# Convert PDFs to Markdown for RAG pipelines

**Use case:** 

Turn PDF links into Markdown with headings and pipe tables, ready for chunking and embedding. Set per-page output to keep page numbers for citations. Scanned files are flagged rather than guessed at.

## Input

```json
{
  "urls": [
    "https://arxiv.org/pdf/1706.03762"
  ],
  "includePerPage": true,
  "maxPagesPerFile": 500,
  "maxFileSizeMb": 50,
  "concurrency": 3
}
```

## Output

```json
{
  "url": {
    "label": "URL",
    "format": "string"
  },
  "title": {
    "label": "Title",
    "format": "string"
  },
  "convertedPages": {
    "label": "Pages",
    "format": "integer"
  },
  "likelyScanned": {
    "label": "Likely scanned",
    "format": "boolean"
  },
  "truncated": {
    "label": "Truncated",
    "format": "boolean"
  },
  "markdown": {
    "label": "Markdown",
    "format": "string"
  },
  "error": {
    "label": "Error",
    "format": "string"
  }
}
```

## How it works

### 1. Sign up on Apify or log in

The PDF to Markdown for RAG and LLMs Actor is ready to run with the inputs already set for "Convert PDFs to Markdown for RAG pipelines". [Sign up or log in](https://console.apify.com/create-task-from-example/k0MuwJRTxua5z99J7) and you'll land in Apify Console with a copy of this exact task.

### 2. Start the "Convert PDFs to Markdown for RAG pipelines" task

The PDF to Markdown for RAG and LLMs Actor will start running based on the input automatically. You can also change all the input fields, like PDF URLs, include per-page output, and more, to match your specific use case.

### 3. Receive the "Convert PDFs to Markdown for RAG pipelines" output

Monitor the progress in real time. You will be notified as soon as your dataset is complete and ready for review. Each result includes data such as URL, title, pages, and more.

### 4. Integrate into your workflow

The final output is delivered in JSON, CSV, or Excel format, ready to be plugged into your workflow. You can also [run the "Convert PDFs to Markdown for RAG pipelines" task via API](https://apify.com/metaparse/pdf-to-markdown.md).

## FAQ

### Does it run OCR?

No. Scanned PDFs come back nearly empty and are flagged with likelyScanned, so you can route them to an OCR tool.

## About this Actor

This example demonstrates how to use [PDF to Markdown for RAG and LLMs](https://apify.com/metaparse/pdf-to-markdown.md) with a specific input configuration. Visit the [Actor detail page](https://apify.com/metaparse/pdf-to-markdown.md) to learn more, explore other use cases, and run it yourself.


## How to integrate an Actor?

This Task's input is already configured above. Use it as-is rather than inventing a new one.

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 full API examples (JavaScript, Python, CLI, MCP, OpenAPI), see this Task's Actor page: https://apify.com/metaparse/pdf-to-markdown.md

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`).