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The 5 Best Scanners For Multiple Pages

Get through that stack of papers or photos fast.

March 11, 2023

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Whether you’re running a business or digitizing your entire photograph collection, the scanner on your all-in-one printer is likely a huge time-suck. The best scanners for multiple pages, on the other hand, can scan and upload dozens of sheets a minute. In order to find the best model for your needs, consider its speed, image quality, size, connectivity, and time-saving features like auto-feed and duplex scanning.

What To Look For In A Multiple Page Scanner

Speed: When you’re scanning a huge stack of documents, speed matters. A scanner’s speed is measured in ppm (pages per minute). For reference, the most powerful machine on this list can scan up to 60 ppm — or one document per second, both sides at once.

DPI: This metric determines the quality of your scan and refers to dots per inch. Scans of 200 to 300 DPI are considered medium-level quality, 400 DPI is medium-high quality, and above 600 DPI is high quality. For scanning text, you won’t need higher than 200 to 300. For photos, a higher DPI will produce clearer images. One thing to keep in mind is that higher-DPI files will be correspondingly larger.

Size: As with any new device, always check the dimensions to make sure the size is compatible with your workspace and portability needs. Compact scanners take up minimal room on your desk and may even fit in your work bag, but larger scanners are usually more powerful when it comes to speed, auto-feeding, and convenience features.

Connectivity: Most document scanners connect to just about any computer via a USB plug. However, higher-end scanners offer Wi-Fi connectivity — which may be a worthy investment if multiple computers will be using the scanner or don’t want to deal with cords.

Auto-feeding: As opposed to scanners that need to be fed pages manually, the best multiple-page scanners will have auto-document feeders. This allows you to place a stack of papers in the tray and walk away while the machine scans them one by one. Different scanners can handle different sizes and numbers of pages in their auto-feed tray.

Duplex scanning: Duplex scanning is the ability to scan both sides of a page at once. While it’s not a necessary feature for everyone, it’ll save you time and effort when scanning double-sided documents.

Shop The Best Scanners For Multiple Pages

In a hurry? Here are the top picks for multi-document scanners.

The Overall Best Scanner For Multiple Pages: Epson Workforce ES-400 II Color Duplex Desktop Document Scanner
The Runner-Up: A Plug-&-Play Scanner That’s Still Powerful: Canon imageFORMULA R10 Portable Document Scanner
The Best Portable Scanner: Brother DS-640 Compact Mobile Document Scanner
The Best Photo Scanner Under $100: Canon CanoScan Lide 400 Slim Scanner
The Best Wireless Document Scanner: Raven Pro Document Scanner

1. The Overall Best Scanner For Multiple Pages

Epson Workforce ES-400 II Color Duplex Desktop Document Scanner

$290

Pros:

Auto-feeds up to 50 pages of different thicknesses and sizes
Automatically crops and adjusts for the best quality
Creates searchable PDFs and editable files

Cons:

Expensive

If you have the space and the budget for it, the Epson Workforce document scanner has earned an overall 4.6-star rating for a reason: It can scan a huge pile of documents in seconds with minimal effort on your part. The Single-Step technology captures both sides at once and the auto-feeder can accommodate up to 50 sheets, including different paper types and sizes. Finally, the included software allows for previewing, e-mailing, uploading, and automatic naming, while the intelligent adjustments automatically crop images, skip blank pages, and correct discoloration.

One Reviewer Wrote: “So very easy to use and saves so much time and paper! For years, I made paper copies for my records of payments, and would scan all receipts to a flash drive which I would then download into a folder on my desktop. It was very time-consuming. Not anymore! I can scan things as small as a gas receipt or a clients check to legal size documents. Our only complaint is not having purchased this sooner!”

2. The Runner-Up: A Plug-&-Play Scanner That’s Still Powerful

Canon imageFORMULA R10 Portable Document Scanner

$174

Pros:

Double-sided, auto-feeding scanner
Portable and compact
Built-in software for plug-and-play usage with Windows and Mac

Cons:

Some reviewers reported it sometimes grabs more than one page at once

Despite its compact size, the Canon imageFORMULA document scanner is surprisingly powerful. It can feed up to 20 pages — double-sided — at speeds of 12 pages per minute. It also has built-in software that works with both Windows and Mac with plug-and-play ease (no downloading!), so you can preview, edit, adjust, and organize your scanned files without installing anything. Finally, because it’s powered by USB, measures less than one foot across, and weighs about two pounds, it’s convenient to use just about anywhere.

One Reviewer Wrote: “This is [a] great scanner if you're looking to scan a few pages at a time. I loved that it scans both sides at the same time. The scanner is compact and very easy to use. However, as some other reviewers have mentioned the scanner will often grab more than one page at a time when scanning 5+ pages (even after fanning the pages). This can be an issue if you're not paying attention and miss some pages.”

3. The Best Portable Scanner

Brother DS-640 Compact Mobile Document Scanner

$100

Pros:

Extremely compact
Can handle multiple document types (plain paper, receipts, ID cards, etc.)
Scans up to 16 ppm

Cons:

No auto-feeding or duplex scanning

If you’re willing to feed your documents manually, the Brother compact mobile scanner is a “game changer” that’s “worth every penny,” according to reviewers. Its super-portable size fits effortlessly on your desk or in your computer bag, plus it weighs about 1.5 pounds and is USB-powered for convenience. That said, it can still scan up to 16 color or black-and-white documents per minute with a 300-dpi resolution. You can even use the free Brother app (Windows, Mac, and Linux-supported) to scan to various destinations, including PC, network, e-mail, and cloud services.

One Reviewer Wrote: “I bought this product primarily because it was portable and small. [...] I had a few dozen pages to scan in. This scanner handled the flow easily and quickly. The software allows quite a bit of flexibility and the scans turned out sharp, with a nice interpretation of the more subtle gray areas. I was able to OCR the scanned text with no problems whatsoever. Error reading rate was so small as to be non-existent. I am thinking I may replace my full-size scanner with this one.”

4. The Best Photo Scanner Under $100

Canon CanoScan Lide 400 Slim Scanner

$81

Pros:

4,800 DPI resolution is great for photographs
Costs less than $100

Cons:

No auto-feeding or duplex scanning

It doesn’t have any auto-feeding capabilities, but the Canon CanoScan Lide 400 Slim Scanner takes a mere eight seconds to scan documents and photos in a crystal-clear 4,800 dpi resolution — all for well under $100. For that reason, it’s an especially great choice if you need to scan a photograph collection. Simply slip it into the upright design and press one of the EZ buttons to auto-scan, copy, send, or create multi-page PDFs. You’ll have to flip and feed pages manually, but its clarity and ease of use at such a low price point have received more than 4,000 reviews.

One Reviewer Wrote: “I am tackling the job of scanning family photos and am so glad I chose this scanner. It's definitely 5 stars for the price. There are some irritating issues. But nothing that I can't work around.”

5. The Best Wireless Document Scanner

Raven Pro Document Scanner

$650

Pros:

Three ways to connect, including wirelessly
Feeds 100 documents at once with 60 ppm speed
Large, easy-to-use LCD display
Free Raven cloud subscription for unlimited storage

Cons:

Some reviewers find the connectivity to be temperamental

It’s definitely an investment, but for those running a business or who need wireless scanning, the Raven Pro document scanner is one of the best options around. For one, its 100-page document feeder can scan up to 60 ppm (one document per second) and send them directly to integrated cloud services, like Dropbox, Google Drive, OneNote, and more. For another, you can connect wirelessly, via ethernet, or with a USB plug. There’s also an eight-inch LCD display for intuitive navigation. Finally, all scanned documents use OCR to automatically create searchable PDFs, and you get a free Raven cloud subscription for unlimited backup storage. It comes in your choice of black or white.

One Reviewer Wrote: “This is the second Raven Scanner I purchased, switching from using a Fujitsu ScanSnap for many years. The Raven Scanner is an excellent business tool; it is easy to use, very dependable and loaded with sensible features. The Desktop application and cloud backup are a huge plus, and the customer service is World Class!”