To insert a PDF into Excel, you can use the Excel program to add files as an object or hyperlink, or you can convert PDF to Excel using the pdf.net tool.
Inserting PDFs into Excel enables you to have direct access to documents such as financial reports, invoices, and data tables in your worksheet. This is excellent when you need to provide references or specific clickable visuals.
While some insertion methods (e.g., Python) may be complex to streamline, we will show you the three most straightforward ways to insert PDFs into Excel. Let’s start!
Key Takeaways
- Inserting PDFs into Excel facilitates the use of Excel-format-friendly data (spreadsheets or other data requiring tables, rows, cells, and graph elements).
- You can embed a PDF in Excel as an object or create hyperlinks using Microsoft Excel. If you’re on a Mac, you may have to simply insert specific pages as pictures if you don’t want to use links.
- pdf.net allows for fast and secure PDF to Excel conversion, creating documents you can use with Excel readers without hyperlinking, embedding, or file oversizing.
- Our website offers other tools to tweak your PDFs (sign, annotate, merge, and edit text) before conversion or for any other purpose.
How to Insert PDF to Excel: 3 Simple Methods
To insert a PDF into Excel, you can use the following methods: embedding it as an object, adding it as a hyperlink, or converting the document to Excel.
Below, we will show you how each of these methods works and what steps to take for each.
#1. Embed a PDF Into Excel as an Object
If you want to embed a PDF in Excel, you should use the Object feature. By doing this, you can transfer a PDF into Excel.
Let’s break down this process step by step:
- Open Excel and click Insert.
- Find Object in the Text group and select it.
- In the Object dialogue box, click the Create from File tab and then Browse to find the document you want to embed.
- Click OK to close the dialogue box and adjust your PDF.
Once you do this, the preview of your PDF will appear in Excel, as you can see above. The first page of your document will appear not as a PDF or XML table but as an image in the spreadsheets. You can reposition the image by hovering your cursor over it, clicking on it, and dragging it to another place after you see the ‘move’ icon.
Additionally, you can resize the image by clicking it and using the upper or bottom left or right edges to drag the image inward for a smaller size or outward for a bigger size. And if you double-click on the preview, your document will open in your default PDF reader.
This method may not be as complex as using programming languages (e.g., Python libraries), but it has a downside, as it does not allow editing.
Also, inserting a PDF into Excel can make it much larger. This can hinder the sharing or uploading process and require you to resize your PDF before insertion into Excel to avoid oversized files.
#2. Insert a PDF Into Excel as a Link
Besides object insertion, you can also link PDFs to an Excel cell, which is another straightforward method to insert PDFs into Excel. You can link either using a clean text anchor or an image anchor if you want a visual thumbnail that readers can click. That said, let’s examine each case in more detail.
Link Using a Text Anchor
Here are the steps to link a PDF into Excel using a text anchor:
- Double-click Excel to open it.
- Select the cell with the text you want to use as an anchor, right-click it, and choose Link from the drop-down menu.
- Find your document in the Insert Hyperlink menu and double-click it or click OK.
- The anchor text will change color and become clickable; click if you want to open your document in a PDF reader.
You can rename your anchor to fit the file name or align with its purpose and customize it by changing the font style, size, and color for a cleaner look.
This is also the only method that works in Google Sheets or Excel Online, as you can upload your PDF to a storage cloud and link to it in these online applications.
Link Using an Image Anchor
Additionally, you can insert PDFs into Excel as an image and create a hyperlink. This is a similar method to inserting a PDF as an object, involving the following few short steps:
- Open the spreadsheet document in Excel.
- Select the cell you want to edit, click Insert, and choose Pictures.
- Click Place in Cell, then choose This Device from the Insert Picture From dropdown menu.
- Browse the image in any format (e.g., TIFF files) and any image type (a document thumbnail, a report cover sheet, or other visual aids), then click Insert.
- Right-click the image and select Link from the drop-down menu.
- Select your PDF file to become a clickable link with the image as an anchor, in the same way as described in the previous section.
The two ways for PDF to Excel insertion may be similar to embedding an object, but they are more beneficial than embedding. This is because hyperlinks do not enlarge your files, leading to difficulties in uploading or similar processes.
#3. Convert PDF to Excel
Embedding and inserting PDFs into Excel is useful if you only need a preview of the document and don’t want to change anything. However, if you need to edit the data, work with tables, or run formulas, this alone won’t be enough. In such a case, it’s best to convert your PDF to CSV or Excel files.
One of the easiest ways to do so is using pdf.net, as it only takes a few clicks.
Here’s how to do it:
- Visit our homepage and select the PDF to Excel converter.
- Upload your document by dragging it into the box labeled Drop files here to convert or by clicking Choose file to do this manually.
- Click Convert to XLSX to change the file format.
- Save your document by clicking the Download button in the top-right corner.
After this process, you will have a fresh Excel document that any reader supporting standard formats (XFDF, XLS, and XLSX files) can open. This means that our tool can also make a PDF editable in Excel.
Moreover, even though there are other, free tools for converting PDFs to Excel, they may be slow or damage your file. On the other hand, our software is fast, preserves document formatting, and keeps quality intact, which further facilitates the editing process, in addition to simple conversion.
How to Insert a PDF Into Excel on Mac
Inserting a PDF into Excel on a Mac is similar to Windows if you’re using hyperlinks, but there is no option to embed a PDF in Excel on a Mac. Instead, you can only insert a PDF into Excel as an image for reference.
Here’s how to do that:
- Open Excel and your PDF document in Preview.
- Select the page you want to add to the sheet and press Command + C to copy it.
- Go to Excel and click on a cell where you want to paste it.
- Press Command + V, paste the image, and resize it according to your needs.
Of course, if you actually want to edit information in your PDF document, you have to convert it to an Excel document; that is no different on a Mac.
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Troubleshooting: PDF Not Displaying Correctly in Excel
PDF not displaying correctly in Excel can be frustrating, but luckily, this issue may not be too difficult to solve. Here are some of the most common causes, along with the best solutions:
- PDF appears as an icon instead of a preview. This usually happens when you try the Excel object embedding method, which should result in a clickable preview of your PDF. However, if the result is just an icon, it’s possible that you ticked the Display as icon box in the Object dialogue box. Make sure that’s unchecked and try embedding the file again.
- The hyperlink is broken after moving PDF files. When you move your PDF file to a new location, the link in your Excel will become outdated and no longer work. To fix this, you need to replace the old hyperlink with a new one by following the hyperlink insertion steps described above.
- The Excel file size is too large after embedding. The quickest fix for this one is changing the file type to Excel Binary Workbook, which reduces the size and is ideal for storing data. Simply go to File > Save As > Save as type and select it from the dropdown menu. Alternatively, you can opt for hyperlinks instead of embedding.
- PDF won’t open when double-clicked. There are several possible causes of this, but first, make sure to check whether your PDF is in a restricted viewing mode and disable it if so. Also, verify that your default PDF reader is properly installed and configured.
Use pdf.net for More Than Just Conversion
In addition to a high-quality PDF-to-Excel conversion, our software provides many other services for modifying your PDFs.
Let’s see the most popular pdf.net tools for perfecting your documents:
- PDF merge tool. You can combine multiple PDFs into one with several clicks and without any formatting or reordering issues. Plus, you can manually change the file order and rearrange pages within each document for a perfect flow.
- Compression software. Our tool allows for three compression settings (low, balanced, and high) depending on how much you want to shrink your file. Needless to say, we offer lossless compression, meaning that your PDF quality will remain the same after this process.
- Editing, annotating, and signing tool. With our text editor, you can replace, add, or remove text in your documents and modify the font. Similarly, you can highlight text in PDFs, annotate them by adding comments and sticky notes, and add or request signatures.
Final Thoughts
Inserting PDFs into Excel allows you to use PDF content in a format that is friendly for tables, graphs, and similar data. To do this, you can embed PDFs into Excel or create hyperlinks to have smaller files and access PDFs easily.
Additionally, pdf.net allows you to transform your PDF into Excel, making it usable with Excel readers. If you do not want to open your PDFs through links or have oversized files but still wish to have stable formatting and high-quality documents, we recommend using our converter.
Besides conversion, we offer numerous tools for PDF modification, which you can use to annotate, edit, sign, and merge your PDFs based on your needs.
How to Insert PDF to Excel FAQs
Does inserting a PDF into Excel work in Excel Online?
Inserting a PDF into Excel doesn’t work in Excel Online since the app doesn’t support object embedding. However, there is an option to upload your PDF to Microsoft OneDrive or Google Drive and add the link to your worksheet.
Can I edit a PDF after inserting it into Excel?
Yes, you can edit a PDF after inserting it into Excel, but you can’t do so directly in Excel without converting the file. However, you can use our PDF editor to modify your file outside of an Excel document.
Why is my inserted PDF not displaying properly in Excel?
Your inserted PDF is not displaying properly in Excel because your PDF file may have security restrictions (e.g., safe mode on), preventing adequate embedding. Also, your Excel reader may be outdated, meaning you should update it or try another software.
Is there a way to extract data from a PDF without converting it?
Yes, there is a way to extract data from a PDF without converting it. To do so, you can use Python libraries, Zonal Optical Character Recognition, Large Language Models, and the Chat PDF feature, which is the simplest of all the methods.
Does converting a PDF to Excel affect formatting?
Converting a PDF to Excel may affect formatting if you use unreliable tools for this process. In contrast, our conversion tool offers high-quality conversion that preserves the file formatting and maximum quality.
Which method is best for large PDFs?
The best method for large PDFs is inserting PDFs into Excel as a hyperlink. However, you can compress PDFs without losing quality and embed them into Excel to avoid external access while keeping the file size small.