Skip to main content

Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/dev2forge/pdf2wordx/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

pdf2wordx uses the pdf2docx library (version 0.5.8) to parse PDF structure and reproduce it as an editable Microsoft Word document. The pdf2docx library reads the PDF’s internal page data — including text blocks, images, and layout geometry — and maps them to Word-compatible constructs stored in the .docx Open XML format. The conversion is initiated from within the Funcs class in files/functions.py and runs asynchronously so that the Tkinter interface stays fully responsive while a potentially large document is being processed.
Converting very large or complex PDF files may produce .docx output files that are significantly larger than the original PDF. Additionally, due to the inherent complexity of replicating certain PDF layouts, the resulting Word document may contain strange colors, incoherent or missing text, or layout differences compared to the original. These are known limitations of the pdf2docx conversion engine, not bugs in pdf2wordx itself. Always review the converted document before use.

​
Step-by-step conversion

1

Set your output filename

When the app launches, the filename entry field is already pre-populated with document-pdf2wordx. You can leave this default or clear the field and type your preferred name.Do not include the .docx extension — it is appended automatically. Whatever text is in the entry field at the moment you click “Choose Directory” becomes the final filename. For example, typing my-report will produce my-report.docx.
# From _pdf2wordx.py — the default value inserted at startup
self.widget.widgetsList[4].insert(0, 'document-pdf2wordx')
2

Click "Abrir Archivo" (Open File) to select a PDF

Click the yellow-green “Abrir Archivo” button to open the native OS file picker. The dialog is pre-filtered to show only .pdf files:
# From files/functions.py — Funcs._askFile()
file = self.filedialog.askopenfilename(filetypes=[('Seleccionar PDF: ', '*.pdf')])
After you select a valid file:
  • The PDF’s base filename is extracted with os.path.basename() and stored in self.file_name_original.
  • The “Elegir Directorio” button is enabled automatically.
  • The “Archivo PDF:” info label at the bottom of the window updates to show the selected filename.
If no file is chosen (the dialog is cancelled), no state changes occur.
3

Click "Elegir Directorio" (Choose Directory) to pick an output folder

This button becomes active only after a PDF has been selected. Clicking it triggers two sequential actions:
  1. The current text in the filename entry field is read and combined with the .docx extension to form the output filename: 
    # From files/functions.py — Funcs._fileNameOut()
self.file_name_out = f'{txt}.docx'
  2. A native OS directory picker opens, titled “Busca la ruta de salida del archivo”. The full output path is constructed by joining the chosen directory and the output filename: 
    # From files/functions.py — Funcs._askDirOut()
self.directory_out = str(filedialog.askdirectory(...)) + '/' + self.file_name_out
After a valid directory is chosen:
  • The “Convertir” button is enabled.
  • The “Archivo De Salida:” info label updates to show the configured output filename.
4

Click "Convertir" (Convert) to start the conversion

With both a source PDF and an output directory configured, click “Convertir” to begin. Two dialogs appear in sequence:
  1. Info dialog — immediately shows: "Convirtiendo <full path to pdf>", confirming that the process has started.
  2. Success dialog — once the conversion finishes, a second dialog confirms: "Se ha convertido el archivo <filename> exitosamente".
The “Directorio De Salida:” label also updates at this point to display the full save path, so you always know where to find your file.

​
Under the hood

The core conversion logic lives in the Funcs._convertFile() async method inside files/functions.py. When the Convert button is clicked, App.convertFile() in _pdf2wordx.py launches it inside a dedicated background thread wrapped in asyncio.run(): 
# From _pdf2wordx.py — App.convertFile()
Thread(target=lambda: asyncio.run(self.funcs._convertFile(buttons))).start()
Inside _convertFile(), the pdf2docx.Converter class is instantiated with the path of the selected PDF, convert() is called with the full output path, and then the converter is closed cleanly: 
# From files/functions.py — Funcs._convertFile()
async def _convertFile(self, button) -> None:
    try:
        convertFile = Converter(self.file)
        messagebox.showinfo("Información", f'Convirtiendo {self.file}')
        await asyncio.sleep(1, result=convertFile.convert(self.directory_out))
        convertFile.close()
        self._disableButton(button)
        messagebox.showinfo('Conversión Exitosa',
            f'Se ha convertido el archivo {self.file_name_original} exitosamente')
    except Exception as e:
        logger.log_e(e)
        messagebox.showerror('Error En Conversión De Archivo',
            'Hubo un error convirtiendo el archivo, intente nuevamente')
Running the conversion in a background thread via threading.Thread ensures the Tkinter main loop is never blocked, keeping the window responsive while pdf2docx processes the document.

​
Output file format

File type

The output is always a .docx file — the standard Open XML format used by Microsoft Word and compatible editors such as LibreOffice Writer and Google Docs.

Filename

The filename is derived from the entry field value at the time “Choose Directory” is clicked, with .docx appended automatically. For example, report → report.docx.

Save location

The file is written to the exact directory path selected via the directory picker. The full path (directory + filename) is visible in the “Directorio De Salida:” label after conversion.

File size

Output .docx files may be considerably larger than the source PDF, particularly when the PDF contains embedded images or complex vector graphics.

​
After conversion

Once a conversion completes successfully, the Funcs._disableButton() method disables both the “Elegir Directorio” (Choose Directory) and “Convertir” (Convert) buttons: 
# From files/functions.py — Funcs._disableButton()
def _disableButton(self, button: Button | list) -> None:
    if type(button) == list:
        for item in button:
            if type(item) == Button:
                getattr(item, 'configure')(state='disabled')
This prevents accidental re-conversion of the same file. To convert another PDF, restart the application — simply close the window and relaunch pdf2wordx. There is no in-app “reset” or “convert another file” action.
If an error occurs during conversion (for example, a corrupted PDF or an inaccessible output directory), a showerror dialog is displayed and the error is logged to ./src/pdf2wordx/log.log via the chromologger logger. The buttons are not disabled in this case, so you can fix the issue and try again without restarting.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us