Text & data
Convert PDF to Markdown
Drop in a PDF and get Markdown with headings, paragraphs and lists, not one line per printed line. Convert several at once and take them as a ZIP. The file never leaves this browser.
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How it works
- Add PDFsChoose one PDF or several. Nothing is uploaded.
- Recognize a scanIf a file is a scan, tap Recognize text on its row; text PDFs convert straight away.
- Copy or downloadTap Copy Markdown or Download .md, or Download all as ZIP for several files.
Save and continue on the desktop
Download or copy your result here first. Open the free desktop to save to Files or use more features.
- Quick notes in a stream, or titled notes
- Save to Files when you continue on the desktop
- Every tool in one place, no new tabs
After you download, continue on the desktop for Files or the full app.
What PDF to Markdown can do
Paragraphs, not printed lines
Copy text out of a PDF and you get a line break wherever the page wrapped, words split at the margin, and a page number mid-sentence. Here lines are joined back into paragraphs, split words are mended, and on documents of three pages or more, headers and footers that repeat on most pages are dropped.
Headings come from the type size
Nothing in a PDF says "this is a heading", so size decides: a line set at 18 points among 10-point text becomes #, a 13-point line becomes ###, and a long line in slightly larger type stays a paragraph. It is a guess from the type, so skim the headings before you rely on them.
Scans are read too
A scan has no text layer (its pages are pictures of letters), so its row offers “Recognize text”. Recognition runs in your browser, in the page’s language plus English; it downloads a reading model once (about 5 MB) and uploads nothing. It reads the first 20 pages; split a longer scan and read it in parts. Check names, numbers and dates in what it reads.
What it will not pretend to do
Text and headings, not layout: two-column papers are read as text, and figures, charts and text boxes are not rebuilt. Tables are read by where their text sits: rows of cells in clear columns become a GFM pipe table, while merged cells come through as plain text, because a pipe table has no way to write them. Where it cannot tell, it gives you the text rather than a guessed table.
Related apps
Questions
Is my PDF uploaded anywhere?
No. It is parsed in your browser, on this device. The file is never sent to a server, and we never see it.
Can I convert several files at once?
Yes. Add as many as you like. Each becomes its own .md file, and one button downloads them all as a ZIP.
What happens with a scanned PDF?
It has no text layer, so the tool says so and offers “Recognize text”. Recognition runs in your browser, in the page’s language plus English; the first time it downloads a reading model (about 5 MB). Check names, numbers and dates afterwards, because recognition can misread a character.
Are tables converted?
Yes, when its columns line up. Nothing in a PDF marks a table as one, so it is read from where the text sits: rows of cells aligned in columns become a GFM pipe table, on a scan too. Merged cells and a table pasted in as a picture come through as text.
Does it work offline?
Yes, once you have opened the nopa desktop: it saves itself for offline use, the PDF reader included, and this page is kept the next time you open it. Reading a scan needs one online run as well, for the reading model.