With Tabula you can select and extract a table from a PDF file and then save the information in formats like CSV, TSV, and more. The platform also lets you select a row or column to save the data. Unlike other programs that extract table data from PDFs, Tabula is distinguished by its simplicity and efficiency during the extraction process.
Once you download the program from its official website, you'll see a CMD window open and a tab will open in your default web browser, which will be the interface (http://127.0.0.1:8080/).
Steps to extract tables
- The first thing to do is find the PDF file on your computer and then click the Import button. At this point, the utility will load the PDF in the browser tab and split it into pages.
- Now choose the page from which you want to extract the tables and use the mouse to select the table (or part of it). Then click the green button at the top of the interface.
- You'll go to another stage of the process, where you'll see the table content extracted. All that remains is to select the output format (CSV, TSV, JSON, ZIP of CSV, or Script). To finish the extraction, click the export button or save the information to the clipboard.
As you can see, working with the environment is really simple. If you want to make things even easier, you can click the Autodetected Tables button and the platform will detect all the tables on all pages of the PDF and extract them in the format you select.
Truly, the tool is one of the simplest options for extracting tables from a PDF file, but its ability to detect all tables in a document and extract them into a single file makes it stand out from similar utilities. Tabula is a free program available for Windows and Mac OS X.
Official website: tabula.technology
