Steps
Read a scanned PDF
Optional, for scans and photos of pages only. OCR recognises the text on each page and adds it to a searchable copy of the PDF, which the next step reads. If you can already select text in your PDF, skip this step.
Convert the tables to Excel
The PDF is read page by page. Tables with ruled lines are taken from the lines (a missing inner line means merged cells); tables without lines from how the columns of text line up, with wrapped text kept in its cell. Check each table found, untick the ones you don't want, choose one sheet per table or all on one sheet, then download an .xlsx file, or a CSV.
Requirements and sources
| What | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Largest Excel worksheet | 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns | Microsoft Support: Excel specifications and limits Last verified 2026-10-22 |
| Text in one Excel cell | 32,767 characters | Microsoft Support: Excel specifications and limits Last verified 2026-10-22 |
| Excel number precision | 15 digits | Microsoft Support: Excel specifications and limits Last verified 2026-10-22 |
| CSV rows and quoting (the CSV download) | Each record is located on a separate line, delimited by a line break (CRLF). Fields containing line breaks (CRLF), double quotes, and commas should be enclosed in double-quotes. | IETF RFC 4180: Common Format and MIME Type for Comma-Separated Values (CSV) Files, section 2 Last verified 2026-10-22 |
FAQ
How do I convert a PDF table to Excel without retyping it?
Drop the PDF in step 2 and press Find tables. Each table is shown with its first rows; download the Excel file and every table is on its own sheet with the same rows and columns. If the PDF is a scan, run step 1 first so there is text to read.
Will the numbers add up in Excel?
Yes. Amounts are written as numbers, not text: 1,234.56, (1,234.56) for a negative, £99.90, 12.5% and European 1.234,56 are all read, and each keeps a matching number format. Codes with leading zeros such as 00123 stay as text so the zeros are kept.
Can it read a table that has no lines?
Yes. Bank statements and many reports have no ruled lines; the columns are found from the gaps that run down the whole table. A description that wraps onto a second line stays in one cell.
Why is my table split into two sheets?
A table that continues on the next page is found once per page. Choose "All tables on one sheet" to put them one under another.
How good is it compared with other converters?
On our test set of 30 PDFs (15 kinds of table, each with and without ruled lines) it scored 98.9% cell-level F1, against 92.4% for Tabula 1.0.5 and 86.4% for pdfplumber 0.11.4 on the same files. The test files were generated by us, not taken from real-world PDFs, and they were made alongside the table finder, so they may suit it better than real files do; treat the figures as a guide. The method is in bench/tables in our repository.