How to Copy Text From PDF

When it comes to using PDFs, many can attest to the fact that oftentimes, the simplest task that you may want to perform with PDFs can turn out to be the hardest if you do not know how to accomplish them easily.

Why Need to Copy Text in a PDF File?

One of the most common tasks that almost everyone can accomplish with PDF is trying to copy text. It will involve highlighting the content that you want to copy, then right-clicking to transfer the copied section onto the clipboard, and then pasting that information onto a text file. However, the challenge will arise when you are trying to perform this same function and you have a lengthy PDF. In this instance, it will be quite painstaking to have to manually copy every page before being able to paste it.

In other instances, you may find that the device that you are using to try and copy and paste may not allow you to use the 'Select All' shortcut. If this is the case for you, then the only way to get around such a scenario is to manually copy, one-by-one each page or section that you are looking to paste.

Another scenario where simply copying and pasting may not work for you is if the PDF file that you are trying to work with is a scanned file. When it comes to scanned files, the computer does not recognize them as characters, it is recognized as dots. This means then that it will be next to impossible to copy any text from the PDF file if it is a scanned PDF.

How to Select Text from PDF?

To select text from PDF, the simplest way to get this done is to convert the PDF document into an editable text document format that will allow you to copy and paste any section of your choosing. Depending on the kind of information you are working with, and also depending on your needs, you can choose to convert the PDF into Word, Excel, or even PowerPoint. Once you are done, you can then be able to select any section of the text or all the text as you would do with any other kind of ordinary file.

How to Copy and Paste Text from PDF with CocoDoc?

CocoDoc Optical Character Recognition software provides its users with a very well-organized platform to work with to easily edit and convert PDF files online.

Step 1:On the CocoDoc platform select the format into which you will want to convert the file. You can choose to convert it either into Excel, Word, or PowerPoint.

Step 2:Select the PDF file from which you want to copy and paste, then drag and drop these onto the CocoDoc platform. You also have the option to upload your files from OneDrive, Google Drive, or Dropbox or to share the direct URL of the PDF file.

Step 3:Once you have selected the file, the tool will convert the file into the format of your choosing, and give you the option to save and download a copy onto the device that you are using. If, say you had opted to have converted the PDF into an editable Word Document, after the conversion into word you will now be able to download and save a copy of the document onto your computer.

Step 4:Open the editable format of the document, and freely copy and paste the text within it.

Can I Copy Text From Multiple PDFs At Once?

For you to safely copy text from multiple PDFs at one, you will need to have an Optical Character Recognition tool with batch processing capabilities.

If the OCR tool that you are using is not enabled for batch processing, a simpler way to go about it would be to merge multiple PDF files into one document. Once done, you can then convert the merged document into an editable format. That way you will be able to extract the information from your PDF files into one large file.

Conclusion

There is now a much easier way to copy and paste from PDF, and it involves a reliable online OCR tool and just a few clicks of a button to be able to get things done.