Find function not working in 2024!

[Sue34691714ys0y]

Find function completely useless in Acrobat Pro which I updated to thinking that it was a problem with free Acrobat Reader. Downloaded latest version of Acrobat Pro so I doubt it is a patch problem. I am using Acrobat Pro Version 2023.008.20423 on an Apple M2. Neither Control F nor selecting Find Text or Tools makes any difference. I type in the word that appears at least 20 times in a 200 page document and it says it can't find it anywhere. Super frustrating.

[Sue34691714ys0y · Accepted solution]

Answering my own question here in case others run into the same thing. Under the Tools menu, under Recognize Text, click on "in this file" and it does an OCR scan that makes the text searchable rather than simply an image. Thank you Adobe support.

[DrPattyL]

This did not fix my issue. I have used this feature hundreds of times and now it cannot find ANYTHING.  I'm literally looking at the text and Adobe Acrobat Pro cannot find an exact match. 

[Randall37813739bueg]

Had this problem in March 2024 and it's still there in June.  Is someone asleep at the switch at Adobe?

[Randall37813739bueg]

After a Chat session with Adobe Support, and trying multiple workarounds - none worked - the final consensus was the Search function was not compatible with digital files (PDFs) that were scans of previously scanned files.  That's confusing because some PDF files have been created via scanning, and Search functions normally.  

In the meantime, my workaround is to open the 'problem' PDF using MS Word, edit, search, etc. as wanted, then save it as a PDF.  That newly-saved PDF will then open in Adobe, MS Edge, Google, etc.

A caveat: I haven't yet tried saving the Word-created PDFs that have graphics images or different formatting - e.g. columns.  So if you opt to do this, be sure to check your results before deleting the original PDF.

[graceful_flower3157]

I'm facing the exact same problem! It used to work just fine, I open the same document and the search runs normally. After updating it can no longer search for the right word.

[AnandSri]

Hello @TalmadgeCoker

I hope you are doing well, and I am sorry for the trouble and the delayed response.

Could you please share more details about the issue? Is it happening with all the PDFs, or is it specific to one PDF? Are you on a Mac or Windows machine, and what is the version? Have you tried the suggested step from this thread? 

If the PDF is a scanned image (even if it looks like text), Acrobat can’t search it unless OCR (Optical Character Recognition) has been applied.

• To make the text searchable, go to All Tools > Scan & OCR > Recognize Text > In This File.

Corrupted or Layered Text
Some PDFs—especially those generated from complex workflows or multiple scans—may have text layers that are unreadable by Acrobat’s search engine.

You can try: 

Apply OCR to the File

• • Open the PDF in Acrobat Pro.
  • Go to All Tools > Scan & OCR > Recognize Text > In This File.
  • Save the file and try searching again.

Use Advanced Search

• • Press Shift + Cmd + F (on Mac) to open the Advanced Search panel.
  • This can sometimes detect text that the basic Find function misses.

Check Document Security Settings

• • Go to Menu > Properties > Security tab.
  • Ensure that Content Copying is allowed. If not, the document may be locked against search.

Please ensure you have the latest version of Acrobat installed on the machine: 25.001.20531 (Win) | 25.001.20529 (Mac), planned update June 10, 2025. Check for any pending updates from the Menu > help > check for updates, install the updates, restart the app and the machine, and try again.

Let us know how it goes.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.

[LHVictoria]

Thank you for your reply.  I find it easier to reply directly via email but my reply was not transmitted.  

I have this problem with several pdf files but not all.  My platform is Macbook Air M3 and iOS Sonoma 14.6.  I want to use only Acrobat Reader, do not need Pro.  HOpeing it might be worth it if it enabled Search functionality, I bought Acrobat Export PDF on 2/27/2025.  It did not solve my Search problem.  

A couple of suggestions above ask me to start with selecting Scan & OCR.  Doing do takes me to a screen that requires me to purchase Acrobat Pro.  I do not need this, just want Reader to work.  

Using Advanced Search makes no difference.  I have not tried the last suggestion Menu>Properties>Security tab.  I'm sorry but I do not see Menu or Properties.  Please advise.  

Yes, I do have version 25.001.20529.  

Please do advise and thanks for responding.  

Linda

[LHVictoria]

I am using version 2025.001.20529.  There is no option to Recognize Text in the Tools menu.  There is an option for OCR and Scan but it takes me to a page to buy the full version of Acrobat.   I do not need that.  I need only Reader with the ability to Find.  Please advise.  

[netalia_7941]

Was there ever a solution for this? None of the solutions work. Most documents are not created using PDF but are scanned so I'm unclear as to why the Find text option is not working. 

[LHVictoria]

Feb 27th here.  I am having the same problem.  To clarify, I am using the free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader, which used to work but not more.  I have updated to the latest version, 2024.005.20421.  Also using recent release Sonoma 14.6.  

[TalmadgeCoker]

I'm having the same problem. Has a fix been posted for it?