4 Great Tools for Converting PDFs to HTML

Turn PDF documents into simple web pages

By
Jennifer Kyrnin
Jennifer Kyrnin
Writer
  • University of California
  • University of Washington

Jennifer Kyrnin is a professional web developer who assists others in learning web design, HTML, CSS, and XML.

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Updated on December 29, 2020
Reviewed by
Jessica Kormos
Jessica Kormos
Reviewed by Jessica Kormos
  • Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College
Jessica Kormos is a writer and editor with 15 years' experience writing articles, copy, and UX content for Tecca.com, Rosenfeld Media, and many others.
Learn about our Editorial Process

There are a number of ways to convert a PDF to HTML. Here are some tools that enable you to turn PDF documents into simple web pages.

The following tools are available for various operating systems and web browsers. Check individual program requirements to make sure they are compatible with your computer.

01
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Best PDF-to-HTML Converter: Adobe Acrobat DC Pro

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC tools
What We Like

  • Exports PDFs directly to HTML format.

  • Includes many additional features for working with PDFs.

  • Free Acrobat Pro trial available.

What We Don't Like

  • Requires a Creative Cloud subscription.

  • Lacks some OCR proofreading tools.

  • Interface can be confusing.

Adobe invented the PDF format, so it's no surprise that Adobe's Acrobat Reader offers the most flexibility and functionality for PDF-to-HTML conversions. If there are embedded links in a PDF document, you can always expect them to remain intact. The only downside is that you must purchase Acrobat Pro DC to edit and convert PDFs.

02
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Best Web Based PDF Converter: PDF Online

PDF Online PDF-to-HTML converter
What We Like

  • Converts PDF text to appropriate HTML font, size, and style.

  • Converts PDF tables to HTML tables.

What We Don't Like

  • Must upload the PDF for conversion.

  • No customization options.

PDF Online's free PDF-to-HTML tool extracts the images to a separate directory, writes the HTML, and keeps the hyperlinks that you already have in your PDF file. Links are the essential ingredient of the web, so the fact that this tool maintains them is critical to the functionality of the resulting web pages it creates. There are also tools for converting HTML to PDFs and other formats.

03
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Best Free Desktop PDF Converter: Some PDF to HTML Converter

Some PDF to HTML Converter for Windows
What We Like

  • Preserves original layout, links, and images.

  • Generates HTML files that are fully searchable.

  • Compatible with all versions of Windows.

What We Don't Like

  • Has problems converting tables.

  • Glitchy with some unreliable results.

  • Last updated in 2013.

This free PDF converter doesn't support as many features as Acrobat Pro, but it can handle encrypted PDF files and batch conversions, making it an ideal option when you have a bunch of password-protected PDFs to convert. If you are trying to convert a folder with numerous PFD documents, this feature is a real time saver. It's a Windows program, so you must download and install it on your computer.

04
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Fastest PDF-to-HTML Converter: PDFtoHTML.net

PDFtoHTML.net online PDF conversion tool
What We Like

  • Simple drag-and-drop interface.

  • No sign-up necessary.

  • Extremely fast PDF conversion.

What We Don't Like

  • No customization options.

  • Sometimes has trouble converting forms.

If you're in a rush, PDFtoHTML.net will let you turn PDFs into HTML documents without downloading any software or providing any personal information. It's completely free with no catches, and while it lacks some features found in other tools on this list, it's second-to-none in terms of speed. There's even a desktop version available for when you don't have an internet connection.

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Your Citation
Kyrnin, Jennifer. "4 Great Tools for Converting PDFs to HTML." ThoughtCo, Sep. 30, 2021, thoughtco.com/pdf-to-html-conversion-tools-3469173. Kyrnin, Jennifer. (2021, September 30). 4 Great Tools for Converting PDFs to HTML. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/pdf-to-html-conversion-tools-3469173 Kyrnin, Jennifer. "4 Great Tools for Converting PDFs to HTML." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/pdf-to-html-conversion-tools-3469173 (accessed May 28, 2023).