> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.apryse.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.apryse.com/cli/pdf2text/pdf2text.md).

# Extract Text from PDF via Command Line: Windows, Linux, macOS

Apryse's PDF2Text is an easy-to-use, multi-platform command-line program for high-quality and efficient text extraction from PDF documents. Convert text from any PDF document as Unicode or as structur

Apryse's **PDF2Text** is an easy-to-use, multi-platform command-line program for high-quality and efficient text extraction from PDF documents on Windows, Linux and Mac. PDF2Text can be used to convert text from any PDF document as Unicode or as structured XML, while providing a wide range of output styles and configuration options.

<a href="/cli/get-started/download.md" class="button primary">Download PDF2Text</a>

{% hint style="info" %}
Looking to do a bit more with your pdf data? Server SDK also features [Smart Data Extraction](/core/smart-data-extraction/document-structure.md).
{% endhint %}

**PDF2Text is offered as an easy-to-use command-line application and as a software development component that can be used as a building block for other client and server-based applications.**

<a href="/core/basic-operations/extraction/extraction.md" class="button primary">SDK Guide</a><a href="/core/get-started/samples/textextracttest.md" class="button primary">SDK Sample</a>

## Why PDF2Text?

* **Complete Unicode support.** PDF2Text can process PDF files from any

part of the world (including Asian languages) and represent the extracted text using UTF-8 and UTF-16. To improve Unicode output PDF2Text can recognize vendor-specific Unicode character assignments (in the Private Use Area) and map them to public Unicode area. Similarly Unicode ligatures and PDF specific ligatures can be broken into a sequence of individual Unicode characters. Characters that can't be mapped to Unicode are predictably mapped in the Private Use Area.

* **Intelligent Text Recognition.** Intelligent text recognition and

logical structure engine used to recognize words, lines, paragraphs, and the reading order in PDF documents. The engine can remove duplicated text commonly used to drop shadows, or text that is obscured by other page content. The text extractor also works flawlessly with PDF documents that contain rotated text or documents where the information is presented in a random order or is scattered across the page.

* **Highest Reliability and Robustness.** PDF2Text was from ground-up

designed to be run in high throughput server-based and multi-threaded applications. A regular and rigorous Q\&A process sets high standards for the reliability of all Apryse products.

* **Top Performance.** Advanced text recognition and content analysis

algorithms coupled with low-memory usage and native code efficiency, make PDF2Text the ideal choice for high-traffic servers as well as for interactive applications.

## **Key Functions**

* Extracts text from any PDF document to text or as structured XML.
* Offers different Unicode text encoding (UTF-8 and UTF-16) options.
* Provides positioning, font, and styling information for every Paragraph, Line, Word, or a Glyph on a page.
* Offers options to control the level of detail and the formatting in the output XML.
* Offers advanced options to control ligature expansion, hyphen removal, and to remove duplicate text (e.g. which is sometimes used for drop shadow effects).
* Allows for text extraction from a clip rectangle or to hide text in specific regions on a page.
* Option to remove hidden text or text that is obscured by other page elements (such as images or rectangles).
* Support for all versions of the PDF format (PDF 1.0 to ISO32000).
* Full support for encrypted documents (40 and 128 bit RC4 and 128 bit AES).
* Supports automation and batch operation.

## **Sample Use Case Scenarios**

* Server-based, on-demand conversion of PDF documents to text format files.
* Extract text from a large PDF repository for text indexing or content retrieval purposes (e.g. to implement a PDF search engine).
* Classify or summarize PDF documents based on their content. Find specific words for content editing purposes (such as splitting pages based on keywords, etc).
* Convert PDF pages to text or XML for content repurposing.
* Search PDF pages for specific words or keywords and return their positioning information (e.g. to highlight instances of a given word).

## **Operating Systems Supported**

* Windows, Linux and Mac.

## **System Requirements**

* At least 10 MB of free disk space.
* 2 GB or RAM.

## Examples

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Shell" %}
{% code lineNumbers="true" %}

```sh
#!/bin/sh
echo "Example 1): Convert PDF to Text"
./pdf2text "Apryse PDF2Text User Manual.pdf" --lic_key "<PDFNET_LICENSE_KEY>"
echo
echo "Example 2): Convert PDF to Text for page 1 in wordlist format with bounding box"
./pdf2text -o test_out -a 1 -f wordlist --output_bbox "Apryse PDF2Text User Manual.pdf" --lic_key "<PDFNET_LICENSE_KEY>"
echo
echo "Example 3): Convert PDF to Text for page 1 in wordlist format with bounding box"
./pdf2text -o test_out -a 1 -f xml --output_bbox *.pdf --lic_key "<PDFNET_LICENSE_KEY>"
```

{% endcode %}
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

## [PDF SDK](https://apryse.com/products/core-sdk/pdf)

For developers who are looking for a software development component to integrate into their application, Apryse also offers a [PDF SDK](https://apryse.com/products/core-sdk/pdf), that is easy-to-use, yet powerful software component for embedding into client and server based applications. Apryse's PDF SDK is available as a plain 'C DLL' and can be easily accessed from any programming language (including C#, VB.NET, C/C++, Java, VB6, Perl, Python, Ruby, Delphi, etc). Our PDF SDKis Apryse's own comprehensive PDF library. If you require rasterization or additional PDF functionality, please visit ([https://apryse.com/products/core-sdk/pdf/](https://apryse.com/products/core-sdk/pdf)) or contact a [Apryse representative](https://apryse.com/contact-us) for more information.


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.apryse.com/cli/pdf2text/pdf2text.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

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