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# What Is OCR and How Do Businesses Use It?
- URL: https://blog.jestor.com/what-is-ocr-for-business/
- Published: 2026-09-17T22:32:31.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-17T22:32:31.000Z
- Author: Bruno Bannach

**OCR** — optical character recognition, often called document reading — extracts data from an uploaded file or image and turns it into structured fields. An invoice becomes a record rather than an attachment.

## Where it earns its place

The value is concentrated in processes where documents arrive constantly and their contents have to be typed somewhere.

- Invoices arriving from many suppliers in different formats
- Contracts whose terms are retyped into a registry
- Receipts submitted for reimbursement
- Any document whose data feeds a downstream decision

## What it typically extracts

- **Values**, such as an invoice amount
- **Dates**, including issue and expiry
- **Parties**, with names and registration numbers
- **Objects and descriptions**, where the document contains them
- **Free text**, from images as well as PDFs

## How to use it in Jestor

1. Add a document reader field to the table in **Jestor**.
2. Choose which fields the reader should populate.
3. Upload the file — an invoice, a contract, or an image.
4. Let the reader extract the data and create or fill the record.
5. Review the extracted values before the record advances.

## Why choose Jestor for document automation?

**Jestor** meters document reading as pages processed rather than as generic **AI** credits — a three-page PDF counts as three, an image as one — which makes cost predictable before uploading.

The reader is available inside **AI** agents as well, so a ticket arriving with an attachment is answered with that document's content rather than without it.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How is usage measured?

By pages processed — one page or image counts as one. See [jestor.com](https://jestor.com/?ref=blog.jestor.com).

### Does it create the record automatically?

Yes, it can create the row and fill the selected fields.

### Can an agent read attachments too?

Yes, document reading is built into agents.

## Video Tutorial: Step by Step

Check out other practical tutorials on the Jestor YouTube channel.

## Get to know Jestor

With **Jestor**, you can automate workflows, connect teams, and build internal systems your way — all without code and powered by **AI**. Discover Jestor at [jestor.com](https://jestor.com/?ref=blog.jestor.com) and see how to take your company's operations to a new level of efficiency and control.