PDF to text
Get the text out of a PDF so you can copy, edit or search it. Scanned pages can be read with text recognition, right in your browser.
- No upload
- Free, no sign-up
- Runs on your device
Drop a PDF to extract text
or choose a file · Any PDF document
Stays on your device
How to use PDF to Text
- 1
Drop your PDF
The text is extracted page by page.
- 2
Check the text
For scanned pages, run text recognition (OCR).
- 3
Copy or download
Copy it to the clipboard or save a .txt file.
Text PDFs vs scanned PDFs
Most PDFs made on a computer, like exported documents, invoices and e-books, contain real text. GrabKit reads it directly, so the result matches the document exactly.
A scanned PDF is really a set of pictures of pages, with no text inside. For those, GrabKit can run text recognition (OCR) on each page to read the words. OCR works best on clean, straight, high-contrast scans.
OCR here reads English. For other languages, convert the pages with PDF to JPG and use Image to text, which supports 20+ languages.
Frequently asked questions
Is PDF to text free?
Yes, completely free. There is no sign-up, no watermark, no daily limit and no premium plan.
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. GrabKit processes your file with code that runs inside your own browser. The file is never sent to a server, so nobody (including us) can see it. You can even disconnect from the internet after the page loads and the tool keeps working.
Why is the extracted text empty?
The PDF is probably scanned, so its pages are images without a text layer. Run text recognition (OCR) to read them.
Which languages does OCR support?
OCR on PDFs reads English. For other languages, convert the pages to images with PDF to JPG, then use Image to text.
Is the layout kept?
Line breaks are kept, but tables, columns and formatting become plain text. That makes it easy to paste into any app.
Can I extract text from a password-protected PDF?
Yes. Enter the password when asked. It’s used only in your browser.