Microsoft Lens has been retired

Microsoft Lens has had a bit of a turbulent past, in a manner of speaking. The free document scanner app was initially known as "Office Lens" and made available for Windows Phone back in 2014, before making its way to other platforms. In 2021, it was rebranded to Microsoft Lens, and just last year, the Redmond tech giant announced its imminent demise. Now, Microsoft has confirmed that the app has finally been retired.

In a support document, Microsoft has noted that Microsoft Lens for Android and iOS is retired as of January 9, 2026. It will no longer be supported after February 9, at which point it will also be removed from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. That said, users will be able to continue scanning documents until March 9, after which they will not be able to create new scans, but still be able to access their previous scans through the last active Microsoft account that they signed in from.

As Microsoft kills off Microsoft Lens in a phased manner, it has recommended customers to use OneDrive for scanning documents moving forward. The cloud sharing service contains an integrated scanner that can be accessed via the "+" icon at the bottom of the app's display. Do note, however, that OneDrive does not support saving scans locally; they will be stored in your cloud repository.

The currently recommended alternative is rather interesting, because last year, Microsoft had suggested using the Microsoft 365 Copilot app, where it would be investing most of its efforts in terms of adding new features. Regardless, it's clear that the Redmond firm believes that Microsoft Lens has served its purpose, and that similar or better capabilities are now available in other first-party services too. That said, keep in mind that while Microsoft Lens will be removed from app stores in March, it will continue to remain accessible on devices where it is already installed.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Sunday 11 January 2026 at 6:01 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025: 5,700+

RIP Matrix