Convert PDF to Text in C# (Visual Studio 2022) - Complete Guide

Extract text from PDFs using the WhatsMate PDF-to-Text REST API

Posted on March 4, 2026   Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share on Twitter Share on Google+

Last reviewed: March 4, 2026  

Extract Text from PDFs with C# and Visual Studio 2022

Need to extract text from PDF documents programmatically in your modern C#/.NET applications? This guide walks you through converting PDF files to text using C# with Visual Studio 2022 and the WhatsMate PDF-to-Text REST API. Perfect for .NET developers using the latest Visual Studio IDE who want to integrate PDF text extraction into their modern C#-based workflows.

Note for Visual Studio 2019 users: If you’re using Visual Studio 2019, please read this Visual Studio 2019 tutorial instead.

📋 Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

  1. Basic C# knowledge - Familiarity with C# programming and .NET framework
  2. PDF URL - A publicly accessible URL to your PDF document
  3. Visual Studio 2022 - Latest .NET development environment with modern C# features
  4. Modern .NET libraries - This version uses System.Text.Json for serialization (included in .NET 6+)

ℹ️ Note: The trial account allows up to 20 PDF-to-Text API calls for learning purposes. Files up to 1 MB can use the synchronous API shown here. Subscribe to a Premium plan for production use and larger files.

📝 Step-by-Step Implementation

Follow these steps to extract text from a PDF using C# with Visual Studio 2022:

1. Copy the C# Code Template

Start by copying the following source code into your C# Console Application:

2. Configure the Parameters

Customize this key parameter in the script:

  • Line 19: Replace with the URL of your PDF document

3. Run the Extraction

Build and run your C# application in Visual Studio 2022 to see the extracted text:

  1. Press F5 to build and run in debug mode
  2. Or use Ctrl+F5 to run without debugging
  3. Check the console output for the extracted text

⚠️ Large PDF files? If your PDF is larger than 1 MB, you’ll need to use the asynchronous API instead. See an example in C# for handling larger files.

🔧 Common Use Cases

This modern automation approach is ideal for:

  • Data extraction pipelines - Pull text from reports, invoices, or forms
  • Content indexing - Make PDF content searchable in your systems
  • Batch processing - Extract text from multiple PDFs automatically
  • Integration with workflows - Add PDF text extraction to modern .NET applications

🚀 Get Started Today

Ready to automate your PDF text extraction with modern C#/.NET and Visual Studio 2022? You’ll need an account to access the API. Sign up for a Premium plan and start extracting text within minutes!

Next Steps: Once you’ve mastered PDF-to-Text conversion in C#, explore extracting text in other programming languages through the PDF-to-Text API Getting Started Guide.