Copy format to word document

The simplest way to copy format from one character, word, paragraph, or other elements in Microsoft Word, is
to use the Format Painter button (on the Home tab, in the Clipboard group). Still,
with keyboard shortcuts, it is faster.

If you have an element of text such as character, word, several words, phrase, etc. with some formatting
and want to copy this formatting to another element, do the following:

Ist method: using Format Painter:

   1.   Select the text with the formatting to copy.

   2.   On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click the
Format Painter button:

Format Painter in Word 2016

Note: If you want to apply that formatting multiple times, double-click the Format
Painter
button. In standard, the mouse pointer changes to include a paintbrush.

   3.   Select the text that you would like to change using the selected
format.

Notes: To copy the formatting to a single word, just double-click the word. Otherwise,
drag over the destination text to format.

If you double-clicked the Format Painter button, continue making selections until you’re done
applying the copied formatting. Press Esc or click the Format Painter button again to
deactivate it.

IInd method: using shortcuts:

   1.   Select the text with the formatting to copy.

   2.   Press Ctrl+Shift+C to copy the formatting of the selected
text.

   3.   Select the text to which you want to apply the copied formatting.

   4.   Press Ctrl+Shift+V to apply the formatting to the selected
text.

Note: These methods work for different elements in Word document, but there are some
tricks for copy formatting of paragraph and numbering (see how
to copy paragraph or numbering format without changing the text format).

See also this tip in French:
Comment copier le format facilement et rapidement.

Copy Text Formatting in Microsoft Word using the Format Painter or Keyboard Shortcuts

by Avantix Learning Team | Updated April 14, 2022

Applies to: Microsoft® Word® 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021 or 365 (Windows)

In Microsoft Word, you can copy text formatting quickly and easily using the Format Painter or keyboard shortcuts. You can copy character formatting only (such as font, size, and bold) or both character and paragraph formatting which would include alignment, indents and line spacing. In Word, a paragraph is anything with a hard return after it.

Recommended article: How to Check Word Count in Microsoft Word (4 Ways)

Do you want to learn more about Microsoft Word? Check out our virtual classroom or in-person classroom Word courses >

To view hard returns or paragraph marks and other nonprinting characters in Microsoft Word:

  1. Click the Home tab in the Ribbon.
  2. Click Show/Hide ¶ in the Paragraph group. Paragraph marks, tabs, spacing and other nonprinting characters will display but will not print. Click the same command to hide the paragraph marks and other nonprinting symbols.

1. Copying text formatting using the Format Painter

The Format Painter is a great tool for copying formatting. It appears on the Home tab in the Ribbon in the Clipboard group:

Format painter in Word to copy formatting.

To copy text formatting using the Format Painter:

  1. Select the text with the formatting you want to copy. Select characters only (such as a word or words) if you want to copy character formatting. Select an entire paragraph if you want to copy character and paragraph formatting.
  2. Click the Format Painter on the Home tab in the Ribbon in the Clipboard group. If you want to copy formatting to multiple instances of text, double-click the Format Painter.
  3. Drag over the text to which you want to copy the formatting. If you drag over characters only, Word will copy character formatting. If you drag over an entire paragraph or paragraphs, Word will copy character and paragraph formatting.
  4. Repeat if necessary by dragging over other text to which you want to copy formatting (if you had double-clicked the Format Painter).
  5. To turn off the Format Painter, press Esc.

2. Copying text formatting using keyboard shortcuts

To copy text formatting using keyboard shortcuts:

  1. Select the text with the formatting you want to copy. Select characters only (such as a word or words) if you want to copy character formatting. Select an entire paragraph if you want to copy character and paragraph formatting.
  2. Press Ctrl + Shift + C.
  3. Drag over the text to which you want to copy the formatting. If you drag over characters only, Word will copy character formatting. If you drag over an entire paragraph or paragraphs, Word will copy character and paragraph formatting.
  4. Press Ctrl + Shift + V.
  5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for other instances of text.

3. Copying paragraph formatting only

To copy paragraph formatting only:

  1. Ensure that paragraph marks are displayed.
  2. Drag over the paragraph mark of the paragraph with the formatting you want to copy.
  3. Press Ctrl + C.
  4. Drag over the paragraph mark of the paragraph with the formatting you want to replace.
  5. Press Ctrl + V.
  6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for other instances of text.

This article was first published on October 24, 2021 and has been updated for clarity and content.

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На чтение 2 мин Опубликовано 09.09.2015

Копируем форматирование в Word

Копирование и вставка различного содержимого в Word – одна из обыденных задач. Например, Вы можете копировать и вставлять форматирование из одного текстового блока в другой, либо позаимствовать форматирование у какой-нибудь иллюстраций (рисунка, фигуры и прочее). Это очень удобно, если необходимо применить одинаковое форматирование к нескольким частям документа.

Примечание: Картинки к этой статье взяты из Word 2013.

Чтобы скопировать форматирование из текстового блока (или иллюстрации), сначала выделите его.

Примечание: Чтобы скопировать форматирование и текста и абзаца, выделите весь абзац вместе с символом конца абзаца. Это не сложно сделать, если включить отображение непечатаемых знаков.

Копируем форматирование в Word

На вкладке Главная (Home) в разделе Буфер обмена (Clipboard) нажмите кнопку Формат по образцу (Format Painter).

Копируем форматирование в Word

Курсор примет вид кисти. Выберите текст, на который нужно перенести скопированное форматирование. Когда отпустите кнопку мыши, форматирование применится к выбранному тексту, как показано на изображении в самом начале этой статьи.

Копируем форматирование в Word

Чтобы применить скопированное форматирование к нескольким участкам текста (или иллюстрациям), дважды кликните по кнопке Формат по образцу (Format Painter). Чтобы завершить копирование форматирования, еще раз нажмите Формат по образцу (Format Painter) или клавишу Esc.

Примечание: При копировании форматирования графических объектов, инструмент Формат по образцу (Format Painter) лучше всего себя проявляет с объектами рисования, например, с фигурами. Но можно скопировать форматирование и у вставленной картинки (к примеру, такой атрибут, как рамка картинки).

Оцените качество статьи. Нам важно ваше мнение:

Find and Replace formatting in Microsoft Word

How to Copy Formatting in Word

Once you’ve formatted your text, you may want to use that appearance later. You don’t need to go to each instance of text and apply the same font, size, color, and effects over and over.

We already covered how to remove formatting in Word, now let’s explore 3 ways you can copy the formatting in Microsoft Word.

Copy Formatting in MS Word Option #1 – Save as a Style

Styles allow you to apply a set of character and paragraph formatting to text in one step. They also allow you to modify one instance of that style and have the change cascade down throughout the document to the rest.

To save formatted text as a Style, right-click on it, highlight STYLE, and choose SAVE SELECTION AS A NEW QUICK STYLE. Give the Style a name. Your new Style now appears in the Styles gallery on the Home Tab.

Select the next text and click your new button in the GALLERY to instantly apply all the same formats.

To change the Style, make the modification to the text, right-click on the STYLE in the gallery, and choose UPDATE [NAME] TO MATCH SELECTION. All the samples of that Style in the document instantly take on the modification.

Save as a Style

Copy Microsoft Word Formatting Option #2 – Use the Format Painter

The Format Painter applies an entire collection of custom formats with just one click.

Click in the text that has the desired format (this is the hardest step to remember). On the HOME ribbon, click on the FORMAT PAINTER button on the left side in the CLIPBOARD group. Notice that the cursor now has a paintbrush attached to it.

Drag across the next text. It instantly takes on all the formatting from the first

If there are several places that need that formatting, don’t perform each formatting duplication individually. The Format Painter can apply the settings to several items, much like a painter dipping her brush into a color and then dabbing the canvas repeatedly.

Click on the formatted text; this time, instead of clicking one time on the FORMAT PAINTER button, click on it TWICE. The cursor has the same brush, but it also now has a + on it. Drag across as many locations as needed.

Be careful when in Format Painter mode—the special effects apply to any object clicked on.

When done duplicating the formatting, either click on the FORMAT PAINTER button again to turn it off, or simply press the ESC key in the upper left corner of the keyboard.

Use the Format Painter in Microsoft Word

Use Keyboard Shortcuts to Copy Microsoft Word Formatting (Option #3)

Click in text that has the formatting to replicate, and press CTRL-SHIFT-C. It’ll copy the formatting, but not the text itself.

Highlight the target text and press CTRL-SHIFT-V to paste the formatting.

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About Alicia Katz Pollock

With a Masters in Teaching from Tufts University, a QuickBooks®️ Online Advanced Certification and more than 30 years’ experience in the tech industry, Alicia is passionate about finding creative, practical solutions to complex and everyday tech problems. She also loves a good laugh!

Comments

Copying and pasting content in Word documents is a common task. However, you can also copy and paste formatting from one block of text (including images) to another. This can be handy if you want to apply the same formatting to multiple areas in your document.

NOTE: We used Word 2013 to illustrate this feature.

To copy the formatting from a block of text and/or images, highlight the content.

NOTE: To copy both text and paragraph formatting, select an entire paragraph, including the paragraph mark. To make this easier, you can show paragraph marks by showing non-printing characters.

In the “Clipboard” section of the “Home” tab, click “Format Painter.”

The cursor changes to a paint brush. Select the text to which you want to copy the formatting. When you release the mouse button, the formatting is copied to the selected text, as shown in the image at the beginning of this article.

To copy formatting to multiple blocks of text and/or images, double-click the “Format Painter” button. Then, you can apply that formatting to other areas of your document. To stop copying formatting, click the “Format Painter” button once more or press the “Esc” key.

NOTE: For copying formatting from graphics, the “Format Painter” tool works best with drawing objects, such as AutoShapes. However, you can also copy formatting from an inserted picture (such as the picture’s border).

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Through the following guide you will learn how to copy styles or formats from one Word document to another , a process that you should know if you have Microsoft Word on your PC. If you haven’t done so already, you can download Office from Microsoft’s official site.

Word allows you to easily copy the format of a specific area in our documents to another place. In fact, we can also unformat Word text when convenient.

Thanks to the above, it is possible to greatly manage the quality of our written work by customizing or creating multiple styles in Word according to the needs of the document.

We can find the tool to copy styles in the “Home” section that is in the main toolbar of Microsoft Word. Through it, it is possible to apply the format of a specific fragment in our document to any other place.

The use of this tool is very basic. In any case, if you have doubts, we recommend that you read the following information carefully:

  1. Select that part of the document from which you want to copy the format.
  2. Go to the upper left area of ​​Microsoft Word, click on the “Start” button and double click on the “Format copy” option .
  3. By doing the above actions, you can apply the specified style to any part of the document. All you have to do is click on the word / space where you want to apply this format.
  4. It should be noted that you can do this process even more easily by pressing the key combination Ctrl + Shift + C to copy and Ctrl + Shift + V to paste.

Is it possible to copy the format and style from one document to another?

Most people are familiar with the “Format Painter” option found within Microsoft Word. In any case, some wonder if it is possible to copy the format of one document to another / others. The truth is that this can be done effectively as explained above.

Using the copy format option is also valid for copying the style from one document to another. Either way, we recommend using Ctrl + Shift + C to copy the style into the original document and Ctrl + Shift + V to paste the style into the other document. In this way, you will apply two of the best keyboard shortcuts in Word to work faster .

This action can be especially useful for handling style or similar formatting in other text. In this way, the quality of your documents will be enhanced.

Copy the information from the document to another without losing the format

If you want to copy information from one document to another without losing the formatting, you need to take into account the settings in Microsoft Word. Indeed, this program presents multiple options designed specifically for this purpose. For this reason, you need to be aware that Word is properly configured as follows:

  1. Go to the top left of the screen, and click on the “File” option .
  2. Press the “options”. At the same time, locate the “Advanced” section where specific application options are configured and press said option.
  3. Find the “Cut, copy and paste” tab, where you will configure the settings for copying a document’s format.
  4. Enable the option “Keep source format (default)” in the tabs “Paste within the same document”, “Paste between documents” and “Paste between documents when there is conflict between style definitions”.
  5. When you correctly configure everything related to formatting in this section, you can copy chunks of text between documents without losing their formatting.

Word for Microsoft 365 Word 2021 Word 2019 Word 2016 Word 2013 Word 2010 More…Less

In Word, you can choose to paste text using the formatting of the source, destination, or just pure text. If you always want one of the options, set it as the default for pasted text.

Set default paste options

By default, Word preserves the original formatting when you paste content into a document using CTRL+V, the Paste button, or right-click + Paste. To change the default, follow these steps.

  1. Go to File > Options > Advanced.

  2. Under Cut, copy, and paste, select the down arrow for the setting to change .

    • Pasting within the same document    When you paste content into the same document from which you copied the content.

    • Pasting between documents    When you paste content that was copied from another Word document.

    • Pasting between documents when style definitions conflict    When you paste content that was copied from another Word document, and the style that is assigned to the copied text is defined differently in the document where the text is being pasted.

    • Pasting from other programs    When you paste content that was copied from another program, such as a browser.

    Copy - paste options in Word

  3. Each setting has options you can set:

    Keep Source Formatting

    Merge Formatting

    Keep Text Only

    For more info on these options, see Get the look you want.

  4. Select OK.

Notes: 

  • You can also select Set Default Paste from the Paste Options  Paste options button menu.

  • Paste menu with set default paste selected

Change options when pasting content

When you copy content from a formatted source, such as a webpage or another Word document, you can select options at the time you paste it into your document.

  1. Click or tap where you want to paste the content.

  2. Press CTRL + V and then select Paste Options  Paste options button.

  3. Hover over the buttons for a live review.

    Paste drop down with cursor hovering over text

  4. Select the paste option to use.

The Paste Options  Paste options button button lets you select formatting options and is on by default. If you don’t see the button, it might be turned off. Follow these steps to turn it on.

  1. Go to File > Options > Advanced.

  2. In the Cut, copy, and paste section, select Show Paste Options button when content is pasted.

  3. Select OK.

If the setting is on but you don’t see the button when you paste, make sure you’re pasting formatted content, not pure text (like from NotePad.)

When you copy text from a Word document, webpage, or other app’s document and paste it into a Word document, you can choose how the text is formatted. You can keep the original formatting, merge with the destination formatting, or paste just plain text.

  • Keep Source Formatting (K)    This option retains formatting that was applied to the copied text. Any style definition that is associated with the copied text is copied to the destination document.

  • Merge Formatting (M)    This option discards most formatting that was applied directly to the copied text, but it retains formatting that is considered emphasis, such as bold and italic, when it is applied to only a portion of the selection. The text takes on the style characteristics of the paragraph where it is pasted. The text also takes on any direct formatting or character style properties of text that immediately precedes the cursor when the text is pasted.

  • Picture (U)   
    This option is only available on Microsoft 365 Subscription. Converts text into an image and pastes that. The text can’t be changed, but you can treat it like any other picture or image and use effects, borders, or rotation. When selected, choose options from the Picture Format tab.

  • Keep Text Only (T)    This option discards all formatting and nontext elements such as pictures or tables. The text takes on the style characteristics of the paragraph where it is pasted and takes on any direct formatting or character style properties of text that immediately precedes the cursor when the text is pasted. Graphical elements are discarded, and tables are converted to a series of paragraphs.

When you paste items from a bulleted or numbered list into another list, you can keep their original formatting or sequence, or blend in with the numbering or bullets of the destination list.

Paste numbered items so the sequence continues    Choose Continue List (C) to have inserted items stay in sequence in the list.

Keep original sequence on numbered items    Choose New List (N) to have inserted items keep their original list sequence.

Paste bulleted items into a numbered list    To keep the bullets, choose Keep Source Formatting (K). To convert bullets to numbers, choose Merge Formatting (M).

Paste numbered items into a bulleted list    To keep the original numbers, choose Don’t Merge List (D). To convert the numbers to bullets, choose Merge List (M).

Paste Text Only lists    By default, bullets and numbers are preserved when pasting text only. To turn this behavior off:

  1. Go to File > Options > Advanced.

  2. Clear Keep bullets and numbers when pasting text with Keep Text Only option.

  3. Select OK.

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To copy text or table from PDF to Word, we can use a built-in or free PDF viewer to copy from the PDF, and then paste to a Word document. But this may lead to formatting loss, like line breaks, strange characters, messy tables, which are very annoying but can hardly avoid. 

As we know, PDF and Word are 2 different formats, there is no way to perfectly copy the formatting from PDF to Word, unless you find a professional tool to perform a perfect PDF to Word conversion. Here in this article, we will show you 5 ways to copy and paste from PDF to Word and without changing formatting, on Mac or Windows. 

  • Reasons of Why Can’t Copy from PDF to Word?
  • How to Copy and Paste from PDF to Word without Losing Formatting?
  • Copy Text from PDF to Word for Free

Reasons of Why Can’t Copy from PDF to Word?

Regardless the formatting issue, you can easily copy and paste from PDF to Word, if you cannot do so, there may be 2 reasons for this:

1) The PDF is a scanned file or created from an image

If a PDF is created from paper scans or images, the texts won’t be readable by your Mac or Windows PC, you have to use OCR technology to make the texts readable first, then copy and paste to a Word document.

2) The PDF is protected with a owner/permission password

If there is an owner/permission password added to your PDF, you won’t be allowed to copy from the PDF file, unless you remove the PDF password protection first, you can unlock this kind of PDF in Adobe, Preview or other PDF editor tools.

How to Copy and Paste from PDF to Word without Losing Formatting?

To copy text or table from PDF to Word without line breaks or strange characters and keep the same format as much as possible, using a dedicated PDF tool with PDF to Word conversion feature will make the whole process far simpler. 

Even better, these tools comes with rich features, including PDF unlock, OCR, Edit, etc. Here we cover 5 best tools to copy and paste from PDF to Word without losing formatting.

#1 Cisdem PDF Converter OCR (Windows, Mac)

Cisdem PDF Converter OCR is a powerful PDF converter, which allows you to convert both native and scanned PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Keynote, Pages, ePub and others in original formatting. With its PDF creator, you can also save Word or other document back to PDF. 

Why Use Cisdem to Copy from PDF to Word?

  • It is Easy to Use

As a PDF converter, Cisdem doesn’t require users to manually set up or tweak a long list of preferences, with several clicks to import, select format and convert, you will get a Word document from the PDF file effortlessly.

  • Copy from Native and Scanned PDF

Cisdem builds in the OCR feature too. With OCR, Cisdem allows users to copy texts from both scanned PDF and image, the texts or tables in your image-based files will change to be searchable and editable.

  • Keep Formatting

Cisdem will make the created Word document look the same as your original PDF files, there will be no garbled texts, strange characters, line breaks, extra paragraph gaps, image misplacement, etc. The font, style, image resolution, all the details will be kept the same as original.

  • Batch Process PDFs

To process multiple PDFs, you just need to batch import and enable the conversion, the conversion will auto start after the last one finishes.

  • Copy from PDF to Excel, PowerPoint, etc. as well

Not only save PDF as Word format, Cisdem PDF Converter OCR can also help copy texts or tables from PDF to Excel, PowerPoint, Keynote, Pages, ePub, HTML, Text and RTFD, so you can turn your PDF files into any recyclable resource. 

Steps to Copy Text or Table from PDF to Word without Losing Format on Windows and Mac

  1. Download and install Cisdem PDF Converter OCR.
    Free Download   Free Download
  2. Import PDF files to the program.
    Drag and drop PDF files to the program or click “+” button to add files, you can add multiple PDFs at one time.copy from pdf to word cisdem 01
  3. Set output format as Word Docx.
    You can choose file page range for partial conversion, then select output format as Word Docx or Doc. It can also auto convert scanned PDF to Word format.copy from pdf to word cisdem 02
  4. Click on the settings icon and adjust the Word output settings, then click Convert to export PDF file as Word format on Windows or Mac.copy from pdf to word cisdem 03
  5. Open the Word document, the PDF contents are all transferred to a Wor document now.

#2 Adobe Acrobat DC (Mac & Windows)

Adobe should sound familiar to all of us, it brought us so many great solutions to process graphics, documents, etc. and it is also the creator of PDF format. If you want to copy PDF from Word without losing formatting, Adobe should be considered, even though its price is too high for many of us.

Why Use Adobe to Copy from PDF to Word?

  • You can directly copy from or edit PDF in the program

It is, after all, a professional PDF editor, it can open, view, edit and export your PDF files. By rendering PDF in Adobe, you will be able to directly copy and paste from PDF to a Word document, but this may lead to format loss a little. You are recommended to use its conversion feature to save as Word and do the copy & paste later.

  • It is an almighty PDF tool

No one will doubt Adobe Acrobat’s power. In the field of PDF solutions, Adobe is the authority, it offers all features users may need to deal with their PDF files, edit, sign, protect, annotate, convert, compare, compress, etc.

Steps to Copy from PDF to Word and Save Format in Adobe

  1. Download and install Adobe Acrobat DC to your Mac or Windows PC.
  2. Open the PDF file in Adobe Acrobat, if you want to edit the PDF first, use the editing tools from the panel.
  3. Go to Tools>Export PDF, save PDF as Word document, then do the copying & pasting.copy from pdf to word adobe02
  4. (Optional) For scanned PDF, go to Tools>Enhance Scans>Recognize Text>In this File and start the OCR process. copy from pdf to word adobe01

#3 Cisdem PDFMaster (Windows)

Cisdem PDFMaster is an excellent Windows PDF editor. It integrates features like edit, organize, protect, sign, create, convert, compare, search or fill PDFs, etc. It cannot only convert PDF to Word without changing formatting, but also convert with OCR recognition and priority.

Why Use Cisdem PDFMaster to Copy from PDF to Word?

  • It Hands All Types of PDFs

It is capable of opening, editing and converting all kinds of PDF, native, scanned, printed or protected PDFs, even images.

  • It Converts PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint and More

Not only exports PDF as Word, it also converts PDFs to Excel, PowerPoint, Text, ePub, RTF and so on, even with OCR capability to turn PDF scans to editable Word/Excel/PowerPoint, etc.

  • It Allows Editing PDF document

Cisdem PDFMaster allows users to edit texts, images and links in a PDF document, you can select any part of the PDF file, change and format as you want.

  • It Has Rich PDF Tools

Cisdem PDFMaster has all the PDF tools you will need to work on a PDF, including create PDF, organize PDF pages, fill form, add text field, protect PDF, redact PDF, compress PDF, compare and watermark PDFs, etc.

Steps to Copy and Paste Text from PDF to Word without Changing Format in PDFMaster

  1. Download and install Cisdem PDFMaster on Windows PC.
  2. Open and import the PDF file. copy from pdf to word pdfmaster01
  3. Then go to Convert, choose Word document as output, for scanned PDF, tweak the OCR settings. copy from pdf to word pdfmaster02
  4. Then open the Word file and you will be able to copy text from PDF to Word document without changing format.

#4 ABBYY FineReader (Mac & Windows)

ABBYY FineReader is deemed as the best alternative to Adobe Acrobat, but more powerful on PDF OCR, it recognizes more languages and gets highly accurate OCR result. It integrates features like edit, organize, collaborate, protect, sign, create, convert, compare, search or fill PDFs, etc.

Why Use ABBYY FineReader to Copy from PDF to Word?

  • It Hands All Types of PDFs

It is capable of opening, editing and converting all kinds of PDF, native, scanned, printed, handwritten or protected PDFs, and there are tools offered to enhance the PDF files in case of conversion or OCR.

  • Direct Turn Papers to Well-formatted PDF, Word, or others

ABBYY FineReader can directly turn papers from a connected scanner to digital copy, in PDF or other supported format, it helps build a paperless office with ease and efficiency.

Steps to Copy and Paste Text from PDF to Word without Losing Format in ABBYY

  1. Download and install ABBYY FineReader to your Mac or Windows PC.
  2. Go to Open and import the PDF file.copy from pdf to word abbyy finereader
  3. Then choose Word document as output, for scanned PDF, go to Recognize for OCR first.
  4. Then copy text or table from PDF to Word document without losing format in ABBYY FineReader.copy from pdf to word abbyy finereader02

#5. Convertio (Online Free)

Convertio is a web service to convert various types of files, including videos, audios, images, documents, archives, etc., it supports files from your computer, Google Drive, Dropbox or from an URL. 

Why Use Convertio to Copy from PDF to Word?

  • It Supports 11 Output Format

After file conversion in Convertio, you will be able to copy from PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint or other document types.

  • It Keeps Formatting, Though Not as Good as Other 3 Tools

There is no way Convertio’s conversion performance can match with those professional offline ones, but comparing with other online free tools, Convertios beat them all in many ways. It can keep the formatting, but you will still need to manually adjust.

Steps to Copy and Paste from PDF to Word without Losing Format Online

  1. Go to Convertio.
  2. Add PDF files to Convertio.
  3. Choose output as Word Doc.
  4. Click Convert, then download the Word documents.
  5. Copy the texts to a Word document.convertio copy from pdf to word

Copy Text from PDF to Word for Free

You can use built-in tools on your computer, like Preview on Mac, or free PDF viewers, like Adobe Acrobat Reader, even Google Chrome web browser to copy text or table from a native PDF to Word, for free of charges.

  1. Open PDF with Preview, or Adobe Reader, or in Google Chrome.
  2. Select the texts and right click on them to Copy.copy from pdf to word free
  3. Open a Word document, paste the PDF texts to it for free.

Conclusion

As we can conclude, to copy text or table from PDF to Word without losing formatting, we’d better convert PDF to Word document for formatting retention instead of direct copying and pasting. Also, we’d really advise not to upload a highly private PDF file to any online PDF to Word tool, which tends to store your file for some time and doesn’t fully maintain the same formatting as in original file. 


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  • Using Adobe Acrobat Reader (Windows or Mac)
  • |

  • Using Preview (Mac)
  • |

  • Using Google Drive
  • |

  • Edit a PDF in Word (Windows or Mac)
  • |

  • Using Adobe Acrobat’s Web App Converter (Windows or Mac)
  • |

  • Using Adobe Acrobat Pro’s Converter (Windows or Mac)
  • |

  • Tips

This wikiHow teaches you how to copy text from a PDF and paste it into Microsoft Word. If the PDF was created from a text document on a computer, you can use Adobe Acrobat Reader (Windows/Mac) or Preview (Mac) to copy the text. If the PDF was scanned into the computer from a physical document or it has copy-protection, you’ll need to use Google Drive to convert the text before you can transfer your document to Word. If you need to convert a PDF file to Word format, you can use Adobe Acrobat Pro or the free Adobe Acrobat web app. You can also open a PDF file directly in Word and it’ll convert the PDF’s contents to text.

Things You Should Know

  • To select all text in Acrobat Reader, go to Edit > Select All, then copy the text by selecting Edit > Copy.
  • To paste the copied text in your Word document, right-click the document and select Paste.
  • You can also easily copy texts from PDFs in Google Drive, Preview, and Adobe Acrobat Pro.
  • Google Drive has built-in OCR that can convert PDFs to editable text.
  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 1

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    Open your PDF in Acrobat Reader. You can open the PDF in Acrobat Reader by clicking File > Open or right-clicking the file in a file browser and selecting Open With > Adobe Acrobat Reader.

    • Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is a free PDF viewer from Adobe that works with both Windows and Mac. If the PDF you intend to copy from was created from a text document on a computer, you may be able to select and copy the text in the PDF from here.
    • If the PDF you want to copy from was scanned, you won’t be able to use this method.
    • If you don’t have Adobe Reader yet, you can download and install it for free.
    • You can also highlight text in a PDF using Adobe Reader.
  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 2

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    Select the text in the document. You can do this by clicking the Edit tab on the top-left side of the Acrobat Reader window (Windows) or in the top-left side of the screen (Mac), and Select All from the drop-down menu.

    • If you want to select specific text, you can drag and drop your mouse over the text you want to highlight it in blue.
    • You can also use the keyboard shortcut and press Ctrl + A (Windows) or Cmd + C (Mac).
    • If the whole document becomes highlighted in blue, the document cannot be copied and pasted as text. You’ll need to use Google Drive instead.

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  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 3

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    Copy the text. Click the Edit tab again, then click Copy or use the keyboard shortcut and press Ctrl + C (Windows) or Cmd + C (Mac).

    • If your PDF is more than one page long, you’ll have to go back and copy the other pages individually after pasting in this page’s contents.
  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 4

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    Open a new document in Word. When you open Word, you’ll be prompted if you want to open a new document or resume a previously created one, click to open a new document. You can also go to File > New.

  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 5

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    Paste the copied text. Press Ctrl + V (Windows) or Cmd + V (Mac) or go to the editing menu and click Edit > Paste. You should see the text from the PDF appear in the document.

    • You can also right-click the page and click Paste in the drop-down menu.
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  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 6

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    Open your PDF in Preview. This app icon looks like a picture with a magnifying glass over it. You can find this app in the Dock or in the Applications folder.

    • You can either open your PDF from Preview by clicking File > Open or you can right-click the file and select Open With and Preview.
    • Preview is the default PDF viewer for Macs, so if you’re using a Windows computer, you most likely won’t have access to Preview.
  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 7

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    Click the text selection button. This looks like «Aa» with a cursor next to it. This should be above the document on the left side of the window.

  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 8

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    Select the text you want to copy. You can click and drag your cursor over the text you want to copy.

  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 9

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    Copy the text. Go to Edit > Copy in the menu at the top of your screen.

    • You can also use a keyboard shortcut and press Cmd + C.
  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 10

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    Open a new document in Word. When you open Word, you’ll be prompted if you want to open a new document or resume a previously created one, click to open a new document. You can also go to File > New.

  6. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 11

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    Paste the copied text. Press Cmd + V (Mac) or go to the editing menu and click Edit > Paste. You should see the text from the PDF appear in the document.

    • You can also right-click the page and click Paste in the drop-down menu.[1]
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  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 12

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    Go to https://drive.google.com/ in your preferred web browser. This will open your Google Drive page if you’re logged in.

    • If you aren’t logged into a Google account, enter your Google email address and password before proceeding.
    • Use this method if the PDF contains text encoded as an image. If the PDF was scanned, it was likely created as an image file as opposed to a text file. You’ll need to use an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) program to convert the image into selectable text. Google Drive includes a free OCR service when uploading PDFs, and will work fine in most cases.[2]
    • If the PDF is also copy-protected, Google Drive can remove the security from the PDF during the OCR process.
  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 13

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    Click NEW. It’s a multi-colored plus sign in the upper-left corner of the Drive page. A drop-down menu will appear.

    • You can also drag and drop the file from your file browser into the Google Drive window to upload the file. If you do this, you can skip the steps on uploading your file.
  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 14

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    Click File upload. This option is near the top of the drop-down menu. Clicking it prompts a new window to open.[3]

  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 15

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    Navigate to and single-click to select your PDF file. Click the PDF file that you want to copy. The file will highlight in blue to indicate that it is selected.

  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 16

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    Click Open. It’s in the bottom-right side of the window. Doing so will prompt the PDF file to upload to Google Drive.

  6. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 17

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    Right-click the uploaded PDF. Once it has finished uploading to your Drive, you’ll need to find your PDF and right-click it to launch a drop-down menu.

  7. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 18

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    Hover over Open with. This option is near the top of the drop-down menu. A pop-out menu will pop out next to it.

  8. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 19

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    Click Google Docs. This will prompt Drive to scan the PDF’s text into a Google Doc, which can take a while depending on the amount of text in the file.

  9. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 20

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    Check which text was converted. Google Drive’s OCR software isn’t perfect, and there may be some errors or parts of the text that couldn’t be converted. You may encounter a lot of white space between sections, so keep scrolling to see everything that was converted.

    • If you run into any errors, consider fixing them in Google Docs before copying the text.
  10. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 21

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    Select the text. Click Edit in the upper-left side of the page, then click Select all in the drop-down menu.

    • You can also use a keyboard shortcut by pressing Ctrl + A (Windows) or Cmd + A (Mac).
  11. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 22

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    Copy the text. Click Edit again, then click Copy.

    • You can also use a keyboard shortcut by pressing Ctrl + C (Windows) or Cmd + C (Mac).
  12. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 23

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    Open a new document in Word. When you open Word, you’ll be prompted if you want to open a new document or resume a previously created one, click to open a new document. You can also go to File > New.

  13. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 24

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    Paste the copied text. Press Ctrl + V (Windows) or Command + V (Mac). You should see the text from the PDF appear in the document.

    • You can also right-click the page and click Paste in the drop-down menu.
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  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 25

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    Open Microsoft Word. This method allows you to directly open a PDF in Word. It converts the text of the PDF into editable text.[4]

  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 26

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    Click File then Open. This will open a window where you can browse files.

    • If you’re on the Home screen on Word, you can instead click Open in the left sidebar, then Browse.
  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 27

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    Click the PDF file. This will select the file and highlight it blue.

  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 28

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    Click Open. A new pop up window will appear, letting you know that Word will convert the PDF to an editable Word document.

  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 29

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    Click OK. This will start the conversion process. Depending on the length and complexity of your PDF, this may take several minutes. When it’s done loading, you’re ready to edit the text!

    • When you save the file, it will be in the .docx form.
    • You can export the file by going to File > Export > Create PDF/XPS Document.
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  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 30

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  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 31

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    Click Tools. This tab is located below the greeting box, next to the “Discover” tab.

  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 32

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    Click All tools. This will take you to a new page with all of Adobe Acrobat’s web tools.

  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 33

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    Click PDF to Word. This is under the “Convert” section.

  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 34

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    Click Add a file from your device. This will open a window where you can browse for the PDF file.

  6. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 35

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    Click the PDF file. This will select the file and highlight it blue.

  7. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 36

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    Click Open. This will add the PDF file to the online converter.

  8. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 37

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    Click Export to DOCX. This will convert the PDF to a .docx Word file and open a preview of it in Adobe Acrobat’s online editor.

  9. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 38

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    Click the More button, then Download this file. This is an icon with three horizontal dots at the top of the Adobe Acrobat editor. Selecting this option will download the .docx file to your computer and prompt you to select a download location.

  10. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 39

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    Select a file location and click Save.

  11. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 40

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  1. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 25

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    Sign up for the free trial at https://www.adobe.com/acrobat.html. With Adobe Acrobat Pro, you can create and edit PDFs and export to Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. You can also turn scanned documents into editable, searchable PDFs.

    • This method will convert the entire document from PDF to Microsoft Word.
    • If you’re a first-time customer, you can sign up for a free seven-day trial. You’ll need a credit/debit card, but will not be charged for the first seven days you use Adobe Pro.
    • Once you finish signing up for the subscription, you’ll have the opportunity to download the program.
  2. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 26

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    Download Adobe Acrobat Pro. According to your download (Mac vs Windows), you’ll either need to follow an on-screen tutorial to complete a setup wizard or you’ll need to drag and drop the DMG file into the Applications folder in Finder.

    • Once completely installed, Adobe Acrobat Pro may launch automatically, or you will need to open it manually. To open Adobe Acrobat Pro, double-click the app icon in your Start Menu (Windows) or Applications folder (Mac).
  3. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 27

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    Open your PDF. To open the PDF file in Acrobat:

    • Click File at the top left in the editing menu above the document (Windows) or in the top left of your screen (Mac)
    • Click Open from the File drop-down menu.
  4. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 28

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    Click Export PDF. You’ll see this in the right pane at the far right of the application window with the icon of a document with an arrow pointing out of it.

    • You can click to check the box next to «Open file after export» to have the file open automatically.
  5. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 29

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    Click to select Microsoft Word. This is usually the first option here and you’ll usually want to pick «Word Document» from the panel on the right.

  6. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 30

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    Click Export. You’ll see this blue button below your export selection.[5]

  7. Image titled Copy Text from a PDF to a Word Doc Step 31

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    Select a save location and name for your file and click Save. When the file browser opens, you have the chance to change how the file will save when it’s exported before clicking Save in the lower right corner of the window.[6]

    • If the PDF was scanned, Adobe will run text recognition automatically.[7]
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References

About This Article

Article SummaryX

1. Open your PDF in Acrobat Reader.

2. Select the text in the document.

3. Copy the text.
4. Open a new document in Word.

5. Paste the copied text.

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 107,594 times.

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Part 2. How to Convert a PDF to without Losing Format

If the PDF file you want to copy has many pages and you need the whole content, you can choose to convert the PDF to Word. WidsMob ConvertPDF is a user-friendly program that has simplified powerful features into easy-to-use filters. Thus, you can convert protected PDF to editable word without losing formatting. As for copying text from PDF to word document, it is just a piece of cake for ConvertPDF.

What Can You Get from This Powerful PDF to Word Converter

  • Convert PDF to multiple formats including Word, Image, Excel, TXT, HTML, XML, and Epub.
  • Offer the advanced OCR algorithm to convert image-based PDF to text-based word documents.
  • Keep your converted PDF file with the original presentation layout.
  • Batch convert PDF files without losing formatting on Windows PC.
  • Convert the selected PDF pages up to 5 pages.

Win Download
Mac Download

How to Copy and Paste from PDF to Word without Losing Formatting with ConvertPDF

Step 1: Add PDF file

Free download and install WidsMob ConvertPDF software on your Windows computer. Launch this program after you have completed its installation. Then click Add Files to import your PDF file. Moreover, you can drag and drop the PDF file to its main interface directly as well.

Add PDF File to ConvertPDF

Step 2: Set your output word format

Choose Settings on the toolbar. Later, you access two options of Convert PDF Files to Word(*.docx) and Convert PDF Files to Word2003-2007(*.doc). Mark before one option, and then click OK to save your change.

Manage PDF Output Settings

Step 3: Adjust the PDF pages you want to convert (optional)

Right-click on your PDF file, then you can see a new dialog with the name of PageRange. Choose whether to convert the entire PDF file or not. Well, you can choose between All Pages and Specified Page Range.

If you choose the latter option, you need to set the start page and the end page manually. Be aware that its maximum page range ups to 5 pages. Then choose “OK” to continue your process.

Adjust PDF Page Range

Step 4: Copy and paste from PDF to word without losing formatting

Click Same as Resources to make sure that you can convert PDF to word with the original layout. Select Browse to change your destination folder. At last, click the Convert button to copy text from secured PDF to word document in a short time. When the process finishes, you can see a popping-up notification, click OK to confirm.

Convert PDF to Word
Win Download
Mac Download

Part 3. How to Copy and Paste PDF Content into Word Document Online with Google Drive

If you have a PDF file with text encoded as an image, then you can run Google Drive to convert the PDF image to selectable text. Well, Google Drive offers a free OCR service. So you can deal with basic PDF to word conversion for free. In addition, Google Drive also allows users to copy and paste from copy-protected PDF to word as well.

Step 1: Add a PDF file to Google Drive

Search and open Google Drive site on your web browser. Sign into your Google account with your Google email address and related password. Later, find and click NEW option in blue on the top left corner. Select File upload from its drop-down menu. As a result, you can see a new popping-up window. Choose the PDF file you want to import, and then click Open to confirm.

Access Google Drive

Step 2: Convert PDF to editable word

Choose the imported PDF file once the process finishes. Then click the three-dots Menu option on the top menu bar. Select Open with from this drop-down list. Then click Google Docs from the pop-out menu. Thus, Google Drive will be prompted to scan your import PDF file. Wait for a while to complete the PDF to word converting process.

Well, it is common to find some errors in your converted PDF to word document, so you need to check whether the text has been converted or not by yourself.

Open PDF with Google Docs

Step 3: Copy and paste from PDF to word doc

Highlight the text and choose Edit on the menu bar under your PDF file name. Click Select All to highlight all your word documents. Then choose Copy from the drop-down Edit menu.

Navigate to Microsoft Word, Pages, or other programs to open a new blank document. Later, click the Paste button on the top left corner to see your copied PDF to text. Moreover, you can press Ctrl and V (for Windows) or Command and V (for Mac) to paste the word from PDF as well.

Copy and Paste PDF to Word with Google Drive
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Mac Download

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