We all know that PDF, as one of the most popular document formats, provides a way better readability than Word. But since it's a different format, usually you cannot integrate PDF content with a Word document.
That's what you'd presume. Right?
Well, in fact, there are some ways in which you can copy PDF content and paste it into a Word document with ease. If that's what you've been trying to do, keep reading and I'm sure this article will help.
But first, let's have a look why you can't copy PDF into Word.
Part 1: Why Can't You Copy Content From a PDF File?
Most of the content of a PDF file can be copied into a word document, however, in some cases, the contents could not be copied, and you need to convert PDF to Word first in order to copy what鈥檚 in it. The reason why you cannot copy the PDF file could be following:
1 The Reader Tool Does Not Support Copying
A lot of programs or tools can open PDF files, but not all of them allow you to copy what鈥檚 in it. If you are using a PDF reader tool that does not support copying, you need to convert PDF to Word first before you can copy any content in it.
2 The PDF File is Made of Scanned Pages
If there is an issue in which your Adobe Reader cannot copy and paste from a PDF file, there is a great possibility that the PDF file was made from scanned pages of books and do not have any real text within it.
3 The PDF File Could be Secured, Protected or Encrypted
If there is an issue in which your Adobe Reader cannot copy and paste from a PDF file, there is a great possibility that the PDF file was made from scanned pages of books and do not have any real text within it. Also, an encrypted PDF file has some security settings, for example, passwords that does not allow people who have the document to copy from the PDF file or make any changes to the content of the file.
Part 2: How to Copy PDF into Word with Adobe Acrobat Pro
Copying the text from the PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Pro and pasting it into a document is a straightforward way to insert a bit of text into Word. It is also important to note that pasting from a PDF sometimes imports artifacts including embedded line breaks. Especially for longer pastes, you'll probably have to tweak the resulting text to ensure it is typographically accurate.
Step 1: Open the PDF file in Adobe Acrobat.
Step 2: Right-click the document in the primary window and choose 鈥淪elect Tool鈥 from the menu that appears.
Step 3: Drag to select the text you want to copy.
Step 4: Right-click the selection, then select Copy with Formatting.
Step 5: Open the Word document. Place the cursor in the Word document where you want to paste the text from the PDF file then paste the copied text from the PDF file into the Word document.
Tips
This approach requires you to have Adobe Acrobat Pro installed on your computer. But for more users who does not have this program installed, the next solution which involves a PDF to Word converter program may be more helpful and practical.
Part 3: Copy PDF into Word by Converting PDF
As mentioned above, not everybody have Adobe Acrobat Pro. When you don鈥檛 have Adobe Acrobat Pro, using MintPDF to copy PDF to Word might be one of the best ideas. MintPDF allows you to convert a PDF to an editable Word file with ease. After the conversion, you can then freely copy anything in the file without any extra steps.
MintPDF is a program that enables the conversion of PDF files to Word, Excel, PPT, Image, Text, or HTML in batch at a very high speed. The program coverts PDF files within seconds and it produces a great output quality.
Key Features:
- Copy PDF to Word with original formatting.
- Select any part of the document to copy.
- Supports Word(docx, doc), Excel(xlsx, xls), images(jpg, png, bmp, gif, tif), PPT(pptx, ppt), txt and html
- High converting speed and solid output quality.
- Get 1-day free license by sharing MintPDF on social media.
Here is how to use MintPDF to convert PDF to Word in order to copy it.
Step 1: Download, install, and launch iMyFone MintPDF on your computer. Then choose the file type under the "Convert PDF" bar. In this case, choose the 鈥淭o Word鈥 option.
Step 2: Click "Add Files" or "Click to add or drag files here" tab and select the PDF file(s). Alternatively, you can simply drag your file(s) to the central panel. Next, specify the format and customize the save path for the output file(s) on the bottom panel.
Step 3: Freely check the file(s) you want to convert and click the "Convert" button to start. Whether or not the PDF file is encrypted, MintPDF will convert it automatically. However, you may have to enter the password for encrypted PDF(s).
Step 4: Finally, wait for it to finish and you can now get the output file(s) in your desired format.
Tips
Unlike other tools, MintPDF allows you to convert, copy and paste your PDF files with the original formatting. This PDF converter tool now provides a free license for everyone to claim. Get the free license and you can have access to more premium functions.
Part 4: Copy PDF into Word in Microsoft Word
This approach only inserts the text from a PDF directly into the Word document, and you can directly do it in Microsoft Word.
Note that Word converts the PDF into an editable text document. The result might not look the same as the original PDF, especially if the file includes graphics or text formatting. But if you don鈥檛 care too much about the formatting, this indeed is a simple way to copy an entire PDF file to a Word file. Here is how you can do that.
Step 1: Place the cursor in the Word document where you want to insert the text from a PDF file. Then select the Insert tab.
Step 2: Select the drop-down arrow next to Object in the Text group, then select Text from File
Step 3: Open the PDF file and select Insert, then click "OK" to confirm the conversion. Make sure the "PDF File" is selected.
Step 4: Click 鈥淥K鈥 if you get an alert that the conversion process might take a long time. After Word converts the PDF to text, a copy of the original PDF file will appear in the document.
Tips
This is a simple way for you do directly process PDF files in Microsoft Word. But again, you may lose formatting when Microsoft Word converts your PDF files. If you want to have a more decent PDF converting result, MintPDF would be a better choice than Microsoft Word.
Conclusion
Copying data or information from PDF files may be challenging at times, especially when the file is made up of scanned pages, when the file is restricted/secured or when the contents are encrypted. Besides using Adobe Acrobat Pro, Microsoft Word, MintPDF is another effective way to convert any PDF file into an editable format of Word document, Excel spreadsheet, etc. MintPDF is fast, effective, and reliable, as it increases productivity and keep the disorganization of the content of the PDF to the minimum. The program now offers a free license for everybody to gain full access for a limited time. Download now and give it a try!