---
title: "Extract PDF tables with C# | Nutrient DCS"
canonical_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/extraction/extract-tables/extract-tabular-data-from-pdf/"
md_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/extraction/extract-tables/extract-tabular-data-from-pdf.md"
last_updated: "2026-05-20T19:49:34.743Z"
description: "Extract tables from PDF files to JSON using C# and Nutrient Document Converter Services. Complete code example included."
---

# Extract PDF tables with C#

This guide demonstrates how to extract tabular data from PDF documents using C# and Nutrient Document Converter Services (DCS). Table extraction converts structured data from PDFs into JSON format, making it accessible for data analysis, reporting, and integration workflows.

## Common use cases

PDF table extraction is useful for:

- **Financial data processing** - Extract tables from invoices, statements, and reports for automated accounting workflows

- **Research and analysis** - Convert tabular data from research papers and reports into JSON for statistical analysis

- **Document digitization** - Transform scanned documents with tables into structured, searchable format

- **Compliance reporting** - Extract regulatory data from PDF forms into structured format for auditing

- **Data migration** - Recover tabular information from legacy PDF documents for database import

## Prerequisites

Before extracting tables from PDFs, ensure you have:

- Nutrient Document Converter Services (DCS) installed, licensed, and running

-.NET Framework 4.6.1+ or.NET Core 2.0+ development environment

- Valid DCS license that includes table extraction functionality

- Implemented `OpenService()` and `CloseService()` methods from [`DocumentConverterServiceClient`](https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/knowledge-base/open-and-close-documentconverterserviceclient/) sample code

- PDF files containing tabular data for testing

- Write permissions for the target output folder

**Input requirements**

- PDF files containing actual tabular data (not just visual table layouts)

- Files that are not password-protected or corrupted

- Tables should be reasonably structured for optimal extraction results

**Output format**

- JSON format: Structured data with table metadata and cell content

## Sample code

```csharp

                /// <summary>
        /// Extract tabular data from a PDF.
        /// </summary>
        /// <param name="ServiceURL">URL endpoint for the PDF Converter service.</param>
        /// <param name="sourceFileName">Source filename.</param>
        /// <param name="targetFolder">Target folder to receive the output file.</param>
        /// <param name="outputFileType">JSON only currently</param>
        /// <param name="languages">List of languages.</param>
        static void TestTableExtract(string ServiceURL, string sourceFileName, string targetFolder, string outputFileType, string languages = "eng")
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Extracting attachments from {sourceFileName}");

            DocumentConverterServiceClient client = null;
            // Create an `OpenOptions` instance with minimum properties needed for file identification.
            OpenOptions openOptions = new OpenOptions();
            openOptions.FileExtension = Path.GetExtension(sourceFileName);
            openOptions.OriginalFileName = Path.GetFileName(sourceFileName);

            // Create a `TableExtractionSettings` object.
            TableExtractionSettings settings = new TableExtractionSettings();
            settings.DPI = "300";
            settings.SeparateTables = BooleanEnum.True;
            settings.EnableOrientationDetection = BooleanEnum.True;
            settings.EnableSkewDetection = BooleanEnum.True;
            settings.RenderFormFields = BooleanEnum.True;
            settings.OutputFileType = outputFileType;
            settings.OCRLanguage = languages;

            try
            {
                // Determine the source file and read it into a byte array.
                byte[] sourceFile = File.ReadAllBytes(sourceFileName);

                // Open the service and configure the bindings.
                client = OpenService(ServiceURL);

                // Carry out the conversion.
                BatchResult result = client.ExtractTables(sourceFile, openOptions, settings);

                if(result!= null)
                {
                    // Create the target folder if it does not exist.
                    if (!Directory.Exists(targetFolder))
                    {
                        Directory.CreateDirectory(targetFolder);
                    }
                    Console.WriteLine($"Output to: {targetFolder}");

                    // Get the filename.
                    string filename = result.FileName;
                    Console.WriteLine(filename);
                    // Write the result to a file.
                    File.WriteAllBytes(Path.Combine(targetFolder, filename), result.File);
                }
                else
                {
                    Console.WriteLine("No result returned");
                }
            }
            finally
            {
                if (client!= null)
                {
                    CloseService(client);
                }
            }
        }

```

## Troubleshooting

**Service connection error: Cannot connect to DCS**

- Ensure DCS is running and accessible

- Verify the service URL in your code matches your DCS installation

- Check that no firewall is blocking the connection

**No tables extracted: Empty result or no output file**

- Verify that the PDF contains actual tabular data, not just visual table layouts

- Check that the OCR language setting matches the document language

- Ensure the DPI setting is appropriate for your document quality (try 300 or higher)

- Enable orientation and skew detection for scanned documents

**License error: Table extraction not available**

- Verify that your DCS license includes table extraction functionality

- Check that the license hasn’t expired

- Ensure the service is licensed and activated

**File access error: Permission denied**

- Verify that the application has read access to the source PDF file

- Check that the target folder has write permissions

- Ensure the PDF file isn’t locked by other applications

**Poor extraction quality: Incomplete or inaccurate table data**

- Increase the DPI setting for higher quality extraction (try 600 DPI for complex tables)

- Enable orientation detection if tables are rotated

- Enable skew detection for scanned documents

- Set the appropriate OCR language for non-English documents

- Consider using `SeparateTables = BooleanEnum.False` for complex multi-column layouts

**Large file processing: Slow performance or timeouts**

- For large PDF files, consider processing individual pages

- Increase timeout values for the service client if processing large files

- Monitor memory usage when processing multiple large files

## What’s next

Now that you can extract tables from PDFs with C#, explore these related document processing capabilities:

- **Attachment extraction** - Discover [extract PDF attachments with C#](https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/extraction/extract-attachments-from-pdf.md) for embedded file processing

- **Python implementation** - Compare approaches with [extract PDF tables using Python](https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/extraction/extract-tables/extract-table-using-python.md) for cross-language insights

- **Complete C# guide** - Review the [document conversion with C#](https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/conversion/csharp.md) guide for additional processing capabilities
---

## Related pages

- [Source file path.](/guides/document-converter/document-converter-services/extraction/extract-tables/extract-table-using-python.md)