New Feature: Extract Text From PDFs Instantly

We’ve released a new feature inside PrefillPDF:

You can now extract raw embedded text from PDF files using either:

• a direct file URL
• a file upload
• or the PrefillPDF API

This makes it easier to pull text from documents and use it inside your own workflows, automations, and backend systems.

What This Feature Does

This feature is built for one clear purpose:

extract the raw text already embedded inside a PDF file

That means if your PDF contains selectable, machine-readable text, PrefillPDF can return that text quickly through the frontend or API.

This is useful for workflows where you need the document text itself for:

• internal processing
• search
• parsing
• storage
• downstream automations

Two Ways to Use It

1. Upload a PDF in the Frontend

Inside the PrefillPDF dashboard you can:

1. Upload a PDF

2. Choose whether to return the text inline or as a download

3. Extract the raw embedded text instantly

This is useful when you want to test a document manually before building automation around it.

2. Extract Text Using a File URL

You can also provide a public PDF link.

Example:

https://example.com/report.pdf

PrefillPDF will:

1. fetch the file

2. read the embedded text

3. return the extracted content

This is ideal when your documents already live in cloud storage or are generated by another system.

API Examples

Extract from URL

curl -X 'POST' \
  'https://api.prefillpdf.com/extract-text-from-url?file_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.prefillpdf.com%2Fexample.pdf&inline=true' \
  -H 'accept: application/json' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' \
  -d ''

Extract from File Upload

curl -X 'POST' \
  'https://api.prefillpdf.com/extract-text?inline=true' \
  -H 'accept: application/json' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' \
  -H 'Content-Type: multipart/form-data' \
  -F 'file=@example.pdf;type=application/pdf'

Inline or Download Mode

You can choose between two response styles:

• Inline → return extracted text directly in the response
• Download → return the extracted text as a downloadable file

That gives you flexibility depending on whether you're building a live UI workflow or a backend pipeline.

Common Use Cases

Document Pipelines

Pull raw text from PDFs before sending it into internal systems.

Search and Storage

Extract text so documents can be indexed, searched, or archived more easily.

Parsing Workflows

Use extracted PDF text as the first step before applying your own rules or processing logic.

Frontend Testing

Quickly upload a file and verify what text is actually embedded in the PDF.

Important Note

This feature is designed to return embedded text from PDFs.

If a document is image-based or scanned without a readable text layer, the result may be limited or empty unless that text already exists inside the file.

What’s Next

This release is part of our broader goal to make PrefillPDF a flexible PDF workflow platform.

We’re continuing to expand tools for:

• PDF extraction
• PDF filling
• watermarking
• workflow automation
• developer-friendly document APIs

More updates are coming soon.

Thanks for using PrefillPDF 🚀