How to Copy a Table from a PDF to Excel

Last Updated: December 23, 2021

Do you have a PDF table that you want to add to your Excel sheet? If you try copying the data in PDF and then pasting it into your Excel sheet, you'll probably get jumbled and non-sensical results. PDFs and Excel don't use the same file format, so they aren't easy to move information between. This wikiHow article will teach you how to copy a table from a PDF to Excel using the import feature in the spreadsheet software.

Steps

1
Open Excel. You can open a new project or continue a saved project in Excel.
- You'll also need to know where in the PDF your table is so when you're importing it, you'll be able to find it easily.
2
Select a cell where you want to start the table. This will be the top left corner of the table you're copying from the PDF.

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3
Click Data. It's in the menu above the editing ribbon next to File and Review.
- If you're using a Mac, this is in the menu that's running along the top of your screen.
4
Click Get Data. For Windows, it's the furthest icon on the left of the menu.
- For Mac, you'll see this in the drop-down when you click Data.
5
Click From File and From PDF. With each selection, the menu will continue expanding until you select From PDF, after which Excel will open your file manager (Finder for Mac and File Explorer for Windows).
6
Navigate to and double-click your PDF. You can also single-click your PDF to select it, then click Import.
7
Click the table you want to copy from the PDF to Excel. Knowing the location of the table you want to copy is important since they are labeled by location (which page they are on).
- If you click on a table on the left, the table's preview will appear in the panel on the right side.
8
Click Load. It's in the bottom right corner and will allow you to copy the table from the PDF to your Excel sheet.
- If you want to make changes to the data in the table, you can do it after you click Load.^{[1]
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