Universal Document Format Transformer

Convert documents between formats instantly without installing any software. Just provide a URL and get your converted file in seconds.

🚀 Get Started in 30 Seconds

1. Go to the Actor: Universal Document Format Transformer
2. Click "Run Actor"
3. Enter your file details:

   {
     "fileUrl": "https://example.com/your-document.docx",
     "fromFormat": "docx",
     "toFormat": "markdown"
   }
   

4. Get your converted file - Download link appears in results

That's it! No software to install, no API keys needed for basic use.

✨ What You Can Do

• 🔄 Convert DOCX to Markdown - Perfect for GitHub documentation
• 📊 Extract tables from HTML to CSV - Great for data analysis
• 📄 Transform PPTX to PDF - Ideal for sharing presentations
• 📝 Convert TXT to HTML - Useful for web publishing
• 📋 Process multiple formats - DOCX, PPTX, HTML, TXT → Markdown, JSON, CSV, HTML, TXT, PDF

📋 Supported Formats

What You Can Convert From (Input)

Format	Best For	Example Files
DOCX	Reports, articles, documentation	*.docx
PPTX	Presentations, slides, training	*.pptx
HTML	Web pages, online articles	*.html, *.htm
TXT	Plain text, simple data	*.txt

What You Can Convert To (Output)

Format	Perfect For	When to Use
Markdown	GitHub docs, technical writing	Converting Word docs for code repositories
JSON	Data processing, APIs	Extracting structured content
CSV	Spreadsheets, data analysis	Pulling tables from web pages
HTML	Web publishing, email	Converting docs for websites
TXT	Simple text, logging	Extracting plain text from any format
PDF	Sharing, printing	Final document distribution

⚠️ Important: PDF Limitations

• ❌ Cannot convert FROM PDF - This is a technical limitation
• ✅ Can convert TO PDF - Perfect for final output
• 💡 Workaround: Convert PDF to HTML online first, then use this actor

💡 Popular Use Cases

📝 Content Teams & Bloggers

Convert Word documents to Markdown for GitHub

{
  "fileUrl": "https://example.com/blog-post.docx",
  "fromFormat": "docx",
  "toFormat": "markdown"
}

Perfect for:

• Technical documentation
• GitHub README files
• Markdown-based blogs
• Documentation sites

📊 Data Analysts & Researchers

Extract tables from web pages to CSV

{
  "fileUrl": "https://example.com/financial-report.html",
  "fromFormat": "html",
  "toFormat": "csv"
}

Perfect for:

• Financial data extraction
• Research data processing
• Spreadsheet analysis
• Data import to Excel

🎯 Product Managers & Business Users

Convert presentations to PDF for sharing

{
  "fileUrl": "https://example.com/presentation.pptx",
  "fromFormat": "pptx",
  "toFormat": "pdf"
}

Perfect for:

• Client presentations
• Training materials
• Meeting handouts
• Document distribution

🤖 Automation Builders

Process text files to structured data

{
  "fileUrl": "https://example.com/data.txt",
  "fromFormat": "txt",
  "toFormat": "json"
}

Perfect for:

• n8n workflows
• Zapier automations
• Make.com integrations
• API data processing

📝 How to Use

Step 1: Prepare Your File URL

Your file must be:

• ✅ Publicly accessible (no login required)
• ✅ Direct link to file (not a web page)
• ✅ Under 50MB in size
• ✅ HTTP or HTTPS protocol

Good URLs:

https://example.com/report.docx
https://cdn.example.com/files/presentation.pptx
https://storage.googleapis.com/bucket/document.html

Bad URLs:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/123/view (requires login)
https://example.com/page.html (web page, not file)
ftp://example.com/file.docx (wrong protocol)

Step 2: Choose Your Formats

Check format compatibility:

From \ To	Markdown	JSON	CSV	HTML	TXT	PDF
DOCX	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
PPTX	✅	✅	⚠️	✅	✅	✅
HTML	✅	⚠️	⚠️	✅	✅	✅
TXT	✅	⚠️	⚠️	✅	✅	✅

Legend:

• ✅ Excellent - High quality conversion
• ⚠️ Limited - Works but may lose some formatting

Step 3: Run the Conversion

Option A: Use Apify Web Interface (Easiest)

1. Go to Actor Page
2. Click "Run Actor"
3. Enter your JSON input
4. Click "Run"
5. Download your converted file

Option B: Use API (For Automation)

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/WgRQY2Ta2VKQE5NgO/runs?token=YOUR_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "fileUrl": "https://example.com/document.docx",
    "fromFormat": "docx",
    "toFormat": "markdown"
  }'

📤 What You Get Back

After conversion, you'll receive:

{
  "downloadUrl": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/...",
  "inputFormat": "docx",
  "outputFormat": "markdown",
  "fileSize": 12345,
  "processingTime": 2.5,
  "status": "success"
}

What each field means:

• downloadUrl: Link to download your converted file (works for 7 days)
• inputFormat: The format we detected from your file
• outputFormat: The format you requested
• fileSize: Size of your converted file in bytes
• processingTime: How long the conversion took
• status: "success" or "error"

🚨 Common Problems & Solutions

❌ "Invalid URL format"

Problem: Your URL doesn't work Solution:

• Check URL starts with http:// or https://
• Test the URL in your browser first
• Make sure it's a direct file link, not a web page

❌ "File not found"

Problem: The file doesn't exist or moved Solution:

• Verify the URL is correct
• Check if the file was deleted or moved
• Try uploading the file again

❌ "Access denied"

Problem: File requires login or permission Solution:

• Use a publicly accessible file
• Upload to public cloud storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.)
• Make sure sharing permissions allow public access

❌ "Unsupported input format"

Problem: You tried to convert from PDF Solution:

• PDF cannot be used as input (technical limitation)
• Convert PDF to HTML first using online tools
• Then use this actor to convert HTML to your desired format

⏰ "Conversion timed out"

Problem: File is too large or complex Solution:

• Keep files under 50MB
• Try a simpler output format
• Split large documents into smaller parts

💡 Pro Tips

🎯 For Best Results

1. Test with small files first - Make sure everything works
2. Choose the right format combination - Check the compatibility matrix
3. Use direct file URLs - Avoid web pages that require login
4. Check file size - Keep under 50MB for reliable processing

🔗 Getting File URLs

Google Drive:

1. Right-click file → "Share"
2. Set to "Anyone with the link can view"
3. Copy link and change .../view?usp=sharing to .../uc?export=download

Dropbox:

1. Right-click file → "Share"
2. Create link with "Can edit" permissions
3. Copy the direct download link

OneDrive:

1. Right-click file → "Share"
2. Set to "Anyone with the link can view"
3. Copy the link and ensure it's a direct download URL

S3/Cloud Storage:

1. Set bucket/object to public read
2. Generate pre-signed URL if needed
3. Ensure URL points directly to the file

⚡ Speed Tips

• TXT files convert fastest - Use when possible
• DOCX to Markdown is very reliable - Great for documentation
• HTML to TXT preserves text well - Good for content extraction
• Simple conversions work best - Avoid complex format chains

🔧 Advanced Configuration

For Power Users

If you're using this in automation, you can adjust these settings:

Setting	Default	What it Does
File Size Limit	50MB	Maximum input file size
Timeout	60 seconds	Maximum conversion time
Retry Attempts	3	How many times to retry failed downloads

API Usage

For high-volume usage, consider:

• Batch processing - Process multiple files sequentially
• Error handling - Check status before processing next file
• Download timing - Files are available for 7 days only

🆘 Need Help?

Quick Troubleshooting

1. File not working? - Try the URL in your browser first
2. Conversion failed? - Check if format combination is supported
3. Taking too long? - File might be too large or complex
4. Wrong output? - Verify your fromFormat matches the actual file type

Get Support

• 📖 Actor Page: View on Apify
• 🐛 Report Issues: GitHub Issues
• 💬 Community: Apify Forum
• 📧 Direct Help: Contact through Apify platform

🎉 Ready to Start?

▶️ Run the Actor Now

No registration required for basic use. Free tier includes processing credits.

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