# PDF Text Extractor: Get Text & Metadata from PDF URLs (`kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor`) Actor

Extract text, page count and metadata from PDF files by URL. Page-by-page output, password-protected PDFs supported, English, Japanese and other languages with embedded text. No API key needed. Pay only for PDFs that return text. Scanned PDFs are flagged, not charged.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor.md
- **Developed by:** [KOTARO project](https://apify.com/kotaro-project) (community)
- **Security:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 pdf extracteds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## 📄 PDF Text Extractor — get the text out of any PDF link

Give it links to PDF files. Get back the text, the page count and the title and author, ready for your spreadsheet, database or AI agent. No API key, no setup.

### What it does

- 📝 **Full text** of each PDF, in reading order as stored in the file
- 📑 **Page by page** output when you turn on `includePages`
- 🔢 **Page count, title and author** from the file's metadata
- 🔐 **Password-protected PDFs**: give the `password` and it opens them. The password is never written to logs or results
- 🌏 **Any language with embedded text**, including English and Japanese
- 🖼️ **Scanned PDFs are flagged, not charged**: `hasText: false` tells you the file needs OCR

### Input

| Field | What it is |
|---|---|
| `urls` | Links to PDF files (http or https) |
| `maxPages` | Read at most this many pages per PDF (default 500) |
| `includePages` | Also return the text of each page |
| `password` | Optional password for protected PDFs |

```json
{ "urls": ["https://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tests/xhtml/testfiles/resources/pdf/dummy.pdf"], "includePages": true }
```

### Output

One row per link:

```json
{
  "url": "https://example.com/report.pdf",
  "ok": true,
  "pageCount": 12,
  "pagesRead": 12,
  "truncated": false,
  "chars": 18342,
  "hasText": true,
  "title": "Annual Report",
  "author": "Example Inc.",
  "text": "..."
}
```

If a link cannot be read, the row has `ok: false` and an `error` that says why.

### Pricing

You pay per PDF that returns text. Links that fail and PDFs with no text (scans) are free.

### Good to know

- This Actor reads text stored inside the PDF. It does not do OCR, so scanned pages return no text.
- Tables come out as plain text lines, not as table cells.
- Limits: 100 MB per file, 200 links per run, about 5 minutes per run. Links not reached are listed so you can run them again.
- Private and internal addresses are refused. It does not log in to websites or solve CAPTCHAs: links must be publicly reachable.
- Only process documents you have the right to use.

# Actor input Schema

## `urls` (type: `array`):

Public http or https links to PDF files. One result row per link. Private and internal addresses are refused.

## `maxPages` (type: `integer`):

Read at most this many pages from each PDF, starting at page 1. The row says when a PDF was cut short.

## `includePages` (type: `boolean`):

Also return a 'pages' list with the text of each page, as well as the full text.

## `password` (type: `string`):

Optional. Used to open password-protected PDFs. Never written to logs or results.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "urls": [
    "https://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tests/xhtml/testfiles/resources/pdf/dummy.pdf"
  ],
  "maxPages": 500,
  "includePages": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "urls": [
        "https://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tests/xhtml/testfiles/resources/pdf/dummy.pdf"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "urls": ["https://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tests/xhtml/testfiles/resources/pdf/dummy.pdf"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "urls": [
    "https://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tests/xhtml/testfiles/resources/pdf/dummy.pdf"
  ]
}' |
apify call kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,kotaro-project/pdf-text-extractor"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/DNJipCTMtSfn8UZrd/builds/CSUdxufEw9GD4jKjg/openapi.json