What this tool does
The PDF Text Extractor reads PDF files from an Airtable attachment field and writes their text content to a text field. It handles both digital PDFs (with embedded text) and scanned PDFs (image-based, requiring OCR).Settings reference
Source
Output settings
Extraction settings
Record filters
How the tool detects scanned PDFs
The tool automatically checks each page for text content. If a page contains fewer than 50 characters, it’s treated as a scanned/image page and OCR is applied (if enabled). Digital pages with text are extracted directly without OCR.Handling the 100K character limit
Airtable text fields have a 100,000 character limit. If a PDF’s extracted text exceeds this:- Truncate at 100K: Text is cut at the limit. The remaining content is lost.
- Split across multiple fields: Text is split at line boundaries across multiple fields you specify. This preserves all content.
Common questions
Can it extract text from password-protected PDFs?
Can it extract text from password-protected PDFs?
No. Password-protected PDFs are skipped with a warning in the execution log.
What if a PDF is corrupted?
What if a PDF is corrupted?
Corrupted or invalid PDF files are skipped with an error in the execution log.
How accurate is the OCR?
How accurate is the OCR?
Accuracy depends on the scan quality, resolution, and language. High-quality scans with clear text produce good results. Low-quality or handwritten scans may have reduced accuracy.
Can I extract from PDFs and then search the text in Airtable?
Can I extract from PDFs and then search the text in Airtable?
Yes. Once the text is in a text field, you can search and filter by it in Airtable’s grid view.