Can this tool make scanned archive PDFs searchable?

No — text extraction requires an embedded text layer in the PDF. Scanned documents without a text layer need OCR processing first. Deliteful offers a separate PDF OCR tool for that use case.

Will the output file names match the source PDFs?

Yes — each output .txt file is named to correspond with its source PDF, making it straightforward to maintain archival correspondence during bulk ingestion.

What document management systems can I import the text files into?

Any system that accepts plain text or UTF-8 encoded files. Common examples include SharePoint, Confluence, Notion, Elasticsearch, and most enterprise DMS platforms.

How do I handle an archive with more than 50 PDFs?

Process in batches of up to 50 files. Each batch produces a set of .txt files you can download and ingest before running the next batch.

Make Archived PDF Documents Full-Text Searchable with Text Extraction

Archives full of PDF documents are only as useful as your ability to find content inside them. Deliteful extracts the embedded text from PDF files and produces plain text output that can be indexed, searched, and ingested into document management systems — turning a static file store into a searchable knowledge base.

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Records managers and archivists dealing with legacy PDF collections — board minutes, policy documents, historical filings — frequently face a search problem: the files exist, but locating a specific clause or name means opening each one manually. Extracting the text layer and indexing the output in a DMS or even a simple full-text search tool (SharePoint, Notion, Elasticsearch) changes this entirely. A 10-year archive of board resolutions becomes retrievable in seconds.

Deliteful outputs one UTF-8 .txt file per PDF with page separators preserved, making it easy to maintain the correspondence between source document and extracted text during bulk ingestion. Files up to 300 MB are supported, and batches of up to 50 PDFs can be processed in a single run — suitable for phased migration of large archives.

How it works

1
Create a free account
Sign in with Google in 3 clicks — no credit card required.
2
Upload archived PDFs
Drag in up to 50 files per batch, each up to 300 MB.
3
Extract text
Deliteful processes each PDF server-side and extracts all selectable text.
4
Download and ingest
UTF-8 .txt files, one per source PDF, ready for indexing or DMS import.

Frequently asked questions

Can this tool make scanned archive PDFs searchable?: No — text extraction requires an embedded text layer in the PDF. Scanned documents without a text layer need OCR processing first. Deliteful offers a separate PDF OCR tool for that use case.
Will the output file names match the source PDFs?: Yes — each output .txt file is named to correspond with its source PDF, making it straightforward to maintain archival correspondence during bulk ingestion.
What document management systems can I import the text files into?: Any system that accepts plain text or UTF-8 encoded files. Common examples include SharePoint, Confluence, Notion, Elasticsearch, and most enterprise DMS platforms.
How do I handle an archive with more than 50 PDFs?: Process in batches of up to 50 files. Each batch produces a set of .txt files you can download and ingest before running the next batch.