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PDF to text

Extract selectable PDF text into a plain-text file locally. Scanned image-only pages need OCR and are reported honestly.

or drop one PDF here

Up to 50 MiB and 500 pages

Up to 1,000,000 extracted characters

Files remain in your browser No file upload No account required

How to extract PDF text

  1. Select one readable PDF containing selectable text.
  2. Review page previews and choose text-layout options.
  3. Extract locally, preview the result, and download UTF-8 TXT.

PDF text extraction questions

Is the PDF uploaded?

No. PDF parsing, text extraction, preview, and TXT creation run in this browser.

Does this perform OCR?

No. It extracts text already stored in the PDF. For scanned image-only pages, use OCR PDF to create searchable English text first.

Will columns and tables stay identical?

No. PDF stores positioned text rather than document structure, so reading order and spacing are best-effort, especially for columns and tables.

Need to create a PDF from plain text? Convert TXT to PDF.

About this tool

Recover selectable PDF text as a plain-text file

PDF to text reads text objects already stored in the document and writes them to UTF-8 TXT. Optional page headings make multipage output easier to follow.

Useful for

  • Reuse paragraphs from digitally created PDFs.
  • Create a lightweight text copy for search or notes.
  • Inspect which pages contain extractable text.

Good to know

  • Image-only pages require OCR and may produce no text here.
  • Columns, tables, and reading order are reconstructed on a best-effort basis.
  • The output contains text, not the original page design.