| Direct local saving | Android could save PDFs locally | Does not support saving a new scan directly to device storage |
The local-saving limitation is important. A OneDrive scan is saved to cloud storage first, so you need a Microsoft account and available OneDrive storage. If you need a separate device copy, download or share the completed PDF after it has been saved. For longer documents, split the material into clearly named PDFs or use another scanning tool.
OneDrive is also rolling out optical character recognition, commonly called OCR, in its Android and iOS apps. When the Recognize text command is available for a scanned PDF, it can make text selectable, searchable and copyable. Availability can vary while the feature is rolling out.
Other practical scanning options
- Apple Notes: On an iPhone or iPad, open a note, tap the attachment button and choose Scan Documents. Add more pages if needed, then tap Done. The scan is saved as a PDF in the note.
- Apple Files: In Files, tap the More button, choose Scan Documents, complete the scan, then choose a save location. This is useful when you want a PDF directly in iCloud Drive, another connected file provider or local device storage.
- Google Drive: The Google Drive app on Android and iOS can scan documents and save them as searchable PDFs in Google Drive. It is a suitable alternative for people who already keep documents in Google’s cloud storage.
Start with scans that appear only in Lens, verify every copy outside the app and leave Lens installed until you can open all important documents from another location.
