The Best Solutions for Converting PDF to TXT Format

June 26, 2024Gerald Christian

We usually choose PDF and TXT formats to save our text files. Compared to TXT, PDF ensures that the text in the file is stable and that there is no garbled text or disordered text and images. The font and spacing of the text are also not affected during transmission. Therefore, we often choose PDF as the output format when we need to print a document. However, the price of maintaining stability is that it is not easy to modify. If you find typos or missing symbols in a PDF document, you may be unable to make changes easily. And you cannot freely adjust the layout of the text and paragraphs. So, if you want to change something in a PDF, it's best to convert it to the more flexible TXT format first. But we can't do this manually. We need the help of a professional PDF to TXT format converter. We wrote this article to help you find the tool that's easiest to use. We'll introduce you to two desktop format converters that run very stably and then recommend three free tools that are extremely easy to call up. Detailed step-by-step instructions will accompany each tool. Read on and explore with us.

Part 1. Can PDF Files Be Texted
Part 2. Best Method to Convert PDF to TXT
Part 3. Free Methods to Convert PDF to TXT

Part 1. Can PDF Files Be Texted

PDF files are often more stable. Even if they are uploaded to different websites or sent to different people, the content inside the file will not be changed. Therefore, most users choose PDF as the output format when sharing files. There is no problem sending a PDF file to someone by message. However, PDF files tend to be larger, and some messaging apps may have file size restrictions. You need to pay more attention to whether your PDF file meets the app's requirements before sending it. If the file is too large to be sent directly, we can save it to the cloud first and then send it to others by sharing it via the cloud.

Another thing we need to pay attention to is that the recipient's device needs to have a built-in PDF reader. However, this is not a problem, as almost all smartphones and tablets now have this function. The recipient can open the file and check the contents with a PDF reader.

If the recipient needs to make changes to some parts of the document, they may find it difficult to manipulate the PDF file directly. In this case, it is best to convert the PDF to a TXT file before proceeding with the next modification step.

Part 2. Best Method to Convert PDF to TXT

We can't convert from PDF to TXT on our own. We need the help of a professional format converter. But there are so many tools of this type that you may find it difficult to choose. In the following, we will provide you with two desktop PDF to TXT converters that are pretty easy to use. If you are afraid of encountering problems during operation, you may wish to follow in our footsteps.

Adobe Acrobat

Two of Adobe's most famous products are Photoshop and Premier. But that doesn't mean these are the only two tools with excellent performance. Adobe can provide excellent solutions for most multimedia file processing. We can choose Adobe Acrobat as our helper when we are looking for a way to change PDF to TXT without losing quality. It is an all-in-one tool designed for creating and editing PDF files. With its help, we can convert various files, such as images, slideshows, and Word documents, into PDF format or export PDF files as TXT. What's most surprising is that it even has a built-in electronic signature maker. With its help, you can quickly sign contracts or documents online. Its user interface and usage are not as complicated as Photoshop, so you don't need to worry about not knowing how to use it.

Here is what you need to do to convert PDF to TXT with Adobe Acrobat.

Step 1.

Get Adobe Acrobat on your computer. Launch it on your device.

Step 2.

Click File > Open to upload your PDF file to the platform. When the file is loaded, choose Open.

Step 3.

The right side of the interface has an Export PDF option. Click on it.

Step 4.

Click More Format and choose Text(Plain). After that, choose Export.

Step 5.

Name your exported file, and click Save to download the converted file to your computer.

Aiseesoft PDF Converter Ultimate

Aiseesoft PDF Converter Ultimate is a professional PDF converter. It currently supports converting PDF, Word, Text, Excel, PowerPoint, EPUB, HTML, JPG, TIFF, PNG, GIF and other formats. It is equipped with the most advanced OCR technology to ensure accurate text recognition in various languages, including English, French, Chinese, etc. You will enjoy an unparalleled PDF conversion experience. In addition, if your PDF file is too large and has too many pages, you can convert only a portion.

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Here are the steps to transform PDF to TXT with Aiseesoft PDF Converter Ultimate.

Step 1.

Download and install the latest version of PDF Converter Ultimate. Then, you can launch the program to convert PDF files into TXT.

Step 2.

Click the Add File(s) button to select PDF files in the program. Once you have the desired files, click Open to import them.

Step 3.

Select the Output Format as TXT from the drop-down list, and you can edit the files in PDF format. Click the PDF button to start to convert your PDF files.

Part 3. Free Methods to Convert PDF to TXT

In addition to paid desktop applications, free format converters are also a great option. They often offer free services and are extremely easy to use. Let's get to know three excellent tools together.

Google Docs

Google Drive, a file management tool built into Google Chrome, allows us to upload our own files to the cloud and collaborate with our friends to edit their content. You can also convert PDF files to editable text formats with Google Docs on this platform. The entire operation process is still very simple.

Here is what you need to do to convert PDF files with Google Docs.

Step 1.

Prepare the PDF file you want to convert on your computer. However, the file you upload should be less than 2 MB.

Step 2.

Launch Google Chrome on your computer, and enter the Google Drive platform within the browser.

Step 3.

Upload your PDF file to the Google Drive. And right-click on it.

Step 4.

Choose Open with in the drop-down menu, and select Google Docs.

Step 5.

Now, you can find the converted version of your file in Google Drive. If you want to save it on your computer, choose Download.

PDF2TXT

PDF2TXT is a free PDF format converter. Users can easily enjoy format conversion services without paying a fee. More importantly, this app currently supports batch converting PDF to TXT, and users can even process their files in batches via the command line. Compared to several other tools, its page design is more traditional, but its running speed is not inferior at all.

To convert PDF to TXT using PDF2TXT, follow the steps below.

Step 1.

Download and install PDF2TXT on your computer.

Step 2.

Launch it on the desktop. Click Add file(s) to upload your PDF file to the platform.

Step 3.

After loading the file, choose a folder to keep the output document under the Save to folder section.

Step 4.

Go to the Convert to section, and select Text files as the output format.

Step 5.

Finally, click Convert to text.

Smallpdf

Smallpdf is a fairly simple online PDF converter. Users can convert PDF to other file formats directly without downloading or installing any software, as well as registering and logging in. It can be used not only on computers, but also on mobile devices to complete tasks such as format conversion. In addition to the converter, the platform also provides 25+ PDF editing tools.

Here are the steps to export PDF to TXT with Smallpdf.

Step 1.

Open Smallpdf within your browser.

Step 2.

Launch PDF Converter, and click Select files to upload the PDF file.

Step 3.

When the file is loaded, choose an output format in the right panel of the page.

Step 4.

Then, click Convert selectable text only > Convert.

Conclusion

In this post, we provide you with five solutions for converting PDF to TXT. They include three desktop tools and two excellent online format converters. We have also prepared a detailed step-by-step guide to ensure that you can refer to it and complete the entire conversion process.

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