PDF to Text
Extract all text from a PDF into a plain .txt file free. Works on any text-based PDF, right in your browser with no upload.
The 10-second test: switch off your Wi-Fi (or turn on airplane mode) and use this tool anyway. It keeps working — because there is no server doing the work.
The technical check: open your browser's developer tools, go to the Network tab, and run the tool. Your file is never sent anywhere.
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Select PDF files
or drag & drop — pasting works too (Ctrl+V)
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How to extract text from a PDF
Select a PDF and download all of its text as a .txt file — handy for quoting, translating, or feeding documents into other apps. Works on PDFs with real text; scanned image-only documents will come out empty.
What you get
A plain text file containing every word the PDF actually stores as text, with no formatting, images or layout. That is the point: it is for feeding into something else — a search, a spreadsheet, a script, a word count, or an AI tool that wants raw text rather than a document.
Why a scanned PDF returns nothing
If you get an empty or nearly empty file, your PDF is almost certainly a scan. It contains pictures of words, not words, so there is nothing to extract. Run it through OCR PDF first to create a text layer, then come back here.
Why the text order sometimes looks scrambled
PDFs store text as positioned fragments rather than as sentences, so extraction has to infer reading order from coordinates. Single-column documents come out clean. Multi-column layouts, sidebars, tables and footnotes are where the order can jump around, because the file itself contains no information about which column comes first.
A privacy use worth knowing
Extracting the text is the quickest way to check whether a document still contains something you thought you had removed — for instance, verifying that a redaction actually worked. If the word appears here, it is still in the file.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my extracted text empty?
Your PDF is probably a scan — an image of text rather than real text. Text extraction needs selectable text.
Does it keep the formatting?
Line breaks and paragraph structure are kept where possible; fonts and layout are not, since the output is plain text.
What can I do with the extracted text?
Anything — paste it into a translator, an email, a document, or any app that takes plain text.
Why is my extracted text empty?
The PDF is a scan — it contains images of text rather than text. Run OCR PDF on it first.
Why is the text out of order?
PDFs store positioned fragments, not sentences, so reading order is inferred. Multi-column layouts and tables are where it can jump around.
Can I use this to check a redaction worked?
Yes, and it is the best quick test. If the word you redacted still appears in the extracted text, it was covered up rather than removed.