Best PDF Converters 2024: The Ultimate Summary
26 May 2024 Senior Product Manager
Summary
Discover the best pdf converter for easy editing and conversion. Streamline your document management by converting PDFs into Word, Excel, JPG formats, etc.
Table of contents
PDF, short for Portable Document Format, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1993. It ensures consistent layout and content display regardless of the device or method used to open the document. Additionally, PDF files are difficult to edit and offer better content protection. Therefore, PDF is the ideal format for viewing and sharing documents. In various work scenarios, such as creating corporate brochures, training manuals, business contracts, and invoices, PDF is commonly employed. Even if the original document is in Microsoft Word, sending a PDF copy is more efficient as it avoids compatibility issues arising from different Word versions, missing fonts, or diverse operating systems (e.g., Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android).
Despite the advantages of PDF, working with PDF documents can be more difficult than other formats like Word. Often, converting the file format is necessary before editing a PDF. The most common conversion is from PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPEG, EPUB, and other formats. To assist you in converting PDF files quickly, we recommend various popular PDF conversion software.
When choosing PDF conversion software, it is important to consider your specific needs and requirements. With numerous options available online, it is crucial to be cautious of unsafe software. To assist you in making the right choice, the following sections will provide a brief explanation of various aspects to consider when selecting PDF conversion software.
Excellent PDF conversion software should have the following points:
- upports a wide range of file formats including PDF, DOC, DOCX, PowerPoint, PPTX, XLS, XLSX, ODT, and various image formats (JPG, PNG, TIFF), among others.
- Provides high-quality conversions. A good PDF conversion software will retain the same format and content as the source file after file conversion, and will not lose any data.
- Provides fast conversion speeds to minimize waiting time.
- Offers a single or one-click batch conversion function for efficient processing of multiple files.
- Includes OCR text recognition functionality to extract text from scanned documents for easy searching and editing.
- Features a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate and understand, even for novice users.
Renee PDF Aide is a full-featured PDF conversion and editing software with a simple interface. It offers high conversion efficiency, up to 80 pages per minute, when converting PDF to Word. The software supports conversion to other formats such as Excel, PowerPoint, ePub, Text, HTML, and Image formats. Its built-in OCR text recognition function quickly identifies scanned PDF files or image content and converts them into editable document formats. In addition to format conversion, Renee PDF Aide can also be used for splitting, merging, optimizing, repairing, encrypting, and decrypting PDF files. It is the best alternative to Adobe Acrobat software, offering a free trial and being more suitable for personal use.
Supported operating systems: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP/2000 (32-bit and 64-bit versions).
Hot Topic - ADsRenee PDF Aide - Powerful PDF Editing Tool 
Easy to use Friendly to computer beginners
Multifunctional Encrypt/decrypt/split/merge/add watermark
Safe Protect PDF with AES256 algorithms
Quick Edit/convert dozens of PDF files in batch
Compatible Convert PDF to Excel/PowerPoint/Text, etc.
Easy Use with simple steps
Functional Encrypt/decrypt/split/merge/watermark
Safe Protect PDF with AES256 algorithms
Free TrialFree TrialNow 800 people have obtained the free version!advantage:
- The PDF conversion speed is fast, and the conversion rate is as high as 80 pages per minute.
- PDF editing features are diverse.
- It has OCR technology to recognize and convert PDF scans and content in pictures.
- Its simple design provides a user-friendly interface for both beginners and professionals.
- Simple operation and easy to use.
shortcoming:
- Mac OS is not supported.
- The text content of the PDF cannot be edited directly.
In Renee PDF Aide, the operation is very simple to convert PDF files, the following is an example of converting to Word format.
① After installing Renee PDF Aide, open it. Select (Convert PDF).
② Select the document format to be converted in the top menu bar, such as Word, and then select the save location of the target document.
③ Click the (Add Files) button to add the PDF files to be converted, and you can import multiple files in batches. After the file is successfully added, the information of the file to be converted will be displayed in the conversion list, click (select page) to set the page for file conversion.
TipsYou can choose (Enable OCR) if you need to convert the scanned PDF to an editable document format. The software provides three text recognition modes:
A: Recognize text in pictures or scanned PDFs: This option defaults that the text on the PDF page is on the picture/scanned image, and the program will directly use the PCR function (selecting the corresponding language will be better) to recognize the text on the file and output it.
B: Recognize built-in notes (avoid garbled characters): This option defaults to using embedded fonts for the text on the PDF page, and the program will convert these fonts into images, and then use the OCR function (selecting the corresponding language will have a better effect) to recognize the text output of the file.
A+B: (slower): The program automatically recognizes whether the font in the file is a picture or a PDF embedded font, and then converts and outputs it. But the recognition is time-consuming, and the conversion time will be longer
④ Finally, click the (Convert) button to convert. When the prompt conversion is over, the software will prompt the total number of converted files and the number of successfully converted files. At this time, the PDF has been successfully converted into a Word document.
Adobe Acrobat is a top choice for quickly converting PDF files to Word or editing PDFs. It allows you to select specific content to convert while preserving fonts, layouts, bullets, and tables. It also supports converting scanned PDFs to various formats and using OCR text recognition to convert scanned content into editable text. Adobe Acrobat can convert PDFs to Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, PNG, HTML, RTF, PostScript, XML, and plain text. It offers powerful and professional PDF editing functions and is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux. However, it is more expensive than other software and not ideal for personal use.
advantage:
- The PDF conversion speed is fast and supports multiple format conversions.
- Has a very complete PDF editing tool.
- Easy-to-use toolbar and user-friendly interface.
- OCR technology can be used to recognize scanned PDF files.
shortcoming:
- The price is high compared to other PDF editing software.
- Due to high fees, it may not be suitable for individuals and small businesses.
- Acrobat DC is a large-scale application, and it may crash when used on some computers with poor performance.
- ePub format not supported
Nitro PDF Pro is a versatile software that quickly converts any format to commonly used file types like PowerPoint, Word, Excel, TEXT, Image, and HTML, while preserving the original format, images, and fonts. It offers fast conversion speed, a user-friendly interface similar to Microsoft Office, and simple operation. Additionally, it allows file editing with features like bookmarks, hyperlinks, watermarks, text boxes, password protection, and form filling.
Support operating system: Windows
advantage:
- Convert and create PDF files easily and simply.
- Support conversion of most mainstream file formats.
- The OCR text recognition function has high accuracy.
- The conversion speed is fast.
- Support for collaborative review.
- You can freely edit text, images, page formats, etc. in the PDF.
- Intuitive Microsoft Office-style interface for ease of use
shortcoming:
- Not compatible with Mac computers.
- Cannot be converted to ePub format.
Icecream PDF Converter is a free software for quickly converting PDF files to various formats, including Word, JPG, TIFF, BMP, PNG, GIF, EPS, and HTML. It also allows for converting different file types to PDF. The software offers OCR text recognition for scanned PDFs, enabling the creation of editable Word documents. Additionally, it features batch conversion, layout settings, file merging, and more. It is important to note that Icecream PDF Converter is available in both free and PRO versions. The free version limits conversions to the first five pages of each PDF document, with a maximum file size of 3.
Support operating system: Windows
advantage:
- The interface is simple and easy to operate.
- Use the built-in PDF reader to preview and select the page range to convert.
- No watermark is applied to the output file.
- Support batch conversion.
shortcoming:
- The free version can only convert the fifth page of a PDF document.
- The conversion speed is slow, and the waiting time will be longer when converting large files.
Able2Extract Professional is a user-friendly PDF conversion software that efficiently converts PDF files to various formats such as Word, Excel, CSV, PowerPoint, Publisher, AutoCAD, OpenOffice, and images. It supports batch processing and offers high-precision OCR text recognition for extracting content from scanned PDFs or images into editable Word, Powerpoint, or Excel documents. Additionally, it provides robust PDF editing features including the ability to add electronic signatures, edit text and images, and split or merge PDF pages.
Supported Operating Systems: Windows, macOS and Linux
advantage:
- Support more than 12 kinds of file format conversion.
- PDF conversion is fast.
- It can convert complex and large PDF files into Excel, and the conversion effect is good.
shortcoming:The conversion has a higher purchase price.
Comparison between the five software:
| Renee PDF Aide | Adobe Acrobat | Nitro | Icecream PDF Converter | Able2Extract Professional | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supported OS | Windows | Windows/Mac | Windows | Windows | Windows/macOS/Linux |
| price | free trial | Acrobat Standard DC: $155.88/year Acrobat Pro DC: $179.88/year | $159 | PRO version $19.95 | $149.95 |
| Supported output formats | Word/ Excel/ PowerPoint/ EPUB/ text/ HTML/ JPG/ PNG/ etc. | Word/ Excel/ PowerPoint/ JPG/ TIFF/ PNG/ etc. | DOC/ Excel/ PowerPoint/ RTF/ JPG/ TIFF/ etc. | Word/ TIFF/ BMP/ PNG/ GIF/ EPS/ WMF/ HTML | Word/ Excel/ PowerPoint/ Publisher/ Text/ AutoCAD/ HTML/ CSV and image formats |
| OCR text recognition function | √ | √ | √ | √ | √ |
| PDF editing function | √ | √ | √ | x | √ |
| repair PDF | √ | x | x | x | x |
In addition to professional PDF conversion software, you can also convert PDF to various file formats through online conversion tools. The main advantage of the online PDF conversion tool is that it can be used without downloading software, but the disadvantage is that there is a risk of privacy leakage.
Online2PDF is an easy-to-use PDF converter. It supports converting PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OpenOffice, XPS, EPUB, and various image formats. You can customize the conversion by selecting specific pages, rotating, reordering, or splitting PDF pages. The tool also offers real-time preview and customization options like header/footer, layout, and compression. Please note that there are size limitations: the maximum file size per upload is 100MB, the total file size cannot exceed 150MB, and you can upload up to 20 PDF files simultaneously.
Online2PDF online conversion link: https://online2pdf.com/
DocuPub is a user-friendly online conversion tool that allows you to quickly convert PDF files without the need for software downloads. Simply upload your file, choose the desired format, and click convert.
This online conversion tool supports converting PDF to BMP, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, EPS, PS, and PCX file formats. The PDF file size should be less than 20MB for successful conversion. Batch conversion is not available, and files must be processed one by one. You can download the converted file directly from the page or receive it via email, based on your preference.
DocuPub online conversion link: https://docupub.com/pdfconvert/
PDF24 Tools is a free online conversion tool that allows you to convert PDF files into various formats such as text, HTML, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Openoffice, PNG, and more. It supports batch conversion, allowing you to upload multiple PDF files simultaneously with no conversion limits. Additionally, PDF24 Tools offers other file editing features including merging, splitting, editing, rotating, adding watermarks, and text recognition. The interface is user-friendly and straightforward.
PDF24 online conversion link: https://tools.pdf24.org/convert-pdf-to
Zamzar’s online conversion tool is extremely user-friendly, requiring just four steps to convert PDF files. It supports various document formats like EPUB, DOC, JPG, and more. You can also add watermarks and passwords to files. Batch conversion is available, with a file size limit of 50MB. The converted file can be downloaded or emailed directly.
Zamzar conversion link: https://www.zamzar.com/
Convertio online conversion tool can help you convert PDF to word, PowerPoint, EPUB, HTML, JPG, RTFD, PNG and other formats, and even supports conversion between more than 300 different file formats. The operation of this online converter is simple and the conversion speed is fast. Convertio supports simultaneous conversion of a single PDF file or multiple PDF files, but the file size cannot exceed 100MB.
Convertio conversion link: https://convertio.co/
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