PDF to Word Losing Figures, Graphs and Tables: How to Fix It

Math exams have function graphs, solid geometry figures and variation tables. After converting a PDF to Word, the figures vanish, drift, overlap the text, or tables fall apart into messy cells. This post covers why, and how to keep figures, graphs and tables when converting.

Why do figures and tables break?

• Figures are vector strokes: many graphs in a PDF are drawn lines, not images. A converter that doesn't recognize them as one figure skips them or scatters the strokes.
• Tables without clear borders: a variation table full of arrows and symbols is hard to guess into cells.
• Figures between text and equations: with multi-column layouts, figures easily land in the wrong place.

How to handle each kind

Graphs and geometry figures

If a figure is lost, the surest fix is to crop it from the original PDF (screenshot the area or export it as an image) and insert it into Word. Redoing figures one by one is slow for a long exam.

Variation tables and data tables

After converting, check each table against the original: columns, rows, values and arrows. Variation tables are especially error-prone, so read them carefully.

Use a tool that keeps figures and tables from the start

MathCopy's PDF to Word is built for math exams: tables and figures stay where they were in the Word file, alongside editable MathType or Equation objects. For multi-column or figure-heavy documents, still review the result and tweak it if needed.

Tips to reduce errors

1. Convert from the original PDF, not a screenshot of it.
2. Select only the pages you need to edit, so they're easier to check.
3. Open the Word file next to the original PDF and compare each page with a figure.
4. Save a separate copy before big edits.

See also: PDF to Word breaks math equations.