Ever find yourself lost in the matrix of PDF files, wishing you had a magical "map" to navigate the chaos? Parsing PDF documents doesn't have to be as complex as deciphering ancient runes, not when you've got Parseur by your side.
A PDF parser also known as a PDF scraper is software that extracts data from PDF files. Parsing PDF documents is a complex process that requires a lot of expertise and domain knowledge. This is why PDF parsing tools have become increasingly popular in recent years.
In this article, we will discuss what a PDF parser is, what kinds of data it can extract, and the benefits of parsing PDF documents for businesses.
What is PDF parsing?
To understand what a PDF file parser is, you need to know what document parsing is. Document parsing refers to the conversion of unstructured data (the text in the documents) into structured data. The structured data can then be used for research or decision-making processes. In other words, it unlocks valuable information that would otherwise remain hidden in the unstructured document format.
A PDF parser allows users to:
- Extract text from PDFs: Parsers can extract text from machine and human-readable PDFs.
- Extract images from PDFs: Parsers can extract images, barcodes, QR codes and checkboxes from PDFs
- Extract tables and repetitive structures from PDFs
- Extract data from PDFs: The data can be converted into text, XML and HTML files.
Use cases for PDF parsers
No matter what type of software you're using to run your business, there's a good chance that you have PDF documents stored in your system. We've seen companies in every industry use our PDF parser for all sorts of different use cases:
- Real estate companies parse real estate contracts.
- E-commerce businesses can easily extract details from order confirmations.
- Accounting firms use PDF parsers to automate data extraction invoices, sales and expense reports.
- Logistics companies leverage automation to streamline data extraction from bills of lading and cargo manifests.
- Law firms and asset management companies parse legal documents for signatures, dates, contact information, and other important metadata.
Benefits of PDF parsing
Automating the process of pulling data from PDF documents saves time, reduce errors and makes it easier to analyze data in a digital format.
We have highlighted some of the main benefits below.
Reduce manual data entry work
One of the main benefits of using a PDF parser is that it eliminates manual data entry. Your team won't have to spend time entering information from each document into your system. Instead, they can use their time on more important tasks that involve critical thinking and problem-solving.
"90% of employees are being burdened with boring and repetitive tasks which could be easily automated" - ThinkAutomation, Key Demand Statistics
This will help employees feel less stressed and more satisfied with their jobs since they won't be stuck doing tedious work all day long. Plus, the reduced stress will lead to higher productivity levels and increased efficiency across the board.
Eliminate human errors
Manually copying and pasting data can result in human mistakes especially if your employees are going through tons of documents on a daily basis. A PDF parsing tool will reduce the potential for human errors and duplications.
Radically improve cost-effectiveness
Not only can you save time with an automated PDF parsing workflow but you can also save money. The tool can process millions of documents within seconds and is definitely a quick return on investment for any organization.
A benchmark made by Parseur in June 2021 concluded that on average a Parseur document processing tool saves about 130 hours of manual data entry work or about $3,282 every month.
- Parseur statistics, June 2021
Send your document data to any of your applications
You can send your document content to any application of your choice in real time! For example, if you have an e-commerce website and you want to send specific data from PDF order confirmations to Google Sheets, this can be done automatically using a PDF parser to Google Sheets.
Ease of operation and maintenance
You do not have to be tech-savvy to use a PDF parser for extracting data. Most recent software is easy to navigate and use. For example, at Parseur everything is point & click and zero parsing rules are needed to build a workflow.
"Did you know that Business Workflow Automation for the SMEs industry is expected to create an incremental opportunity of more than $1.6 billion during 2017-2026?"
Parseur : The best PDF parser software in 2024
Parseur is a powerful AI parser and document processing that automatically extracts data from any documents such as invoices or bills of lading within seconds. The extracted data can then be downloaded or exported to thousands of applications. Parseur is integrated with Zapier, Integromat, and Power Automate.
What Parseur do best as a PDF parser?
Parseur offers three parsing engines to cater for every use case: an AI parsing engine, a template-based parsing engine with OCR for PDFs, and a template-based parsing engine for text documents.
- Parseur can extract tables and repetitive structures from PDFs
- Parseur can extract additional metadata such as subject, file name, date and time received.
- The PDF extractor has smart automatic layout detection capabilities and built-in library of templates that parse documents automatically such as food ordering, and real estate contact forms.
How does PDF parsing with Parseur work?
We have simplified the process in 3 simple steps below to better understand how PDF extraction works with Parseur.
Step 1: Create a free AI parser mailbox
Create your free mailbox with Parseur and forward your PDF documents to the mailbox. You can also upload the document directly into the Parseur app.
Step 2: List the fields that you want to extract
Once you've listed all the fields, the AI engine will parse the document automatically.
Step 3: Send the parsed data to other applications
Once the data has been extracted automatically, you can send it to any application that you want.
PDF parsing technology allows businesses to automatically extract information from PDFs like invoices, purchase orders or tax forms into databases or spreadsheets, making them easier to search and process.
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