How to convert a PDF to Word
In 30 seconds: go to ilovepdf.com, pick PDF to Word, upload your file and hit Convert. Free, no sign-up. Watch out: if your PDF is a scan, the free mode will not make it editable.
Someone sends you a PDF and you need to change something: a date, a name, a whole paragraph. But a PDF does not let you edit it, and retyping it by hand is losing an afternoon.
Converting it to Word takes under a minute, it is free and there is nothing to install. Here are the steps, plus the two things almost no tutorial covers: why the text sometimes comes out uneditable, and what happens to the layout.
Go to iLovePDF
Go to ilovepdf.com. If the site comes up in another language, you change it from the top right: click the nine-dots icon and look for Language.
In the grid of tools, find PDF to Word and click it.
Select your PDF file
Click the red Select PDF file button.
Notice it is singular: this tool converts one document at a time. If you have several, you will have to repeat the process for each one.
You can also drag the file straight from your folder onto the red box, which is quicker. And if it lives in the cloud, the icons beside it pull it from Google Drive or Dropbox.
Pick the mode: OCR or no OCR
Here is the part where nearly everyone gets stuck. The panel on the right has two modes:
- No OCR — The free one. Works when the PDF has real text, the kind you can select with your mouse.
- OCR — Labelled Premium, meaning paid. This is the one you need when the PDF is a scan or a photo of a sheet of paper.
How to tell which case you are in, in five seconds: open your PDF and try to select a bit of text with your mouse. If it selects, the free mode is all you need. If you cannot select anything because the whole page is an image, it is a scan.
And this is the important bit: if your PDF is scanned and you use the free mode, the Word file you download will have the pages embedded as images and you will not be able to edit a single word. It is the most repeated complaint about this tool, and this is almost always the cause.
Click "Convert to WORD"
With the mode picked, click the red Convert to WORD button at the bottom right.
It takes a few seconds, depending on how many pages the document has.
Download the Word file
The result screen appears with the Download WORD button. Click it and the file is saved to your downloads folder.
Next to it are the usual icons:
- Google Drive and Dropbox, to save it to the cloud without downloading.
- The link, to share it without emailing the file.
- The bin, which deletes it from the server right then.
What happens to the formatting
An honest warning about the result: the conversion is not magic.
The text comes across in full and edits without any trouble. The layout is another matter:
- A plain text document comes out practically identical.
- Tables usually hold up well.
- Documents with lots of columns, text boxes or oddly placed images can come out shifted around.
- Fonts are swapped for whichever ones you have installed, so the look can change.
Always open it in Word and give it a once-over before you call it done. If it is a brochure full of design, expect to fix something.
What happens to your files
This applies to all these tools, not just this one.
Your file is uploaded to an iLovePDF server so it can be converted. It is processed there and deleted automatically after a few hours. The connection is encrypted.
For an ordinary document there is no problem at all. But if it is a contract with bank details or something with medical information, think twice: for that you are better off with a program that runs on your own computer and uploads nothing.
If you upload it anyway, click the bin when you are done to wipe it from the server there and then.
And that is it: a PDF turned into an editable Word file, free and with nothing installed.
Keep the two things that matter: check whether your PDF has selectable text before converting, and check the layout once you open it.
Common questions
I converted my PDF but I cannot edit the text in Word. Why?
Because your PDF is a scan or a photo, not a document with real text. Converted with the free mode, the pages go into the Word file as images, so you can see them but not touch them. What you need for that is OCR mode, which recognises the letters inside the image, and on iLovePDF that is paid. To check which case you are in: open the PDF and try to select the text with your mouse. If it will not select, it is a scan.
Does it keep the original formatting?
The text always, yes. The layout depends. A plain text document comes out practically the same, and tables usually hold up well. What gets shifted around are documents with lots of columns, overlapping text boxes or unusually placed images. Fonts also get swapped for whichever ones you have installed. It is worth opening it and giving it a once-over before sending it to anyone.
Can I convert several PDFs at once?
Not on the free version: this tool works with one file at a time, and the button says so in the singular. If you have several, repeat the process for each. The paid version does let you process several in a row.
Is there a size or page limit?
Yes, the free version caps the size per file. If your PDF is over it, the site tells you before converting. A way round it without paying: run it through the compress PDF tool first to bring the weight down, then convert it.
Can I do this on my phone?
Yes. The site works the same in a phone browser. The awkward part comes afterwards: to edit the Word file you will need the Word app or Google Docs on the phone, and checking the layout on a small screen is tiring. Do it on a computer if you can.
Is it safe to upload a contract or a document with personal data?
It depends how sensitive it is. The file travels encrypted, is processed on the iLovePDF server and is deleted automatically after a few hours. For an everyday document there is no problem. For contracts with bank details or medical information, you are better off with a program that runs on your own computer and uploads nothing. If you upload it anyway, click the bin icon when you are done.
