Extracting text from scanned PDFs is a breeze with PDF.co and Make. This tutorial will guide you through the step-by-step process of performing said task.
- Create a Google Drive module
- Download a File
- Google Drive Module Setup
- Create a new module for PDF.co
- Choose Convert from PDF
- PDF.co Module Set Up
- Run the Scenario
- Get the Output Link
- Extracted Text Output
- Video: Extract Text from Scanned PDF using Make

Using the document above as a sample, we will begin the process by going to the Make Scenarios Interface and clicking on the Create a New Scenario button.
Step 1: Create a Google Drive Module
Step 2: Download a File
NOTE: We are using Google Drive as our cloud storage for this tutorial. If you are using a different cloud storage service with similar options as this, you may opt to use it instead.
Step 3: Google Drive Module Set Up
- Start by choosing a connection for Google Drive.
- Next, choose between Select from the List or Enter Manually for the Enter a File ID combo box.
- Then, select My Drive as the drive to be used.
- Lastly for this phase, choose the folder and the file to use.
Step 4: Create a New Module for PDF.co
Step 5: Choose Convert from PDF
Step 6: PDF.co Module Set Up
- Begin by choosing a connection for PDF.co.
- You may opt for Upload a File or Input a File from URL to enter in the Input File combo box.
- Next, you can choose between Google Drive – Download a File or Map Manually for the Source file.
- Select PDF to CSV for Convert Options.
- If you want to extract all the pages, just leave the Pages blank.
- If you want to automatically display the extracted data, set Inline to true. Otherwise, if you opt to get a downloadable file, then set it to false.
Step 7: Run Scenario
Step 8: Get the Output Link
If no errors are found, you can readily view the output link.
Step 9: Extracted Text Output

Congratulations! You just learned how to extract text from scanned PDFs using Make.
Extract Text from Scanned PDF using Make