Split a PDF by Text Search Using PDF.co and Make

Step 1: Create the Scenario

Create a new scenario in Make, add PDF.co, and select Split a PDF.

Connect your PDF.co account if it is not already connected.

This example uses a direct PDF URL. In an automated scenario, the file or URL can be mapped from a trigger such as Google Drive, Dropbox, email, or a webhook.

Step 2: Configure the Split

Configure the PDF.co module:

• Import Options: Import a File from URL
• URL: Enter the direct URL of the source PDF.
• Output File Name: Enter a name for the split output.
• Split By: Text Found or Barcode
• Search String: Enter the text that marks the beginning of each document, such as Invoice Number.
• Exclude Key Pages: No
• Regex Search: No
• Case Sensitive: No
• Language: Select the document language if the PDF is scanned.
• Execution Mode: Use Sync for a small test or Async for a standard production workflow.
• Export Type: JSON Output

With Exclude Key Pages disabled, pages containing the search text remain in the split documents.

The current module fields are described in the PDF.co Split a PDF documentation.

Step 3: Run the Scenario

Click Run once and execute the PDF.co module.

PDF.co searches the document and starts a new output section whenever it finds the specified text. If Invoice Number appears at the beginning of three invoice sections, the module should return three separate PDFs.

With Export Type set to JSON Output, the module returns an array of temporary output URLs.

Step 4: Use the Split PDFs

Open the returned URLs to verify the results, or map the URL array into an Iterator to process each split PDF separately.

The files can then be:

• Uploaded to Google Drive or Dropbox
• Sent by email
• Parsed for data
• Passed to another PDF.co module