Option 1: Copy and paste
Best for one or two simple invoices
Open the PDF in your default PDF reader or browser window, select the text block you need with your cursor, and paste it directly into an empty Excel sheet.
To split the pasted text into separate columns, select the cells, navigate to Data → Text to Columns on the Excel ribbon, choose "Delimited" (usually Space or Tab), and confirm.
While this requires zero extra software, it only works reliably for clean digital PDFs with single-line values. It quickly breaks down on scanned paper, multi-column invoice tables, and misaligned numbers.
Limitation to watch for
Copy-pasting table rows from PDFs often merges quantity, description, and price into one single cell, requiring tedious manual cleanup.
Option 2: Excel’s PDF import
If you have Microsoft 365 or Office 2021
If you have a modern Microsoft 365 subscription, Excel includes a built-in Power Query PDF connector.
In Excel, navigate to Data → Get Data → From File → From PDF. Pick your invoice file, and Excel will display a Navigator window showing all detected tables and page objects.
Preview the table, click "Transform Data" to remove unwanted header rows or rename columns, and click "Close & Load" to insert the data as an Excel table.
Excel’s connector handles clean, native vector tables well. However, it struggles with smartphone photos and paper scans, and every different vendor layout often requires setting up a separate Power Query transformation.
Option 3: AI extraction with Siftspindle
Best for multiple invoices, photos, or mixed vendor layouts
When you receive invoices with inconsistent layouts—such as line items listed vertically, dates in European formats, or receipts captured via mobile camera—AI extraction understands the context and returns exactly the fields you define.
Here is the step-by-step workflow using Siftspindle:
- Step 1: Sign in at siftspindle.com. Every free account gets 10 extractions a month with zero credit card required.
- Step 2: In the instructions box, name the exact fields you want. For example: "invoice number, vendor name, invoice date, due date and total amount".
- Step 3: Upload the invoice. Siftspindle accepts PDF, PNG/JPG, XLSX, DOCX, CSV, and TXT files up to 25 MB each.
- Step 4: Review the extracted fields in the live table, then copy the clean JSON or download a ready-to-use Excel file (.xlsx).
Privacy and data purge
Your document is processed through secure isolated execution. Siftspindle automatically purges all uploaded files and extraction records after approximately 24 hours. Your data is never used to train public AI models.
Check the result before you use it
AI extraction can occasionally misread numbers, particularly on low-resolution phone photos or blurry scans. Always perform a rapid two-point validation before relying on financial records:
- Compare the extracted grand total and invoice date against the original PDF.
- Verify that line item quantities multiplied by unit prices add up to the subtotal.
- Check for easily confused characters (such as "0" vs "O" or "1" vs "l") in serial and tax IDs.
Tips for better extraction results
To achieve high accuracy across all invoice processing:
- Use the clearest file you have: A clean digital PDF generated by accounting software beats a camera photo of folded paper every time.
- Name the exact fields you need: Rather than asking for "everything", specify "vendor_name, invoice_id, date, subtotal, tax, total_amount".
- Process one invoice layout at a time: Grouping similar documents helps avoid field confusion.
- Never upload sensitive credentials: Do not upload payment card numbers, CVVs, passwords, PINs, or government identification cards.
What happens to your file?
Siftspindle processes your file securely to produce the structured result. Extracted results and document records are deleted automatically about 24 hours after upload.
Read our Privacy Policy for full details on how the infrastructure handles content without human intervention.