data-tools

Extract tables from PDF to Excel and CSV

Copying tables out of PDFs breaks columns. This tool detects each table, keeps rows and columns, and saves an Excel workbook you can download.

What you get

Python example

from apify_client import ApifyClient  # pip install apify-client

client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN>")
run = client.actor("fguiraud/pdf-table-extractor").call(run_input={
    "sources": [
        {
            "url": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jsvine/pdfplumber/stable/examples/pdfs/background-checks.pdf"
        }
    ],
    "saveFiles": True
})

for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    for table in item["tables"]:
        print(table["page"], table["header"])

No Python? Open the Actor page, paste your input in the form and press Start; results export to JSON, CSV or Excel.

Real output

Fields from a real run on 2026-10-01 (long values shortened):

{
  "source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jsvine/pdfplumber/stable/examples/pdfs/background-checks.pdf",
  "status": "ok",
  "tableCount": 1,
  "pagesProcessed": 1,
  "tables": [
    {
      "index": 0,
      "page": 1,
      "header": [
        "NICS Firearm Background Checks November - 2015",
        "",
        "",
        "..."
      ],
      "rows": [
        [
          "State / Territory",
          "Permit Handgun Long Gun *Other **Multiple Admin",
          "",
          "..."
        ],
        [
          "",
          "",
          "",
          "..."
        ],
        [
          "Alabama",
          "18,870",
          "23,022",
          "..."
        ],
        "..."
      ],
      "csv": "NICS Firearm Background Checks November - 2015,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,\nState / Territory,Permit Handgun Long Gun *Other **Multiple Admin,,,,,,Pre-Pawn,,,Redemption,,,Returned/Disposition,,,Rentals,,Private Sale,,,Return..."
    }
  ],
  "files": {
    "tables": [
      "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/yBL90wQZMyIloRpUY/records/001-background-checks-table-1.csv?signature=1lTVlAs5h5Hph1kfJpvAp"
    ],
    "xlsx": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/yBL90wQZMyIloRpUY/records/001-background-checks-tables.xlsx?signature=3uLdDUE8rTuwRNVLcbQm"
  }
}

Pricing

$0.003 per document.

FAQ

Bank statements and invoices?

Yes if the table is visible in the PDF; scans go through OCR.

Can an AI agent use it?

Yes. It is an MCP server at https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fguiraud/pdf-table-extractor (listed in the official MCP registry), and there is an agent skill for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor. Field-name guesses such as url or urls are accepted.

Ready-made examples