How to Copy and Select Text on Websites that Don't Allow It

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A user-friendly guide to copy restricted text from a website on any device
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Are you trying to copy text from a website that blocks you from selecting or right-clicking content? While it might seem impossible, there are several ways to copy text from any protected website, even if you can't right-click the page. This wikiHow guide will teach you easy ways to copy any text on your computer, phone, or tablet using Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge.

Things You Should Know

  • If the right-click context menu is disabled, turn off JavaScript . On Chrome, go to "Site Settings" → "JavaScript".
  • Download the "Enable Copy-Paste & Right-Click Mouse" extension on Chrome. Click the icon to enable it.
  • On mobile, upload a screenshot into Google Photos. Tap "Copy text" and select the text.
Method 1
Method 1 of 8:

Disabling JavaScript

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  1. If you can't right-click the page, see an alternative right-click menu, or get an error that says you can't copy the content, disabling JavaScript should make it so you can reactivate the right-click menu. Here's where you'll find the option to disable JavaScript in your browser: [1]
    • Chrome for PC or Mac: Click the three-dot menu and go to Settings > Privacy and security > Site Settings > JavaScript .
    • Chrome for Android: Tap the three vertical dots in Chrome and go to Settings > Site settings . [2]
    • Safari on iPhone/iPad: In the Settings app, go to Safari > Advanced .
    • Safari for Mac: Click the Safari menu and go to Preferences > Security .
    • Edge for PC or Mac: Click the three-dot menu and go to Settings > Cookies and site permissions > JavaScript .
    • Firefox for PC or Mac: Type about:config into the address bar and press Enter or Return . Click Accept the Risk and Continue . Type javascript into the search, click javascript.enabled in the results, and then click the toggle button to disable JavaScript.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 8:

Using a Chrome Extension

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  1. This Chrome browser extension allows you to use the right-click button on any website that has it disabled. This will allow you to open the context menu and copy text. You can use this extension on Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge.
  2. You'll see it at the top-right corner of your browser. This will reload the web page and enable the extension.
  3. This extension will work for most websites. Even if you aren't able to select individual lines of text with your mouse with this extension, you'll still be able to copy and paste all of the text on the website once it's enabled.
  4. You should now be able to select some text and right-click to Copy .
    • If you still can't select text, click any blank area in the page, press Ctrl + A (PC) or Cmd + A (Mac) to select all, then Ctrl + C (PC) or Cmd + C (Mac) to copy. Open a document or text file, and then paste the copied items into that document.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 8:

Using Microsoft Edge Web Select

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  1. Edge has a cool feature called Web Select that allows you to select and copy any text on a website—even if the text is unselectable. [3] If you have a Windows PC, you already have Microsoft Edge. Mac users can download Edge from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge .
  2. You can also press Ctrl + Shift + X (PC) or Cmd + Shift + X (Mac) to quickly launch the tool. [4]
  3. This highlights any text in the selection and adds a quick "Copy" button at the bottom-right corner.
  4. Now that the text is copied to your clipboard, you can paste it as plain text into any document or app.
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Method 4
Method 4 of 8:

Saving the Page as a PDF

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  1. If you're able to right-click the page but not select text, you can save the page as a PDF file and use a PDF reader that allows you to copy text. The steps are different depending on your device: [5]
    • Windows: Press Ctrl + P , set the printer to Microsoft Print to PDF , and then click Print .
    • Mac: Press Cmd + P , select PDF at the bottom, choose Save as PDF and then Save . [6]
    • iPhone/iPad: Open the website in Safari and take a screenshot . Tap the screenshot preview, select Full Page at the top, tap Done , and select Save PDF to Files . Choose a location you'll remember and tap Save PDF to Files .
    • Android: Tap the menu in Chrome, select Share , tap the round PDF icon, and choose a location you'll remember.
  2. Now that you have a PDF, you can easily copy and paste text from a variety of PDF readers. Adobe Reader won't work in many cases, but these options always will:
    • Windows: If you have Microsoft Word, right-click the PDF, select Open With , and then choose Word . If not, you can upload the PDF to Google Drive . Once uploaded, right-click the file in Google Drive, select Open with , and then choose Google Docs .
    • Mac: Just double-click the PDF to open it in Preview. If you can't select text, click the Text menu and choose Text Selection . [7]
    • iPhone/iPad: Open the Files app, browse for the PDF you just saved, and tap the PDF to open it.
    • Android: Upload the file to your Google Drive first. Then, open Chrome, go to https://drive.google.com and sign in. Tap the three dots at the top-right and select Request Desktop Site . Then, open the PDF and tap Open in Google Docs .
  3. Just use the mouse cursor to highlight the text you want, and then right-click (or long-tap) the selection and choose Copy .
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Method 5
Method 5 of 8:

Using Live Text (iPhone/iPad)

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  1. If you can't tap and select text on a website in a web browser on your iPhone or iPad, you can take a screenshot of the text you need and then use Live Text to extract the text.
    • You'll need to have iOS 15 (iPhone) or iPadOS 15.1 (iPad) or later to use Live Text. [8]
    • If you need more than a single screen's worth of text from the page, see Saving the Page as a PDF instead.
  2. You'll find the screenshot in your Recents folder.
  3. You'll see that you can now select the text from a photo as you would any other text. Just extend the bars on either side of the highlighted text to select all the text you want to copy. [9]
  4. You can now paste the text into any app or file, including the Notes app.
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Method 6
Method 6 of 8:

Using Google Photos (Android, iPhone, or iPad)

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  1. The Google Photos app has a "Copy Text" feature that lets you extract text from any photo, including screenshots.
    • If you need more than a single screen's worth of text from the page, see Saving the Page as a PDF instead.
    • Google Photos will also work to extract text on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. It's the app called "Photos" that has a multicolored flower icon.
  3. You'll notice that at the bottom of the image, there'll be an option for copying text.
  4. Some stars will appear on the image, and then you'll see that a few words are now highlighted.
  5. Now that the text is copied to your clipboard, you can easily paste it into any file or app.
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Method 7
Method 7 of 8:

Using Google Photos (Windows or macOS)

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  1. If you just want to copy a small section of text, just take a regular screenshot. But if you want all of the text from the website, you can use a helpful feature built into Google Chrome to screenshot the whole webpage at once. Here's how:
    • Go to the webpage in Chrome.
    • Click the three-dot menu in Chrome and select More tools > Developer tools .
    • Press Ctrl + Shift + P (PC) or Cmd + Shift + P (Mac).
    • Type screenshot into the field.
    • Find the "Capture full size screenshot" option and click its corresponding Screenshot button.
    • Click Save to save the file.
  2. Go to https://photos.google.com and sign into your Google account. If you don't have a Google account, you can create one now —it's free.
  3. To do so, just click Upload at the top of Photos, select Computer , and then choose your image.
  4. You'll now see the option to copy text from the photo at the top.
    • If you took a full-page screenshot that is very long, Google Photos might not be able to read text from it due to the reduced text quality. You can crop the screenshot to keep just the parts you need and reupload it if this happens.
  5. It's at the top of the page.
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Method 8
Method 8 of 8:

Viewing Source Code

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  1. This option will display the website's source code in any web browser. [10] As long as the text you want to copy isn't an image, you'll be able to copy it from the source code and paste it anywhere.
    • If you're using Safari on a Mac, you'll need to enable the Develop menu first. Click the Safari menu, go to Preferences > Advanced , and then check the box next to "Show Develop menu in menu bar."
    • Viewing the source code is a difficult way to copy text from a website, as the text you're looking for will be formatted in HTML. But when all else fails, it does work to allow you to copy text from any website.
  2. If you're using a Chromium-based browser like Chrome or Edge, check the box next to "Line wrap" at the top-left to make the text a bit easier to skim through. In Firefox, right-click a blank area on the source code and choose Wrap long lines .
  3. You can now wade through the source code to find the pieces of text you want to copy. Just use the mouse to highlight the text you want, then press Ctrl + C (PC) or Cmd + C (Mac) to copy it. You can then paste it anywhere.
    • To find something specific in the source code, look for a word inside of the text you want to copy. Then, press Ctrl + F (PC) or Cmd + F (Mac) and type that word to find an instance of it in the code.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000891.htm#chrome
      2. ↑ https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/114662
      3. ↑ https://www.xda-developers.com/microsoft-edge-grammar-editor-web-select
      4. ↑ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/features/web-select?form=MT00D8&ch=1
      5. ↑ https://www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-tools/save-as-pdf-instructions/
      6. ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/print-or-create-a-pdf-of-a-webpage-ibrw1060/mac
      7. ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/preview/if-you-cant-select-or-copy-text-in-a-pdf-prvw1499/mac
      8. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212630
      9. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212630
      1. ↑ https://support.google.com/surveys/answer/6172725?hl=en

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