[7 Ways] How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac: for QuickBooks, etc.

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Carolyn Ryan
March 07, 2024 Preview 192 Preview 0
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Are you a Mac user and feel frustrated to import data in your PDF bank statements into accounting software like QuickBooks? Converting PDF to CSV on Mac can be the solution, because CSV files integrate seamlessly with all major finance programs while PDF is more for sharing and printing.

In this post, we’ll elaborate on how to convert PDF to CSV on Mac in 7 trustworthy ways, so that you can manage your finances with facility.

 

4 Well-Reviewed Apps to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac Quickly

Sometimes, the bank will only send you bank statements in PDF format. In such a situation, you’ll need a specialized PDF converter to convert a view-friendly PDF to an editable CSV file. To help you find the best PDF to CSV converter apps for your needs, here we have compiled a list of top picks on Mac, which are selected basing on prices, features, user interface and more.

#1. Cisdem PDF Converter OCR

The first recommendation is Cisdem PDF Converter OCR, which is rated by numerous users as a must-have office application. With this software at your disposal, you will find it simple to fast convert PDF to CSV files in large quantity of files at a time. All the tables and data in the original PDF will be retained perfectly in the converted CSV file and keep the same formatting. 

Better still, even you import the scanned PDF files into the Cisdem program, it will automatically start the OCR engine to turn scans to editable CSV files. Totally 25 languages can be recognized.

In addition, an attractive benefit of Cisdem PDF Converter OCR is that it allows for outputting a wide range of file formats besides CSV.

How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac in Bulk?

  1. Download and install the program of Cisdem PDF Converter OCR on your Mac.
    Free Download macOS 10.14 or later
  2. Launch the program and select the Converter tab.pdf to csv cisdem01
  3. Drag and drop your PDF bank statements under the Converter interface. Alternatively, click “+” icon at the left corner to add more files. pdf to csv cisdem02
  4. The program allows users to input the scanned PDF as well. It will pop up a new window to prompt you to download the OCR module.pdf to csv cisdem03
  5. Enter the page range you’d like to convert to CSV, and select to XLSX from the output format list.pdf to csv cisdem04
  6. Click Gear icon to make settings about the output files. You can decide whether to combine all pages into a single Excel sheet.pdf to csv cisdem05
  7. Choose an output folder and click Convert to start the processing. When the conversion is finished, open the Excel file with Numbers, go to File > Export to > CSV to save it as a CSV file.pdf to csv cisdem06

#2. ProperSoft (PDF2CSV)

ProperSoft has provided a tool named PDF2CSV, specifically designed for converting PDF to CSV on Mac. It can correctly parse the data in bank statements, credit card records, invoices and more financial PDF documents. Moreover, it offers multiple options to add customization on transactions before exporting it to CSV, such as choosing dates style and changing +/- for all transactions.

But the bad news is that it doesn’t allow for recognizing scanned or image-based files and processing bulk files. And free trial converts up to 10 transactions per file.

Steps to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac

  1. Download ProperSoft PDF2CSV app and start it on your Mac.
  2. Click Browse on the top to upload the PDF you want to convert, wait for parsing.pdf to csv mac propersoft01
  3. All the transactions in the PDF will be displayed orderly on the board, choose CSV tab in the right pane and tick one option from CSV Target menu as you need.pdf to csv mac propersoft02
  4. You can also adjust the columns and structures, add transactions and change values on the left board. If everything is ready, click Convert to output PDF as CSV format.

#3. Aiseesoft Mac PDF Converter Ultimate

As its name suggests, this software is a professional PDF converter that can help you to convert native and scanned PDF files into editable Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Images(JPG, PNG, BMP, GIF), EPUB, etc. A large quantity of PDF files can be converted at one go. Besides, it offers a generous 15-day trial period to check the performance of the conversions. But note that all the output files of trial version will be watermarked.

Tutorial on How to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac

  1. Run the program of Aiseesoft PDF Converter Ultimate on your Mac.
  2. Click Add File(s) button at the top left to import your PDF documents.pdf to csv mac soft01
  3. Select Microsoft Excel as the output format from the Output Format list. If you have uploaded multiple PDF files, click Apply to All to apply current settings to all items.pdf to csv mac soft02
  4. Go to Preferences to choose an OCR mode and select languages to be used for recognition in OCR.pdf to csv mac soft03
  5. Go back to the main interface and click Start button to turn PDF files into Excel files.pdf to csv mac soft04
  6. Open Numbers and import the transferred Excel file into it, go to File > Export to > CSV to save Excel as a CSV file.

#4. Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat has won a good reputation in PDF field for a long time thanks to its full-fledged features. Almost all tasks concerning PDF files can be completed in Adobe--edit PDF, convert PDF, protect PDF, unlock PDF and so on. Since it is more of a PDF editor than a PDF converter, the output formats it offers are not as complete, with only several common formats supported. You have to convert a PDF bank statement into an Excel file, then save Excel as CSV in Microsoft Excel, Numbers, etc.

The Easy Guide to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac

  1. Right click your PDF file and open it with Adobe Acrobat.
  2. Select Export PDF feature from the right tool menu.pdf to csv mac adobe01
  3. Click Spreadsheet and choose one type of Excel file as needed. pdf to csv mac adobe02
  4. If you select Microsoft Excel Workbook as the output, you can click Gear icon to tweak some settings about XLSX, and also set an OCR language to recognize the text if needed.pdf to csv mac adobe03
  5. Open the Excel file in Numbers and export it to CSV.pdf to csv mac adobe04

What's the best software to convert PDF to CSV on Mac?

From the above tutorial, we can see that except for ProperSoft that can directly convert PDF to CSV on Mac, other software will convert PDF to Excel first, and then export Excel to CSV in Numbers. But spending $149.99/y to do such a conversion is not cost effective. So here we've summarized the pros and cons of 4 applications in a table, from which you can choose the best one for your needs.

Software Cisdem PDF Converter OCR ProperSoft Aiseesoft PDF Converter Adobe Acrobat
Batch Convert × ×
Convert scanned PDF ×
More output formats 20+ 10+ 10+
Create PDF × ×

 

How to convert PDF to CSV on Mac for free?

The aforementioned applications are undoubtedly the first choices to carry on the PDF-to-CSV conversion, but some people may have a tight budget and expect a free method. While free solutions won’t have all the bells and whistles of paid software, it still seems well worthwhile to have a try. 

Manually Copy and Paste Data in Preview

As we all know, Preview is the native and default image and PDF viewer on Mac. It is a completely free application where you can manually copy the tabular data in a PDF and paste it to a blank CSV or Excel document. This method needs patience and time.

Follow the Steps to Convert PDF to CSV on Mac for Free 

  1. Double click the PDF file to open it in Preview by default.
  2. Drag your mouse to select the data or texts as needed, right click to choose Copy.pdf to csv mac preview01
  3. Open a new CSV or Excel file, paste the copied content to it. 

Online Solutions

To be honest, online solutions should be the last resort to convert PDF bank statements to CSV files. Bank statements typically contain lots of confidential information, like account holder’s name, address, number, spending over a period and so on. How terrible it would be if this private information was leaked to a third-party service. 

In order to reduce the risk, we have picked out two relatively safer online tools based on user reviews. They are ZAMZAR and ASPOSE. 

Why to choose them:

  • Support batch convert PDF to CSV.
  • Provide a wide variety of file formats to input and output.

#1. Convert PDF to CSV Online Free Using ZAMZAR

File limits: It allows to import a file up to 2 MB and convert 2 files per day.

  • Step 1. Go to the website: https://www.zamzar.com/convert/pdf-to-csv/.
  • Step 2. Click Choose Files to upload your PDF files from your computer, Dropbox, Google Drive or any other places. 
  • Step 3. Select csv from Convert To drop-down list and click Convert Now to begin the conversion.pdf to csv mac online01

#2. Convert PDF to CSV Online Free Using Aspose

File limits: It supports doing only 2 tasks per day.

  • Step 1. Go to the website: https://products.aspose.app/pdf/conversion/pdf-to-csv.
  • Step 2. Drag and drop your PDF files into the drop zone directly. Then click CONVERT to save them as CSV files.pdf to csv mac online02
  • Step 3. Wait for the processing, you can download the converted CSV files easily.pdf to csv mac online03

 

What is CSV file format?

CSV, the abbreviation of Comma-separated values, is a file format aiming to store tabular data including numbers and text in plain text. Each line in the CSV file represents one data record. It is a great way to achieve the transfer of data information between different databases, since it can be directly imported into various accounting applications, such as QuickBooks, Quicken, Xero and more. 

 

How do I import CSV files into QuickBooks?

Once you have a CSV file, you can import it into QuickBooks easily. Just run QuickBooks on you Mac, go to File > Open to upload the CSV file. In the program, you can edit the content as you like, go back to File > Save As to export it as QBO file format.

Well, we have introduced 7 doable methods to help you to convert PDF to CSV on Mac, which one do you like best? Let us know in the comments.

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Carolyn Ryan

Carolyn has always been passionate about reading and writing, so she joined Cisdem as an editor as soon as she graduated from university. She focuses on writing how-to articles about PDF editing and conversion.

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