How do I extract text from a PDF online?

Drop your PDF file onto AllConvert, select TXT as the output format, and click Convert. The tool parses every page of your PDF and extracts the text content directly in your browser — nothing is uploaded to any server.

Can I convert a scanned PDF to text?

AllConvert extracts embedded text from PDFs. If your PDF was created from a scanner and contains only images without an embedded text layer, the extracted text may be empty. For best results, use PDFs that were created digitally or have been processed with OCR software beforehand.

Does converting PDF to TXT preserve formatting?

Plain text does not support formatting like bold, italic, tables, or columns. The conversion extracts the raw text content in reading order. If you need to preserve structure, consider converting to HTML or DOCX instead.

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Need to pull the text out of a PDF? AllConvert extracts readable plain text from your PDF files instantly, right in your browser. No upload, no account, no software to install. Your document never leaves your device.

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Why convert PDF to plain text?

PDF files are designed for consistent visual presentation, but that makes them difficult to search, edit, or process programmatically. Extracting the text gives you a lightweight, universal format that works everywhere. Plain text files are perfect for full-text search, copying quotes into other documents, feeding content into scripts or data pipelines, and making documents accessible to screen readers. A multi-megabyte PDF often becomes just a few kilobytes of clean text.

What happens during the conversion?

AllConvert parses your PDF page by page, extracts the embedded text content, and assembles it into a single TXT file in reading order. The conversion handles multi-page documents, multiple columns, and Unicode characters. Because it runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript, your file is never sent to a remote server. There are no file size limits beyond your device's available memory.

When should you keep PDF instead?

If you need to preserve the exact visual layout, fonts, images, headers, footers, or form fields, keep the original PDF. Plain text strips away all formatting and visual elements. For documents where appearance matters — contracts, brochures, or designed reports — PDF remains the right format. But when you just need the words, TXT is far more practical.

How to convert

Open AllConvert and drop your PDF file onto the page.
Select TXT from the format dropdown on the file card.
Click Convert and download your extracted text file.

The entire process runs locally in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, and it works on desktop and mobile, in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

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