Documents conversion
Convert PDF to RTF
Updated Jul 2026
PDF locks a document's layout in place, while RTF is an editable rich text format that most word processors on Mac and Windows can open. To convert PDF to RTF, open the PDF in a converter and export it as RTF. Doing this on your own computer means the document's contents and metadata never have to leave your machine.
- Extension
- Type
- Documents
- Typically
- The universal document format
- Metadata
- Carries EXIF
- Extension
- .rtf
- Type
- Documents
- Typically
- Cross-app rich text
Convert PDF to RTF on your own computer. Nothing uploads.
How to convert PDF to RTF
- Open Morphjet and drag in the PDF you want to convert. You can add a single file or a whole folder.
- Choose RTF as the output format.
- Convert. The RTF file is written next to your original, and nothing is uploaded anywhere.
PDF vs RTF: what actually changes
| RTF | ||
|---|---|---|
| Editable in a word processor | Not directly, text is locked into a fixed layout | Yes, opens as normal editable text |
| Layout preservation | Exact, every page looks identical everywhere | Approximate, text reflows and complex layouts get simplified |
| File size | Often smaller, especially with compressed images | Can be larger, since formatting is stored as plain-text markup |
| Tables and images | Rendered precisely, pixel for pixel | Carried over but may lose exact positioning or spacing |
| Opens everywhere | Yes, any browser or PDF viewer | Yes, in most word processors, but not browsers or PDF readers |
| Keeps document metadata (author, title, dates) | Yes | Usually not, most fields are dropped on export |
When to convert, and when not to
Convert PDF to RTF when you need to actually edit the text, for example to reuse a report, quote, or letter in a word processor instead of just reading it.
Keep the PDF if you need the document to look exactly the same on every screen and printer, since RTF reflows text and can shift multi-column layouts, tables, and spacing.
Why not just use an online converter?
PDFs often carry document metadata such as the author's name, the company that created the file, and edit timestamps, and if the PDF was built from scanned photos it can carry the embedded EXIF data from those images too. Send that PDF to an online converter and all of that travels to someone else's server along with the file. Converting on your own computer keeps the document and whatever it's carrying entirely on your machine.
Questions
Does converting PDF to RTF lose formatting?
Some. Simple documents with plain paragraphs convert cleanly, but multi-column layouts, precise tables, and unusual fonts often get simplified or reflowed. It's best for getting editable text, not for preserving an exact page design.
Can I edit the RTF file afterward?
Yes, that's the point of converting to RTF. It opens as normal, editable text in essentially any word processor on Mac or Windows, unlike a PDF, which is meant to stay fixed.
Will the RTF keep the PDF's author and metadata?
Usually not. Most PDF to RTF conversions carry over the visible text and basic formatting, but document metadata like the author name or creation date is typically dropped.
Can I convert PDF to RTF without uploading the file anywhere?
Yes. A desktop app like Morphjet converts the file locally on your own computer, so the PDF and anything inside it never has to go over the internet.
Does converting to RTF work for scanned PDFs?
Only if the PDF already has selectable text underneath the scan. A PDF that's just a photo of a page, with no text layer, will convert to an RTF with little or no readable text in it.
Morphjet converts PDF, RTF, and 1,800+ other formats, all on your machine. Launching this July.