To extract comments from a PDF file, you can use a PDF editor or Word. You can then open the exported comments in Excel to sort and filter them.

PDF comments or annotations (sticky notes and markups) are commonly used to review academic papers, proofread business records, and annotate legal documents. Knowing how to extract comments from PDFs can enhance and simplify the text editing process, document revision, and collaboration between individuals creating or addressing the comments.

In this guide, we will show you practical methods to extract comments from PDFs and share some practices to help you make the most out of this process.

Key Takeaways

Sticky notes, highlights, text boxes, and replies are stored as separate annotations, so you can export them without rereading every page.
Most PDF software can save comments as an FDF or XFDF file that keeps the author, date, page, and comment text.
Opening the file in a word processor lets you copy the comments as text, but some comment types may not carry over, so check the result against the original.
Open the exported data in a spreadsheet to sort, filter, and track comments, and save it as CSV or XLSX if you need to.
Comments that were printed into the page or drawn on a scan are not separate comments, so they cannot be extracted.
Add status, owner, and due date columns so every comment turns into a clear next step.

What Information Can You Extract From PDF Comments?

A PDF comment can be a sticky note, a highlight with a note, underline or strikethrough markup, a text box, or a reply in a comment thread.

Each one is stored as a separate annotation inside the PDF format and includes details such as the comment text, author, date, and page number, which is the information you get when you extract comments from a PDF.

How to Extract Comments From PDF in Adobe Acrobat

If you already pay for Adobe Acrobat, you can export comments to a data file directly from the comments list. Here’s how to do it:

Open your PDF in Acrobat and display the comments list.
Click the options menu (the three dots) in the comments list.
Choose Export All To Data File to export every comment. To export only some of them, select those comments first and choose Export Selected To Data File instead (this option is not available in Acrobat Reader).
Select the FDF or XFDF format, name the file, choose a location, and click Save.

FDF and XFDF files contain only the comment data, not the PDF pages. You can open an XFDF file in Excel. Menu names may differ slightly between Acrobat versions. If you don’t have Acrobat, use the Word method below.

How to Extract Comments From PDF to Word

Word can convert a PDF and, in many cases, show its comments so you can copy them out. Here's how to extract PDF comments to Word:

#1. Extracting PDF Comments Directly From Word

You can simply load your document in Word, which will convert it and, in many cases, show the comments for further use. Here’s how you can do so:

Run Microsoft Word and click the Open Other Documents button in the bottom left corner.
Press the Browse button and select your file from the drive.
Click the OK button to allow Word to convert your PDF document.
After the conversion is complete, the document will open, showing the annotations (if Word was able to carry them over); you can copy and paste them into another document to save PDF comments as text.

#2. Turning a Word Document Into a Web Page

For large documents, you can save your Word file as a web page, which will enable you to see the structured list of comments and copy them easily. If the converted file from the previous method is already open, skip to step 3; otherwise, follow all the steps below:

Right-click the PDF document, choose the Open With menu, and select Word.
Hit the OK button to start the conversion process.
Click the Save as button.
Choose Web Page from the Save as type drop-down menu and press the Save button again.
Find the saved document and open it using your web browser. Scroll all the way down to see the comments, and feel free to copy and paste them to a preferred location.

It’s important to say that this program may sometimes not be able to convert your documents from PDF to Word automatically. If you encounter this issue, you can use our PDF-to-Word converter to prepare for this process, as it offers quick and flawless conversion.

In addition, you can use Google Docs to export comments from PDFs. Just upload your file to your Google Drive and open it using Google Docs. The online software will convert your document and display all the comments, which you will be able to copy and save somewhere else. As with Word, compare the result with your original PDF, since not every comment may be preserved.

How to Extract Comments From PDF to Excel

To extract comments from PDF to Excel, you should export your comments from your PDF software as an XFDF file and open it in Excel as an XML table.

Let’s see the detailed guide:

#1. Export Your Comments as an XFDF File

Most PDF software lets you export comments to a data file. Open the comments menu and look for an option such as Export comments or Export to data file, then choose the XFDF format, because Excel can open it as an XML table. The exact menu names depend on the software you use.

#2. Use Excel to Create a Schema

The final step is to open the exported file using Excel. Once you do that, a new window will appear with a pre-selected option to open the document as an XML table.

Hit the OK button to allow Excel to create a schema based on the XML source data, and then click the OK button once again to complete the process. Excel will open the document in a tabular view, making it ready to use. The table typically includes details such as the comment author, date, page number, and comment text, which you can sort and filter.

If you would rather convert the whole document into a spreadsheet, you can try our PDF to Excel converter.

What to Do If Your PDF Comments Don’t Show Up

If an extraction method finds no comments, or fewer than you expected, check these common causes:

The comments are flattened. If the PDF was printed or saved with its comments flattened, the notes became part of the page and are no longer separate comments, so they cannot be extracted as comments. Ask the author for the original file with live comments.
The file is password-protected. Remove the password or change permissions first, then try again.
Replies or highlights are missing after a Word conversion. Word does not always carry over every comment type, so use a PDF editor instead.
The file is a scan. Marks drawn on a scanned page are part of the image, not comments.

3 Best Practices for Extracting Comments From PDF Files

Organizing comments the right way after extraction is very important for further use. Even if you use the best PDF comment extraction tool, you may still not benefit from it if the information remains unsorted or unclassified.

Let’s examine the three best practices that can help you with PDF comment extraction and organization:

#1. Organizing Comments Into a Summary Report

Learning how to summarize PDF comments can help you keep track of them and reference them better. The exported Excel table already contains most of this information, so you only need to add a few extra columns.

For instance, you can create a list or table and classify your comments according to the following criteria:

Document name
Page number
Original comment content
Name of the comment author
Type of comment (error, suggestion, etc.)
Date
Status (open, in progress, resolved)

#2. Converting Comments Into Actionable Tasks

Grouping comments into actionable tasks can keep revisions on track (e.g., at work or school). In other words, you can consider every comment a call to action and then categorize each in different ways.

For instance, a comment may point towards rephrasing a section and improving your work. Comments that confirm something works well can be marked as approved, so nobody changes that section by mistake. Comments that lead to specific actions can speed up your revision process.

Knowing which action you should take and when can also keep the review on schedule, as it can help you set priorities and put effort and time into key tasks. This also means you can deal with low-priority tasks more quickly and spend less energy on them. In your exported table, add Owner, Due date, and Status columns so every comment has someone responsible for it.

#3. Filtering Essential Feedback From Large PDFs

Some large PDFs can contain a lot of comments. This is why it is crucial to filter essential feedback and exclude minor comments.

Let’s see some of the best methods for comment filtering:

Focus on keywords. You can look for the general and most common comments in a large PDF file, such as ‘rephrase, revise, correct, delete, etc.’ This can make organizing your comments easier and faster.
Color comments according to their types. Once your comments are in Excel, you can apply cell colors or conditional formatting. For example, you can highlight all the positive feedback in green, suggestions in yellow, and errors in red.
Single out similar or identical comments. Marking the same or similar comments can help you disregard or remove the ones you do not find necessary. Also, this can help you process multiple comments simultaneously and reveal what your primary focus should be.

Final Thoughts

Extracting comments from a PDF takes only a few minutes once you know where to look. Exporting a data file with a PDF editor is the most complete option, Word works as a quick fallback, and Excel gives you a table you can sort, filter, and track.

Whichever method you choose, organize your comments afterward by page, author, status, and owner so every comment turns into a clear next step.

How to Extract Comments From PDF FAQs

#1. What file formats can I export comments to?

You can export comments to file formats such as PDF or XFDF with a PDF editor, but always check the export window for all available options. You can open an XFDF file in Excel and save it as CSV or XLSX.

#2. Is it possible to extract comments from scanned PDFs?

It depends on how the comments were added. If the comments were added digitally on top of the scan, you can extract them with the steps above. To make the scanned text itself searchable first, use OCR to detect text from the scanned image. Handwritten notes or marks that are part of the scanned image are not stored as comments, so they cannot be extracted as comments.

#3. Can you export comments from one PDF to another?

Yes, you can export comments from one PDF to another. First, extract comments from your original file. After you save the exported comments to your drive, upload this file and the PDF you want to export comments to. For best results, use the same version of the PDF, since comment positions can shift when the page count differs.

#4. Does extracting comments change the original PDF?

No, it does not, because extraction exports your comments to a separate file, so your original PDF stays as it is.

#5. Why can’t I extract comments from my PDF?

The most common reason is that the comments were flattened or printed into the page, so they are no longer separate annotations. See the troubleshooting section above for other causes.

How to Extract Comments From a PDF File: Different Methods + Tips