Extract text from a PDF
Extract text from a PDF is pulling the real characters out of a document rather than guessing at pixels. This tool reads the PDF's own text layer, which is exact — the author's characters, not an OCR approximation.
PDF to Text — free and local
Extracts the embedded text layer into a clean UTF-8 .txt file.
Text layer vs OCR
A PDF produced by Word, LaTeX, Google Docs or a design tool contains a real text layer. Extracting it is lossless: every character is the one that was typed. OCR, by contrast, looks at pixels and guesses, which is why OCR output is full of "rn" for "m".
A scanned PDF has no text layer at all — it is a stack of photographs. This tool reports that honestly instead of returning plausible-looking nonsense. If the output is empty, the document needs OCR.
What the output looks like
Plain UTF-8 text with a page marker before each page, so a quote can be traced back to its source. Paragraph breaks are preserved from the layout engine where available; complex multi-column layouts may interleave, because plain text has no concept of columns.
Tables lose their structure. If the goal is a spreadsheet, converting to text and then re-parsing is usually more work than re-exporting from the original source — if you still have it.
Privacy and speed
Running locally matters more here than it sounds: documents worth extracting are often contracts, transcripts or internal reports. Nothing is uploaded, and a 300-page document processes in a couple of seconds because there is no round trip.
Questions
Why is the output empty?
The PDF is a scan with no text layer. Only OCR can help; this tool does not fake an extraction.
Are page breaks preserved?
Yes, with a page marker before each page.
Does it work on protected PDFs?
Only after the password is removed — an encrypted document cannot be read without it.
Related
SlimPDF runs every tool in your browser. No file is ever uploaded, stored or shared.