Free tool · free Formatix account · runs on our servers
Free PDF to Word converter
Turn a PDF CV or document into an editable Word file, with the layout kept as closely as the PDF allows.
- Free account, no card
- Converted on our servers
- PDF in, Word out
PDF to Word runs on the Formatix platform
PDF in, Word out. A faithful conversion needs a full office layout engine, so this tool runs on our servers. It is free with a Formatix account: work email, no card, and it does not use your formatting credits.
- 1Sign in or sign up
- 2Drop your PDF file
- 3Download the Word
About this tool
This free tool converts a PDF into an editable Word document (.docx). It rebuilds paragraphs, headings, tables and images from the PDF so you can edit the text in Word, and keeps the layout as closely as the PDF allows. It runs on Formatix's servers with a free account; files up to 30 MB. Scanned PDFs that are only pictures of text will come out as pictures, not editable text.
How it works
- 1
Open the tool
Sign in to your free Formatix account, or create one with a work email; there is no card and no expiry.
- 2
Drop the PDF
One PDF at a time, up to 30 MB. A CV, a job spec, a client brief.
- 3
Download the Word file
Open it in Word and edit. Check tables and columns, which are the parts PDFs describe least clearly.
What converts well, and what does not
- Text-based PDFs (exported from Word, Google Docs or a CV builder) convert best: paragraphs, headings, bullet lists and simple tables come back editable.
- Multi-column layouts and text boxes are rebuilt as closely as the PDF allows; check the reading order.
- Scanned PDFs are images of paper: the pages come back as images. Text recognition is not part of this tool.
- Fonts the PDF uses but your computer does not have are replaced by Word with a similar font.
Where the conversion happens
Your file is sent to Formatix and converted on our servers, not in your browser, because a faithful conversion needs a full office layout engine. The result comes straight back to you as a download and is not stored on our side. Even so, the file does travel to our server; for anything you would rather keep on your own computer, the browser-only tools on this page never upload.
Questions recruiters ask
- Is it free?
- Yes. The tool is free with a free Formatix account, which needs a work email and no card. It does not use your formatting credits.
- Why do I need an account when the other tools do not?
- The other tools run in your browser. Converting PDF to Word faithfully needs a layout engine that runs on our servers, and an account lets us keep that fair and protected from abuse.
- Can it convert a scanned CV?
- It converts it, but a scan is a picture of text, so the Word file will contain the page images rather than editable text.
- How big a file can I convert?
- Up to 30 MB per PDF, one at a time.
- Is my file uploaded?
- Yes. Unlike the browser-only tools, this one sends the file to Formatix to convert it. The converted file comes straight back as a download and is not stored.
Converting CVs so you can reformat them?
If the reason you are turning a CV into Word is to retype it into your agency's layout, skip that step. Formatix reads any CV, PDF or Word, in over 40 languages, and fills your own branded template in about 30 seconds.
More free tools for recruiters
- Word to PDFTurn a Word CV, profile or letter into a PDF that looks the same on every screen.
- Extract text from a CVPull the plain text out of a CV PDF to paste into an ATS, a job spec or an email.
- Compress a CV PDFShrink a scanned or photo-heavy CV PDF to get under an ATS, job board or email upload limit.
- CV anonymiserRemove the name, contact details, photo, date of birth and nationality from a PDF or Word CV.
Open source: github.com/OpenRecruiterTools/recruiter-tools (MIT). Uses pdf.js, pdf-lib, JSZip and SheetJS, served from formatix.ai.