Extract links from a PDF on Android in a mobile browser: choose one local PDF of up to 25 MiB and 40 pages, run the extraction, and copy or download the report.
Use PDF Link Extractor for this browser-based workflow. The document is processed locally: the PDF and extracted targets remain on your device, and Lizely does not upload the document or send its contents to a link-analysis server.
This workflow is useful when you need an inventory of embedded link annotations for document QA, migration checks, or a record of where a PDF sends readers. It is not a general PDF text scan, so an address printed on a page may not appear unless the document also contains a supported link annotation.
What the Android browser workflow can read
PDF Link Extractor reads clickable link annotations exposed through PDF.js annotation data rather than searching raw PDF bytes for strings that resemble URLs. This reduces false positives from compressed streams, font data, metadata, and ordinary printed text. The PDF.js page annotation API provides the page-level annotation information used for this inspection.
| PDF item | Report result | Important distinction |
|---|---|---|
| External link annotation | The target appears with its page number and link type | Only HTTP, HTTPS, mailto, and tel external schemes are accepted |
| Internal link annotation | The destination is labeled as an internal target | It may be a named destination or an explicit destination array rather than a web URL |
| Printed address with no annotation | No annotation-based row by itself | Visible text alone is not treated as a clickable link |
| Unsafe or unsupported external target | It is excluded and noted as skipped | JavaScript, data, file, blob, control-character, and other unapproved schemes are not made clickable |
An internal PDF destination does not always have a web address. It can point to another location in the same document, and the report displays a bounded, readable representation. The final destination page is not always resolved because destination structures, page references, and viewer behavior can differ between documents.
Extract links from a PDF on Android
The complete Android workflow takes place in the browser. If the PDF is still in Google Drive, save a copy to the phone first; how to pull embedded links from a Google Drive PDF explains that retrieval step.
- Open the extractor in your Android browser. Navigate to the PDF Link Extractor page. This method uses the browser-based tool rather than requiring a separate Android link-extraction app.
- Choose one local PDF. Use the file control to open the Android document picker and select a PDF stored on the device. Confirm that it is no larger than 25 MiB and contains no more than 40 pages.
- Tap Extract Links. This explicit action starts the annotation inspection and loads PDF.js and its shared worker. Wait for the report to finish appearing on the page.
- Review the results on the phone. Check the page number, link type, and inert target for each accepted entry. Results remain in page order and annotation order so you can relate them to the source document.
- Copy or download the report. Use Copy for the plain-text report, or download the formula-safe CSV or UTF-8 TXT version. The downloaded file can then be handled through the save or download options provided by your Android browser.
Keep the original PDF unchanged as your source record. The extraction workflow creates a report; it does not rewrite, flatten, or otherwise modify the document’s links.
Review each result before acting
An entry in the report means that PDF.js exposed a supported link annotation. It does not mean that the destination has been verified, is currently reachable, or is trustworthy. External targets are accepted only when their scheme is HTTP, HTTPS, mailto, or tel. Scheme matching is case-insensitive, and targets containing control characters are rejected.
The report preserves page and annotation order. If the exact same target appears more than once on one page, the duplicate is removed. A repeated link on different pages remains visible because its location provides useful page-level evidence. The summary also reports counts for examined annotations, accepted links, duplicates, and skipped unsafe or unsupported targets.
All displayed targets are inert text. The extractor does not open, navigate to, fetch, validate, reputation-check, or guarantee the safety of an external destination. For an internal target, expect a destination description rather than a guaranteed final page number.
Choose TXT, CSV, or copied output
All three output options contain the same basic extraction information, but they serve different review needs.
| Option | What you get | Practical use | Handling applied |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXT download | UTF-8 plain text with stable page labels | Keep a readable record or paste it into a local note | The text remains inert and is not turned into active links |
| CSV download | Page, annotation number, type, and target columns | Sort or filter the inventory in spreadsheet software | Formula-leading cells are neutralized, while quotes and line breaks are escaped using CSV rules |
| Copy report | The same safe, inert report in clipboard text | Use clipboard content instead of creating a file | The copied report follows the same output rules |
The CSV protections reduce spreadsheet formula-injection risk, but they do not make document-derived text trustworthy. Treat every extracted value as untrusted data, especially when the report comes from a PDF supplied by someone else. The report is an inventory, not a safety verdict.
Limits and failures to expect on Android
Several limits determine whether the extractor can complete the task:
- One PDF per run: the source can be up to 25 MiB and 40 pages. Documents over either limit are rejected.
- Files that cannot be processed: encrypted, damaged, malformed, unsupported, or over-limit PDFs return a visible error rather than a partial report.
- Bounded work and output: the tool enforces limits on annotations, target length, and total report characters so one document cannot create unbounded processing or output.
- Skipped external targets: unsafe and unsupported schemes are excluded from the report and summarized as skipped rather than made clickable.
- Missing printed addresses: a visible URL does not appear solely because its text resembles an address. A supported annotation must be exposed for it to qualify.
If a file is rejected, check its size and page count first, then confirm that it opens as a normal PDF. The extractor does not remove passwords, repair malformed documents, or convert a scanned page into link annotations.
Use the report as a review aid
The resulting page-by-page inventory can support several practical jobs:
- Cataloging where external and internal links occur in a document
- Checking a PDF before moving its content to another system
- Supporting document QA and reviews of where readers are directed
PDF Link Extractor is not a crawler, broken-link checker, phishing detector, accessibility audit, or content scanner. Its presence in the report tells you only that PDF.js exposed a supported annotation. Verify important destinations independently against trusted records before visiting or publishing them.
For an Android review, save each report alongside the source filename, then use its page references to return to the relevant location in the original PDF. Check high-impact destinations separately, retain the untouched PDF as the authoritative source, and use the extracted report as supporting evidence rather than a guarantee that every destination is correct, available, or safe.
For a deeper look, see Edit PDF Metadata Securely: A Private Local Workflow.