PDFs make life so much easier in the digital world, turning anything you can print into a universally viewable document. However, they are not easy to modify and sometimes you really, really need to convert them to a Word document so they can be edited or repurposed. Now there is a new way to convert PDFs into Word that is so faithful to the layout of the original that it blew me away the first time I tried it.

PDF = Particularly Difficult Format

If you ever tried to edit a PDF document, even with some of the best tools available (including Adobe’s own rather expensive Acrobat Professional), then you understand why PDF can stand for “Particularly Difficult Format”.  And other software that purports to convert PDF to Word has failed miserably in my experience, until now.  Enter PDFtoWord.com which is a free online service that is as simple as 1-2-3:

1. Upload the PDF you want to convert;
    
2. Indicate whether you want a .doc (Word) or .rtf (Rich Text Format) conversion (TIP: stick with the .doc);
    
3. Give your email address where you want the service to send you the converted document.

That’s all there is to it!  After a period of time (usually within 15 – 30 minutes) you will receive an email with your PDFtoWord conversion as an attachment.  I converted three very different PDFs into Word using this service.  If you right-click on the respective thumbnails below you can download and compare what the original PDF and resulting Word document look like.

The first test is a single-page flyer with graphics and several different styles of text.  Notice how PDFtoWord very faithfully preserved the positioning and look of the various fonts and styles.  My only complaint on this one is that the main graphic seems to have dropped one or two colors.

The second test is a PDF report from the California Association of REALTORS with the results of their 2008 online consumer survey.  This report is over 60 pages and contains many different types of charts and tables.  PDFtoWord duplicated everything extremely well with the exception of 2 or 3 bar charts.  Other than that I was completely amazed at how great a job it did.  Once again however, the first page graphic looks like it had several colors dropped compared to the original.

The last test is very complicated series of forms which I honestly didn’t think would convert successfully.  Check it out for yourself to see just how well PDFtoWord did.  The only thing I noticed in this particular test is that the software seemed to be confused about the font case in some instances.

Needless to say, PDFtoWord is going into my special box of cool “must have” tools.  Chances are you will agree whole heartedly once you’ve tried it as well.