Keep the nesting of the outline
Chapters, sections and subsections come out in the same tree they have in the PDF. Every entry carries a children list, so a section sits inside its chapter and not beside it.
Extract Bookmarks
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Browse all IRS forms →- You add
- One PDF
- You set
- Nothing, no settings to choose
- You get
- The outline as a JSON file
Bookmarks are the clickable outline that many PDFs show in a side panel, often used as a table of contents. Extract Bookmarks copies that outline out of the document and saves it as JSON. You add one PDF and run the tool, with no options to set. Each bookmark becomes an entry with a title, a pageNumber and a children list, and the children list holds the bookmarks nested under it. The PDF is only read. A single export runs without an account. This tool exports the outline as it is. To write or replace one, use Edit Table of Contents.
What can you do when you extract bookmarks?
Get the page each bookmark points to
Each entry has a pageNumber next to its title. Together they form a page index of the document that a script or a spreadsheet import can read.
Reuse the outline elsewhere
Because the result is JSON, you can load it into code, turn it into a menu for a web page or keep it as a record of how a long document is organized.
Export without any setup
An export asks for no page ranges, levels or formats. Add the PDF and press Run Extract Bookmarks to start.
What extracting bookmarks keeps and what you get
Stays the same
- The PDF and every bookmark in it. The tool only reads the outline.
- The nesting: each child stays inside its parent.
- The file on your device.
Changes
- You download a JSON file, not a PDF.
- Each bookmark becomes an entry with a title, a pageNumber counted from 1 and a children list.
- A PDF with no outline returns an empty list.
- A bookmark whose target page the engine cannot resolve is reported as page 1.
How to extract bookmarks from a PDF in 3 steps
Add a PDF with bookmarks
Drop a PDF that has bookmarks on the upload box, or select Choose file to find it.
Run the export
This tool has no settings. Press Run Extract Bookmarks and let the progress bar finish.
Download the outline
Choose Download to save the JSON file. Open it in a JSON viewer to see the tree of titles and page numbers.
Why extract bookmarks with indox?
An outline is structured data, and this page treats it that way. You get the bookmarks as a tree with three named parts per entry: title, pageNumber and children. Nothing has to be configured, so there is a single step between upload and download. The JSON can feed a script, a documentation site or a simple check that a long report has the chapters it should. One export runs without an account, the PDF is uploaded over HTTPS, and on the free tier both the upload and the outline file are deleted automatically within 24 hours after the job finishes. The limits below say where the export stops.
- Nested outline kept as a tree
- Title and page number per entry
- No settings to choose
- Bookmarks stay in your PDF
- No account for one export
What are the limits when you extract bookmarks?
- Size
- The free tier has a file size limit. Signing in raises it, and paid plans raise it further.
- Formats
- This tool works on PDF files. To change a file's type, use the PDF converter.
- Privacy
- Files are encrypted in transit and processed on indox infrastructure.
- Deletion
- Free-tier files are deleted automatically within 24 hours after the job finishes. Signed-in output stays in your history for your plan's retention period.
Limits worth knowing
- The export needs an outline to copy. A PDF with no bookmarks has no entries to give, and the page shows no separate notice for that case.
- The JSON is written on one line, and letters outside basic English are stored as escape codes. A JSON parser or viewer restores them, while a plain text editor shows the codes.
- The file is not in the form that Edit Table of Contents accepts. That tool wants one typed line per entry, so the JSON has to be converted or retyped first.
- The page names PDF as the output format and says a PDF file is ready when the run ends. The file you save is JSON.
- No password can be typed on this page. Unlock a PDF that asks for one before you export its outline.
When the result is not what you expected
| What you see | Why | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The file contains only [] | The PDF has no bookmark outline | Build one with Edit Table of Contents. |
| Several bookmarks show pageNumber 1 | A bookmark whose target page cannot be found is reported as page 1 | Click those bookmarks in a viewer to find their real targets before you reuse the numbers. |
| Some titles show codes such as \u00e9 | The JSON stores letters outside basic English as escape codes | Open the file in a JSON parser or viewer, which turns the codes back into letters. |
| Edit Table of Contents will not take the JSON | That tool wants one line per entry in the form title|page | Retype the entries as title|page lines, and add a parent number for nested ones. |
| The file asks for a password | The page has no password box | Remove the lock with Unlock PDF, then export from the open copy. |
What do the free and paid plans add?
Free
- All converters
- Daily credit refresh
- Email support
Basic
- Access to all features
- AI Extract
- Priority conversions
- Email support
Highest priority
Premium
- Everything in Basic
- Highest priority queue
- Larger file limits
- Priority support
Pay-As-You-Go
- No subscription
- Credits never expire
- Opt-in auto-refill
- Access to all features
What else can you do with a PDF?
Who extracts PDF bookmarks?
Technical writers and editors
You maintain a long manual and want its structure outside the PDF. The JSON outline shows every heading level and the page each heading points to.
Developers publishing documents online
A web viewer needs a chapter menu for each PDF. Load the exported tree and build the menu from its titles and page numbers.
Librarians and archivists
A catalog record should list what a digitized book contains. The outline gives you chapter titles with their pages, ready to turn into that record.
When to extract bookmarks, and when to pick another tool
- You need the table of contents of a report as data for a website or an index.
- You want to compare the outlines of two versions of a manual by comparing their JSON files.
- You plan to split a book by chapter with Split PDF and need the page where each chapter begins.
- You are checking that a generated report contains every chapter heading it should.
- You want to add or rewrite bookmarks. Edit Table of Contents writes a new outline into the PDF.
Where can I read more?
Sources
- EditTableOfContentsController.java (tag v2.14.2)Stirling-PDF source on GitHub
- Handling Outlinespypdf documentation
Facts checked on October 16, 2026
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Extract Bookmarks FAQs
What is in the exported file?
A JSON list of bookmarks. Each one has a title, a pageNumber and a children list that holds the bookmarks nested under it.
Does the export remove bookmarks from my PDF?
No. The tool reads the outline and copies it. The document and its bookmarks stay as they are.
What happens if the PDF has no bookmarks?
There is no outline to copy. The page does not flag this on its own, so open the downloaded file and look for entries.
Can I edit the outline and put it back into the PDF?
Not with this file directly. Edit Table of Contents takes typed lines made of a title, a vertical bar and a page, with an optional parent line number. Convert the JSON into that form first.
Are nested bookmarks kept?
Yes. A bookmark that sits under another appears inside the children list of its parent, however deep the outline goes.
Why do some titles show codes instead of letters?
Characters outside basic English are saved as escape codes in the JSON. Open the file in a JSON viewer or parse it in code, and the original letters return.
Can I export bookmarks from a locked PDF?
First remove the open password with Unlock PDF. This page offers no field for a password.
Is the tool free, and how long is my file kept?
It carries the free badge, so one export runs without an account. Uploads go over HTTPS. Within 24 hours after the job finishes, free-tier files are deleted automatically, the PDF and the outline both.