Microsoft is retiring its popular Microsoft Lens app by the end of 2025, marking the end of a tool that has been a staple for digitizing physical documents on mobile devices since its 2014 debut. The app, originally known as Office Lens, quickly gained traction as a way to convert documents, notes, and whiteboard sketches into digital formats using a smartphone's camera. Over time, Microsoft expanded its capabilities, enabling users to create PDFs as well as Word, PowerPoint, and Excel files, and to perform OCR on both handwritten and printed text. With over 50 million downloads and strong ratings on Google Play and the App Store, Lens became one of Microsoft's most popular free mobile apps.
The shutdown will be phased in over several months. Beginning mid-September 2025, Microsoft will start removing the app. By mid-November, it will no longer be available for download from app stores. On December 15, the app will stop working for new scans, though previously saved scans will remain viewable in the MyScans folder, but these files will no longer receive updates or support. Microsoft is retiring the app from iOS and Android devices starting September 15, 2025. After November 15, Microsoft Lens will no longer be supported. Users can continue to use the scanning capability in the app until December 15, 2025. After that date, creating new scans in the Lens app will no longer be possible. However, users can continue to access their previous scans as long as the app remains installed on their device. Microsoft Lens will be removed from App store and Google Play Store on November 15, 2025.
Microsoft is directing users to its Microsoft 365 Copilot app, which features an upgraded scanning tool. This function can capture text directly into Word documents and tables into Excel, with all content saved to OneDrive under MyCreations. To continue using scanning capabilities, Microsoft recommends transitioning to the Microsoft 365 Copilot app, which offers a built-in scanning feature.
To scan with Microsoft 365 Copilot, users can open the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on their mobile device. Select the horizontal lines icon on the top left corner of the app to open the menu. Select the Create tab, then select Scan to scan documents. Past scans can be found by selecting the folder icon in the top right corner of the Create tab.
Users can continue accessing previous scans from the MyScans section of the Microsoft Lens app while the app remains installed on their device. For cloud files, users can open the Create tab and select the folder icon in the top right corner to open My Creations to access past scans. Scans from Microsoft Lens saved locally are not available on the Microsoft 365 Copilot app. To access locally saved scans, Android users need to grant All Files Access permission to Microsoft 365 Copilot. Then, open the Create tab and select the folder icon in the top right corner to open My Creations to access past scans.
However, not all Lens features will make the transition. Saving scans directly to OneNote, Word, or PowerPoint, as well as business-card scanning, will not be supported in Copilot. The replacement also does not feature read-out-loud functionality or Immersive Reader integration.
The rationale behind this discontinuation appears rooted in Microsoft's broader strategy to consolidate features into flagship apps like OneDrive and the main Microsoft 365 suite. Native camera apps on modern smartphones have grown increasingly sophisticated, incorporating AI-driven enhancements that render dedicated scanners like Lens somewhat redundant. This move is a calculated effort to reduce app fragmentation and boost user retention within Microsoft's core ecosystem. This shift may push users toward competitors like Adobe Scan.
