pdf

Extract text and tables from PDFs and fill forms programmatically.

662|124|Updated Oct 31, 2025
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/staruhub/ClaudeSkills --skill pdf-staruhub
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: pdf
Source: https://github.com/staruhub/ClaudeSkills/tree/main/skills/document-skills/document-skills/pdf
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/staruhub/ClaudeSkills --skill pdf-staruhub

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

💡 This Skill requires pypdf, pdfplumber, reportlab, pytesseract, pdf2image, poppler-utils, qpdf, and includes scripts (resource) and references (resource) components.

What problem does it solve?

This Skill eliminates the tedious manual work of filling out PDF forms, extracting data, and managing PDF documents, saving you hours of repetitive effort and reducing errors.

Core Features & Use Cases

  • Automated Form Filling: Programmatically fill both fillable and non-fillable PDF forms with precision, guided by visual analysis and validation.
  • Intelligent Data Extraction: Accurately pull text and structured table data from any PDF into usable formats like Excel.
  • Comprehensive PDF Manipulation: Merge, split, create, and modify PDF documents, including metadata and page rotation.
  • Use Case: Imagine you need to process 50 job applications submitted as PDFs. This Skill can extract applicant names, contact information, and previous work experience into a spreadsheet, and then automatically fill out an internal review form for each applicant.

Quick Start

Use the pdf skill to extract all text and tables from the attached file 'quarterly_report.pdf' and summarize the key financial figures.

Frequently Asked Questions about pdf

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I extract text and tables from a PDF programmatically?

Text and table extraction from PDFs uses libraries like pdfplumber and pypdf to parse document structure and pull data into usable formats. pdfplumber excels at table detection and coordinate-based extraction, while pypdf handles metadata and page-level operations, enabling automated workflows to convert PDF content into spreadsheets or databases.

Can I automatically fill out PDF forms with Python?

Yes, pypdf and reportlab enable programmatic form filling for both fillable and non-fillable PDFs. You can populate form fields directly or overlay text and images on specific coordinates, automating high-volume form processing tasks like job application handling or document generation at scale.

What's the best way to extract data from scanned PDF documents?

Scanned PDFs require OCR processing using pytesseract and pdf2image to convert images to text, then extract structured data. This approach handles documents without selectable text, enabling data extraction from legacy or handwritten forms where traditional text parsing fails.

How do I merge, split, and rotate PDF pages?

pypdf and qpdf provide page-level manipulation: merge multiple PDFs, split by page ranges, rotate pages, and modify metadata. These operations support batch document assembly workflows and format standardization without external tools.

Does this approach work for processing PDFs at scale?

Yes, Python-based PDF tooling with pypdf, pdfplumber, and reportlab scales to high-volume workflows. The Skill supports batch processing, coordinate transformations, and image extraction, making it suitable for enterprise document automation and data pipeline integration.

What are the limitations when working with complex PDF layouts?

Complex layouts with rotated text, overlapping elements, or non-standard coordinates may require coordinate transformation and visual analysis. OCR accuracy depends on image quality, and fillable form detection works best with standard AcroForm structure; non-standard PDFs may need custom parsing logic.