Extracting tables from PDF files is a common requirement in data processing, reporting, and automation tasks. PDFs are widely used for sharing structured data, but extracting tables programmatically can be challenging due to their complex layout. Fortunately, with the right tools, this process becomes straightforward. In this guide, we’ll explore how to extract tables from PDF in C# using the Spire.PDF for .NET library, and export the results to TXT and CSV formats for easy reuse.

Table of Contents:

• Prerequisites for Reading PDF Tables in C#
• Understanding PDF Table Structure
• How to Extract Tables from PDF in C#
• Extract PDF Tables to a Text File in C#
• Export PDF Tables to CSV in C#
• Conclusion
• FAQs

Prerequisites for Reading PDF Tables in C#

Spire.PDF for .NET is a powerful library for processing PDF files in C# and VB.NET. It supports a wide range of PDF operations, including table extraction, text extraction, image extraction, and more.

The easiest way to add the Spire.PDF library is via NuGet Package Manager.​

1. Open Visual Studio and create a new C# project. (Here we create a Console App)

2. In Visual Studio, right-click your project > Manage NuGet Packages.

3. Search for “Spire.PDF” and install the latest version.

Understanding PDF Table Structure

Before coding, let’s clarify how PDFs store tables. Unlike Excel (which explicitly defines rows/columns), PDFs use:

• Text Blocks: Individual text elements positioned with coordinates.
• Borders/Lines: Visual cues (horizontal/vertical lines) that humans interpret as table edges.
• Spacing: Consistent gaps between text blocks to indicate cells.

The Spire.PDF library infers table structure by analyzing these visual cues, matching text blocks to rows/columns based on proximity and alignment.

How to Extract Tables from PDF in C#

If you need a quick way to preview table data (e.g., debugging or verifying extraction), printing it to the console is a great starting point.

Key methods to extract data from a PDF table:

• PdfDocument: Represents a PDF file.
• LoadFromFile: Loads the PDF file for processing.
• PdfTableExtractor: Analyzes the PDF to detect tables using visual cues (borders, spacing).
• ExtractTable(pageIndex): Returns an array of PdfTable objects for the specified page.
• GetRowCount()/GetColumnCount(): Retrieve the dimensions of each table.
• GetText(rowIndex, columnIndex): Extracts text from the cell at the specified row and column.

using Spire.Pdf;
using Spire.Pdf.Utilities;

namespace ExtractPdfTable
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            // Create a PdfDocument object
            PdfDocument pdf = new PdfDocument();

            // Load a PDF file
            pdf.LoadFromFile("invoice.pdf");

            // Initialize an instance of PdfTableExtractor class
            PdfTableExtractor extractor = new PdfTableExtractor(pdf);


            // Loop through the pages 
            for (int pageIndex = 0; pageIndex < pdf.Pages.Count; pageIndex++)
            {
                // Extract tables from a specific page
                PdfTable[] tableList = extractor.ExtractTable(pageIndex);

                // Determine if the table list is null
                if (tableList != null && tableList.Length > 0)
                {
                    int tableNumber = 1;
                    // Loop through the table in the list
                    foreach (PdfTable table in tableList)
                    {
                        Console.WriteLine($"\nTable {tableNumber} on Page {pageIndex + 1}:");
                        Console.WriteLine("-----------------------------------");

                        // Get row number and column number of a certain table
                        int row = table.GetRowCount();
                        int column = table.GetColumnCount();

                        // Loop through rows and columns 
                        for (int i = 0; i < row; i++)
                        {
                            for (int j = 0; j < column; j++)
                            {
                                // Get text from the specific cell
                                string text = table.GetText(i, j);

                                // Print cell text to console with a separator
                                Console.Write($"{text}\t");
                            }
                            // New line after each row
                            Console.WriteLine();
                        }
                        tableNumber++;
                    }
                }
            }

            // Close the document
            pdf.Close();
        }
    }
}

When to Use This Method

• Quick debugging or validation of extracted data.
• Small datasets where you don’t need persistent storage.

Output: Retrieve PDF table data and output to the console

Extract PDF Tables to a Text File in C#

For lightweight, human-readable storage, saving tables to a text file is ideal. This method uses StringBuilder to efficiently compile table data, preserving row breaks for readability.

Key features of extracting PDF tables and exporting to TXT:

• Efficiency: StringBuilder minimizes memory overhead compared to string concatenation.
• Persistent Storage: Saves data to a text file for later review or sharing.
• Row Preservation: Uses \r\n to maintain row structure, making the text file easy to scan.

using Spire.Pdf;
using Spire.Pdf.Utilities;
using System.Text;

namespace ExtractTableToTxt
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            // Create a PdfDocument object
            PdfDocument pdf = new PdfDocument();

            // Load a PDF file
            pdf.LoadFromFile("invoice.pdf");

            // Create a StringBuilder object
            StringBuilder builder = new StringBuilder();

            // Initialize an instance of PdfTableExtractor class
            PdfTableExtractor extractor = new PdfTableExtractor(pdf);

            // Declare a PdfTable array 
            PdfTable[] tableList = null;

            // Loop through the pages 
            for (int pageIndex = 0; pageIndex < pdf.Pages.Count; pageIndex++)
            {
                // Extract tables from a specific page
                tableList = extractor.ExtractTable(pageIndex);

                // Determine if the table list is null
                if (tableList != null && tableList.Length > 0)
                {
                    // Loop through the table in the list
                    foreach (PdfTable table in tableList)
                    {
                        // Get row number and column number of a certain table
                        int row = table.GetRowCount();
                        int column = table.GetColumnCount();

                        // Loop through the rows and columns 
                        for (int i = 0; i < row; i++)
                        {
                            for (int j = 0; j < column; j++)
                            {
                                // Get text from the specific cell
                                string text = table.GetText(i, j);

                                // Add text to the string builder
                                builder.Append(text + " ");
                            }
                            builder.Append("\r\n");
                        }
                    }
                }
            }

            // Write to a .txt file
            File.WriteAllText("ExtractPDFTable.txt", builder.ToString());
        }
    }
}

When to Use This Method

• Archiving table data in a lightweight, universally accessible format.
• Sharing with teams that need to scan data without spreadsheet tools.
• Using as input for basic scripts (e.g., PowerShell) to extract specific values.

Output: Extract PDF table data and save to a text file.

Pro Tip: For VB.NET demos, convert the above code using our C# ⇆ VB.NET Converter.

Export PDF Tables to CSV in C#

CSV (Comma-Separated Values) is the industry standard for tabular data, compatible with Excel, Google Sheets, and databases. This method formats the extracted tables into a valid CSV file by quoting cells and handling special characters.

Key features of extracting tables from PDF to CSV:

• StreamWriter: Writes data incrementally to the CSV file, reducing memory usage for large PDFs.
• Quoted Cells: Cells are wrapped in double quotes (" ") to avoid misinterpreting commas within text as column separators.
• UTF-8 Encoding: Supports special characters in cell text.
• Spreadsheet Ready: Directly opens in Excel, Google Sheets, or spreadsheet tools for analysis.

using Spire.Pdf;
using Spire.Pdf.Utilities;
using System.Text;

namespace ExtractTableToCsv
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            // Create a PdfDocument object
            PdfDocument pdf = new PdfDocument();

            // Load a PDF file
            pdf.LoadFromFile("invoice.pdf");

            // Create a StreamWriter object for efficient CSV writing
            using (StreamWriter csvWriter = new StreamWriter("PDFtable.csv", false, Encoding.UTF8))
            {
                // Create a PdfTableExtractor object
                PdfTableExtractor extractor = new PdfTableExtractor(pdf);

                // Loop through the pages 
                for (int pageIndex = 0; pageIndex < pdf.Pages.Count; pageIndex++)
                {
                    // Extract tables from a specific page
                    PdfTable[] tableList = extractor.ExtractTable(pageIndex);

                    // Determine if the table list is null
                    if (tableList != null && tableList.Length > 0)
                    {
                        // Loop through the table in the list
                        foreach (PdfTable table in tableList)
                        {
                            // Get row number and column number of a certain table
                            int row = table.GetRowCount();
                            int column = table.GetColumnCount();

                            // Loop through the rows
                            for (int i = 0; i < row; i++)
                            {
                                // Creates a list to store data 
                                List<string> rowData = new List<string>();
                                // Loop through the columns
                                for (int j = 0; j < column; j++)
                                {
                                    // Retrieve text from table cells
                                    string cellText = table.GetText(i, j).Replace("\"", "\"\"");
                                    // Add the cell text to the list and wrap in double quotes
                                    rowData.Add($"\"{cellText}\"");
                                }
                                // Join cells with commas and write to CSV
                                csvWriter.WriteLine(string.Join(",", rowData));
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

When to Use This Method

• Data analysis (import into Excel for calculations).
• Migrating PDF tables to databases (e.g., SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL).
• Collaborating with teams that rely on spreadsheets.

Output: Parse PDF table data and export to a CSV file.

Recommendation: Integrate with Spire.XLS for .NET to extract tables from PDF to Excel directly.

Conclusion

This guide has outlined three efficient methods for extracting tables from PDFs in C#. By leveraging the Spire.PDF for .NET library, you can automate the PDF table extraction process and export results to console, TXT, or CSV for further analysis. Whether you’re building a data pipeline, report generator, or business tool, these approaches streamline workflows, save time, and minimize human error.

Refer to the online documentation and obtain a free trial license here to explore more advanced PDF operations.

FAQs

Q1: Why use Spire.PDF for .NET to extract tables?

A: Spire.PDF provides a dedicated PdfTableExtractor class that detects tables based on visual cues (borders, spacing, and text alignment), simplifying the process of parsing structured data from PDFs.

Q2: Can Spire.PDF extract tables from scanned (image-based) PDFs?

A: No. The .NET PDF library works only with text-based PDFs (where text is selectable). For scanned PDFs, use Spire.OCR to extract text before parsing tables.

Q3: Can I extract tables from multiple PDFs at once?

A: Yes. To batch-process multiple PDFs, use Directory.GetFiles() to list all PDF files in a folder, then loop through each file and run the extraction logic. For example:

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles(@"C:\Invoices\", "*.pdf");
foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
{
// Run extraction code for each file  
}

Q4: How can I improve performance when extracting tables from large PDFs?

A: For large PDFs (100+ pages), optimize performance by:

• Processing pages in batches instead of loading the entire PDF at once.
• Disposing of unused PdfTable or PdfDocument objects with the using statements to free memory.
• Skipping pages with no tables early (using if (tableList == null || tableList.Length == 0)).

Sometimes you may want to print Word documents in accordance with your own preferences, for instance, print your files on custom paper sizes to make them more personalized. In this article, you will learn how to achieve this function using Spire.Doc for .NET.

Install Spire.Doc for .NET

To begin with, you need to add the DLL files included in the Spire.Doc for .NET package as references in your .NET project. The DLLs files can be either downloaded from this link or installed via NuGet.

PM> Install-Package Spire.Doc

Print Word on a Custom Paper Size

The table below shows a list of core classes, methods and properties utilized in this scenario.

The following are the steps to print Word on a custom paper size.

• Instantiate a Document object
• Load the sample document using Document.LoadFromFile() method.
• Get the PrintDocument object using Document.PrintDocument property.
• Set the custom paper size using DefaultPageSettings.PaperSize Property.
• Print the document using PrintDocument.Print() method.

using Spire.Doc;
using System.Drawing.Printing;

namespace PrintWord
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
             //Instantiate a Document object.
            Document doc = new Document();

            //Load the document
            doc.LoadFromFile(@"Sample.docx");

            //Get the PrintDocument object
            PrintDocument printDoc = doc.PrintDocument;

            //Customize the paper size
            printDoc.DefaultPageSettings.PaperSize = new PaperSize("custom", 900, 800);

            //Print the document
            printDoc.Print();

        }
    }
}

Imports Spire.Doc
Imports System.Drawing.Printing

Namespace PrintWord
	Class Program
		Private Shared Sub Main(args As String())
			'Instantiate a Document object.
			Dim doc As New Document()

			'Load the document
			doc.LoadFromFile("Sample.docx")

			'Get the PrintDocument object
			Dim printDoc As PrintDocument = doc.PrintDocument

			'Customize the paper size
			printDoc.DefaultPageSettings.PaperSize = New PaperSize("custom", 900, 800)

			'Print the document
			printDoc.Print()

		End Sub
	End Class
End Namespace

Apply for a Temporary License

If you'd like to remove the evaluation message from the generated documents, or to get rid of the function limitations, please request a 30-day trial license for yourself.

LaTeX is a powerful tool to typeset mathematical equations. It supports plenty of mathematical symbols and notations to create mathematical equations, for instance, fractions, integrals and more.

Spire.Presentation API provides developers with the ability to create and add mathematical equations to PowerPoint shape using LaTeX code. The following steps demonstrate how to achieve this function using Spire.Presentation:

• Create a Presentation instance.
• Get the reference of a slide by using its index.
• Use ShapeList.AppendShape method to add a shape to the first slide.
• Use ParagraphCollection.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(string) method to create a mathematical equation from LaTeX code and add it to the shape.
• Save the result document using Presentation.SaveToFile(string, FileFormat) method.

The following code shows how to add mathematical equations to PowerPoint in C#.

using Spire.Presentation;
using System.Drawing;

namespace MathEquations
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {            
            //The LaTeX codes
            string latexCode1 = @"x^{2} + \sqrt{x^{2}+1}=2";
            string latexCode2 = @"F(x) &= \int^a_b \frac{1}{3}x^3";
            string latexCode3 = @"\alpha + \beta  \geq \gamma";
            string latexCode4 = @"\overrightarrow{abc}";
            string latexCode5 = @"\begin{bmatrix} 1 & 0 & \cdots & 0\\ 1 & 0 & \cdots & 0\\ \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \vdots\\ 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 \end{bmatrix}";
            string latexCode6 = @"\log_a{b}";

            //Create a Presentation instance
            Presentation ppt = new Presentation();

            //Get the first slide by using its index
            ISlide slide = ppt.Slides[0];

            //Add a shape to the slide
            IAutoShape shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(30, 100, 200, 30));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode1);

            //Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(240, 100, 200, 40));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode2);

            //Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(30, 180, 200, 40));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode3);

            //Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(240, 180, 200, 40));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode4);

            //Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(30, 280, 200, 70));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode5);

            //Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, new RectangleF(240, 280, 200, 40));
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear();
            //Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode6);

            for (int i = 0; i < slide.Shapes.Count; i++)
            {
                slide.Shapes[i].Fill.FillType = Spire.Presentation.Drawing.FillFormatType.None;
                slide.Shapes[i].Line.FillType = Spire.Presentation.Drawing.FillFormatType.None;
            }

            //Save the result document
            ppt.SaveToFile("MathEquations.pptx", FileFormat.Pptx2013);
        }
    }
}

The following code shows how to add mathematical equations to PowerPoint in VB.NET.

Imports Spire.Presentation
Imports System.Drawing

Namespace MathEquations
    Friend Class Program
        Private Shared Sub Main(ByVal args As String())
            'The LaTeX codes
            Dim latexCode1 As String = "x^{2} + \sqrt{x^{2}+1}=2"
            Dim latexCode2 As String = "F(x) &= \int^a_b \frac{1}{3}x^3"
            Dim latexCode3 As String = "\alpha + \beta  \geq \gamma"
            Dim latexCode4 As String = "\overrightarrow{abc}"
            Dim latexCode5 As String = "\begin{bmatrix} 1 & 0 & \cdots & 0\\ 1 & 0 & \cdots & 0\\ \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \vdots\\ 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 \end{bmatrix}"
            Dim latexCode6 As String = "\log_a{b}"

            'Create a Presentation instance
            Dim ppt As Presentation = New Presentation()

            'Get the first slide by using its index
            Dim slide As ISlide = ppt.Slides(0)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            Dim shape As IAutoShape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(30, 100, 200, 30))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode1)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(240, 100, 200, 40))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode2)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(30, 180, 200, 40))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode3)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(240, 180, 200, 40))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode4)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(30, 280, 200, 70))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode5)

            'Add a shape to the slide
            shape = slide.Shapes.AppendShape(ShapeType.Rectangle, New RectangleF(240, 280, 200, 40))
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.Clear()
            'Add a math equation to the shape using the LaTeX code 
            shape.TextFrame.Paragraphs.AddParagraphFromLatexMathCode(latexCode6)

            For i As Integer = 0 To slide.Shapes.Count - 1
                slide.Shapes(i).Fill.FillType = Spire.Presentation.Drawing.FillFormatType.None
                slide.Shapes(i).Line.FillType = Spire.Presentation.Drawing.FillFormatType.None
            Next

            'Save the result document
            ppt.SaveToFile("MathEquations.pptx", FileFormat.Pptx2013)
        End Sub
    End Class
End Namespace

The following is the output document after adding mathematical equations:

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If you'd like to remove the evaluation message from the generated documents, or to get rid of the function limitations, please request a 30-day trial license for yourself.

Spire.Presentation for .NET provides you with the ability to replace text with regular expression using the ReplaceTextWithRegex method of IShape class. The ReplaceTextWithRegex method accepts the following parameters:

Regex: the regular expression to search text.

string: the text to replace with.

The following example demonstrates how to replace text with regular expression in a PowerPoint document using Spire.Presentation for .NET.

using Spire.Presentation;
using System.Text.RegularExpressions;

namespace ReplaceTextWithRegex
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            //Create a Presentation instance
            Presentation ppt = new Presentation();
            //Load a sample document
            ppt.LoadFromFile("Sample.pptx");

            //Get the first slide
            ISlide slide = ppt.Slides[0];

            //Replace "ABC" and the subsequent to the end of the line as "ABC DEF"
            Regex regex = new Regex("ABC.*");
            string newvalue = "ABC DEF";
            foreach (IShape shape in slide.Shapes)
            {
                shape.ReplaceTextWithRegex(regex, newvalue);
            }

            //Save the result document
            ppt.SaveToFile("ReplaceTextWithRegex.pptx", FileFormat.Pptx2013);
        }
    }
}

Imports Spire.Presentation
Imports System.Text.RegularExpressions

Namespace ReplaceTextWithRegex
    Friend Class Program
        Private Shared Sub Main(ByVal args As String())
            'Create a Presentation instance
            Dim ppt As Presentation = New Presentation()
            'Load the sample document
            ppt.LoadFromFile("Sample.pptx")

            'Get the first slide
            Dim slide As ISlide = ppt.Slides(0)

            'Replace "ABC" and the subsequent to the end of the line as "ABC DEF"
            Dim regex As Regex = New Regex("ABC.*")
            Dim newvalue As String = "ABC DEF"

            For Each shape As IShape In slide.Shapes
                shape.ReplaceTextWithRegex(regex, newvalue)
            Next

            'Save the result document
            ppt.SaveToFile("ReplaceTextWithRegex.pptx", FileFormat.Pptx2013)
        End Sub
    End Class
End Namespace

The input PowerPoint document:

The output PowerPoint document: