PDFS are an excellent way to lock in your excel, word, and other files' formatting and content within, however, once it's locked, it becomes difficult to make changes.
That is, unless you convert your PDF files back to CSV formatting.
A CSV simply means comma-separated value, which allows data to be saved in a tabular and editable format. Usually, they’re from a spreadsheet-based software (like Excel or Google Sheets).
If you have spreadsheet-based content in your PDF file and want to convert it into a CSV to be able to edit it, we’ll show you all the ways you can do that below.
We’ll cover all the ways you can convert your PDF files to CSV, with step-by-step screenshots and overview for different tools. Whether you’re a Mac or Windows user or if you want to convert your files online or offline.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
- How to Convert PDF to CSV Using Adobe Acrobat Pro
- How to Convert PDF to CSV Online?
- How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac?
- How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac Using Enolsoft PDF Converter with OCR?
- How to Convert PDF to CSV in Windows?
- Converting PDF to CSV Frequently Asked Questions
How to Convert PDF to CSV Using Adobe Acrobat Pro
Adobe Reader is the go-to PDF tool for many people.
It can assist you in converting PDF to CSV, but you can’t do it in the free software, you’ll need to upgrade to Adobe Acrobat Pro to get the desired results.
Here’s how to convert PDF to CSV in Adobe Acrobat pro:
1. Open your desired PDF file
Launch Adobe Acrobat Pro and open your PDF record. Go to ‘Home’ and click on ‘Browse’. A new window will pop up, navigate to your desired PDF document, and click ‘Open’.

Step 2: Convert PDF to CSV
Click on ‘Tools’ at the top right corner of the window. Select ‘Export PDF’ from the ‘Create and Edit’ section.

Next, select ‘Spreadsheet’ and then ‘Microsoft Excel Workbook’ from the menu. Click on the ‘Export’ button.

Step 3: Save Your Exported CSV File
Name your Excel spreadsheet file and click ‘Save’.

You will now have the option to open your new Excel report and ensure that the data shows correctly.
Now, in order to convert .xlsx to.csv, head over to ‘File’ and select ‘Save as.
Go to ‘Browse’ and navigate to the folder where you want to save the CSV file. Click on ‘Save as type’ and change it to CSV. Click on ‘Save’ and you’re done.

How to Convert PDF to CSV Online?
There are multiple online ways to convert a PDF file to CSV format.
One way to do so is through PDFTables.
Here’s how:
Step 1: Open PDFTable
Go to PDFTables, click on the ‘Convert a PDF’ button to start changing over to CSV.

Step 2: Open PDF File
Navigate to the file that you want to convert to CSV and click ‘Open’.
Step 3: Convert PDF to CSV
When the upload has finished, click the drop-down next to the ‘Download as Excel’ button and select CSV to download it as a CSV file.

Step 4: Save the CSV file to your desired location
The file will be automatically downloaded to your ‘Downloads’ folder. Navigate to that folder and move it to your desired location.
After moving your CSV file, click on it to open it, and your converted PDF will open as a CSV file.
On most PCs, CSV documents open in Excel.
If you want to open it in an alternate program, right snap on your file, select 'Open with' and select a program from the drop-down.
You have now effectively changed your file from PDF to CSV!
How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac?
There are multiple ways in which you can convert a PDF to CSV on a Mac. A few of them are built-in, while the others will have to be downloaded.
How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac Using Preview?
For Mac users, there is a free answer for changing PDF to CSV with Preview.
Preview is a macOS application to open, edit, and analyze PDFs and images.
Step 1: Open the PDF in Preview
Open the PDF record with Preview. You can launch it by double-clicking on the file that you want to convert to CSV.

Step 2: Move the Required Table
Select the tables or required parts, right snap, and pick ‘Copy’.

Then, paste the copied table or data to a CSV record, or an Excel file.
You can convert the Excel file later into the CSV format by using the ‘Save As’ option from the ‘File’ section. Choose ‘CSV’ from the drop-down list while saving the file.

While you can edit the PDF content as a CSV this way, there are a few disadvantages of using Preview for conversions, such as:
- Can't bunch convert PDF to CSV.
- CSV formatting might be lost.