PDF to Markdown on your Mac
Markdown Ready
Turn PDFs, scanned pages, and document images into structured Markdown you can review, edit, search, and reuse in AI, research, notes, wikis, and archives.
Summer launch sale: $4.99 until August 31, 2026. Regular price $29.99. No subscription.
From PDF to usable text
Still copying pages out of PDFs by hand?
Textbooks, research papers, scanned reports, old PDFs, and long source documents are painful to reuse when the content is trapped in page images or broken copy-paste output. Markdown Ready converts the document first, so you can inspect the structure before sending it into your notes, editor, AI tool, or archive.
Current Features
Document conversion without a cloud OCR API
PDF and image input
Choose a PDF, JPG/JPEG, PNG, or input folder through macOS file and folder pickers.
Markdown and JSON output
Generate Markdown for review and optional JSON sidecar files for inspection, automation, and downstream workflows.
Reading modes
Use Page Original or Clean Reading output modes depending on whether you want page-by-page structure or a cleaner continuous document.
Table options
Use table preservation and PDFKit-based table recovery options when structure matters.
Folder watching
Leave supported files in an input folder and Markdown Ready can scan/watch while it is running.
Local OCR
Documents are processed locally on Apple Silicon and written to the output folder you choose.
Local Processing
Your documents stay on your Mac
Your documents are selected through macOS file and folder pickers and processed locally. Markdown Ready does not upload document contents to a cloud OCR API. The output is written to the folder you choose.
Folder Workflow
Put files in a folder, get Markdown out
Choose an input folder and an output folder, then keep Markdown Ready watching while it runs. New supported files are converted into the selected output folder, and already processed files are skipped using local fingerprints.
Important Notes
Local OCR is useful, but still needs review
Performance and power
Large PDFs and folder batches can use sustained CPU/GPU and unified memory on Apple Silicon. For long conversions, keep your Mac connected to power.
Accuracy
OCR is not perfect. Complex tables, formulas, handwriting, historical scans, screenshots, tiny text, and low-quality source images can produce mistakes.
FAQ
Common questions
Does Markdown Ready upload my documents?
No. Markdown Ready processes selected documents locally on your Mac and writes output to the folder you choose. No cloud OCR API is required for model loading or conversion.
Is the output always perfect?
No OCR system is perfect. Markdown Ready is designed to make documents easier to inspect and reuse, but important sections should be reviewed before you rely on the output.
Can it watch a folder?
Yes. Choose an input folder and output folder, then use folder watching while the app is running. New supported files are converted and previously processed files are skipped.