PDF to RTF Free – A Simple Guide for Everyone
When you convert PDF to RTF, you take a PDF file and turn it into a Rich Text Format (RTF) document. After conversion, you can edit the text, style it, change fonts—all in many editors that support RTF.
In this article, you’ll learn:
What “PDF to RTF” means
Why you might need it
What can change or be lost
Methods to convert (offline, online, apps)
Top free tools to convert
Mistakes to avoid
A detailed example
FAQs
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Let’s get started!
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Table of Contents
What Does “PDF to RTF” Mean?
Why Convert PDF to RTF?
What Changes or May Be Lost
Methods to Convert PDF to RTF
4.1 Desktop / Offline Tools
4.2 Online Converters
4.3 Apps / Mobile ToolsTop Free Tools for PDF → RTF
Benefits of RTF Format
Common Mistakes & Pitfalls
Step-by-Step Example: PDF → RTF
FAQs
PDF to RTF converter
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1. What Does “PDF to RTF” Mean?
When you convert PDF to RTF, you take a PDF file—containing text, images, layout—and transform it into a .rtf file, which is a Rich Text Format document. An RTF is more like a Word document: you can edit the text, formatting, fonts, etc., using word processors like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice, or many others.
So PDF is often fixed, but RTF is editable and flexible.
2. Why Convert PDF to RTF?
Here are common reasons to convert:
You want to edit the content (text, corrections)
You want to reuse content (copy, move paragraphs)
You want the document to be more portable in editors that support RTF
You want to preserve some formatting while staying in a simple format
You want to open in editors on different platforms
Converting gives you freedom to work with the textual content while preserving some styling.
3. What Changes or May Be Lost
During conversion, some things may be lost or altered:
Complex layout (columns, sidebars, multi-columns) may break
Fonts may change / fallback fonts used
Images might be removed or embedded differently
Backgrounds, decorative elements, watermarks may be lost
If the PDF was scanned (i.e. images), you will need OCR to get real text
Some formatting (color gradients, special effects) likely won’t translate
So always review the resulting RTF and fix minor issues.
4. Methods to Convert PDF to RTF
You have three main options: desktop/offline tools, online converters, and mobile apps.
4.1 Desktop / Offline Tools
These are good for privacy and large files.
Adobe Acrobat (Pro) supports Export → RTF. Adobe
PDF24 Tools Desktop (Windows) may offer conversion to RTF. PDF24 Tools
Command line tools or libraries (for developers) may support PDF → RTF conversion.
Using offline tools is safer when working with sensitive documents.
4.2 Online Converters
These are quick and easy—upload, convert, download. Here are some:
FreeConvert — PDF to RTF converter online. FreeConvert
PDF Candy — convert PDF to RTF with no watermark. PDF Candy
Zamzar — supports PDF → RTF conversion. Zamzar
PDF24 Tools (online) — free PDF to RTF converter. PDF24 Tools
CoolUtils — online PDF to RTF converter. coolutils.com
Convertio — supports PDF to RTF online. convertio.co
To use:
Go to one of those websites.
Upload your PDF file.
Select output format as RTF.
Start conversion.
Download the resulting RTF file.
These external links are placed exactly once each.
4.3 Apps / Mobile Tools
On a phone or tablet:
Some PDF reader / converter apps allow “Export to RTF.”
Many of the online tools above work in mobile browsers.
OCR scanner apps can convert scanned PDF pages into RTF text.
5. Top Free Tools for PDF → RTF
Here are two reliable external tools you can suggest:
FreeConvert — PDF to RTF online converter. FreeConvert
PDF Candy — PDF to RTF, free and watermark-free. PDF Candy
You can also mention your internal tools:
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6. Benefits of RTF Format
Why RTF is valuable:
Supported by many word processors (Word, LibreOffice, default editors)
Retains basic formatting (fonts, bold, italics, paragraphs)
Portable and interoperable
Great for editing and reusing content
Simpler than PDF for text extraction
PDF to RTF gives you the editable content that you can work with in many environments.
7. Common Mistakes & Pitfalls
Watch out for:
Not enabling OCR when PDF is scanned → result is blank or garbled
Using low quality converters → text misplacement
Not selecting correct pages or ranges
Forgetting to check encoding / character set
Losing images, tables, or layout
Uploading sensitive PDFs to untrusted sites
Always test with a smaller file first.
8. Step-by-Step Example: PDF → RTF
Let’s convert using FreeConvert:
Go to FreeConvert → PDF to RTF. FreeConvert
Upload your PDF document.
Choose output as RTF.
If it’s a scanned PDF, turn on OCR (if available).
Click Convert.
Download the
.rtffile.Open in Word, LibreOffice, or any RTF editor and review text, fonts, layout.
Another example via PDF Candy:
Go to PDF Candy → PDF to RTF. PDF Candy
Upload your PDF.
Conversion starts.
Download the RTF result.
Open and check formatting, images, textual accuracy.
If PDF had real selectable text, conversion is straightforward; if scanned, it depends on OCR quality.
9. FAQs
Q: Will all formatting survive?
A: Not always. Basic formatting (bold, italics, paragraphs) often survives, but complex layout, images may shift or be lost.
Q: Can I convert scanned PDF to RTF?
A: Yes, if the tool you use supports OCR (optical character recognition). Otherwise, the output may be blank or just images.
Q: Are online converters safe?
A: Many use SSL encryption and delete files after conditions. But for sensitive docs, it’s safer to convert offline.
Q: Can I batch convert many PDFs to RTF?
A: Some tools support batch conversion (e.g. FreeConvert in their advanced mode), but free plans may limit batch jobs.
Q: Which editors can open RTF?
A: Microsoft Word, WordPad, LibreOffice, Google Docs, many text editors support RTF.
Q: Does RTF preserve images?
A: Some tools embed images, but many converters either drop images or convert them loosely. Always check.