Encria vs Apple Live Text: handwriting on iPhone
Your iPhone already reads text in photos. So first: do you need an app at all? Sometimes not. Here is what Live Text does, and where Encria takes over.
What Live Text is good at
Live Text is built into iOS. In a photo, the camera or an image in Safari, you can select the text, then copy, translate or look it up. It works on iPhone XS, iPhone XR and later with iOS 15 or later. Nothing to install.
It reads handwriting too. Apple’s own launch example was a handwritten family recipe. For a sticky note, a whiteboard or a postcard, copy and paste is often all you need.
When a full page needs more
Live Text gives you a selection, not a transcription. Apple doesn’t say how it handles cursive, whether pages can become one document, or whether it flags the words it’s unsure of.
Encria turns several photos into one text: up to 3 pages for free, 20 with Pro. The text sits under the photo of your page, with doubtful words underlined, so you check a few words instead of the whole page. The word-for-word reading is kept, an optional AI cleanup fixes broken sentences, and your corrections are remembered on your device.
Point by point
Encria facts come from the app. The Live Text column only repeats Apple’s own pages, checked on 26 October 2026. “Not specified” means they don’t say.
| Criterion | Apple Live Text | Encria |
|---|---|---|
| Cursive handwriting | Not specified. Apple says Live Text finds handwriting in photos, without mentioning cursive | Yes: built for handwriting, joined letters included |
| Several pages at once | Not specified | Up to 3 pages in one transcription, 20 with Pro |
| Uncertain words flagged for review | Not specified | Yes: underlined under the photo of the page, fixed in a tap |
| Export | Select and copy the text, then paste it into another app or share it | Copy the text, or share it to any app through the iOS share sheet |
| Languages | About two dozen languages, listed on Apple’s feature availability page | Detected automatically; no published list. App in English, French, Spanish, German and Portuguese |
| Price | Included in iOS | Free for 5 pages a month; Pro €5.99 a month or €39.99 a year for up to 500 pages; 100 pages of credits for €1.99 |
| Devices | iPhone XS, iPhone XR or later with iOS 15 or later; supported iPads | iPhone and iPad, iOS 18 or later |
| Account | None: a feature of iOS | None: documents stay in a local library on the device |
Which one, and when
Stay with Live Text when
- You need a line or two, not a full page.
- The text is printed, or short and neat.
- You want to translate or look up what’s in the photo.
- You’d rather not install anything.
Use Encria when
- The page is handwritten top to bottom, or there are several.
- You need to know which words to check.
- You want to keep, edit and find the text later.
- Your handwriting is joined up, fast or full of names and shorthand.
Where the reading happens
Apple says Live Text runs on the device, so your photo never has to leave your iPhone. Encria works differently: when you start a transcription, our server passes the images to our text recognition provider and doesn’t store them. Your library stays on your device. If a page must never leave your phone, use Live Text.
Sources
The Live Text column was checked against these Apple pages on 26 October 2026.
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