macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install pdfgreplocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install pdfgrepMacPorts ports tree · textproc/pdfgrep/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew / rank 1920
Install pdfgrep with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper
Search PDFs for strings matching a regular expression. Version 2.2.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-09-13. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install pdfgrep.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add pdfgrepAlpine Linux edge package indexes · pdfgrep · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install pdfgrepDebian stable package indexes · pdfgrep · source: deb.debian.org
Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install pdfgrepFedora Rawhide package metadata · pdfgrep · source: dl.fedoraproject.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#pdfgrepnixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/pd/pdfgrep/package.nix · source: api.github.com
Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S pdfgrepArch Linux sync databases · pdfgrep · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install pdfgrepopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · pdfgrep · source: download.opensuse.org
overview
Package summary
Search PDFs for strings matching a regular expression
Project links
Commands and aliases
- pdfgrep
history
Project history and usage
pdfgrep is a GPL-licensed command-line utility that searches text in PDF documents using fixed strings or regular expressions and reports matches in a grep-like format.
Project history
The official release tags trace pdfgrep from version 1.0 in May 2010 through the 1.x and 2.x series. Version 2.0 arrived in January 2017, and version 2.2.0 was released in March 2024.
The project is maintained by Hans-Peter Deifel and developed in its official GitLab repository.
Adoption history
pdfgrep is packaged across major Unix-like ecosystems, including Homebrew, Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, Alpine, openSUSE, MacPorts, and Nix. Its grep-compatible interface makes it easy to add PDF searching to established shell workflows.
How it is used
Typical uses include searching one or many PDFs, recursively scanning directory trees, showing page numbers and context, counting matches, and filtering results through other Unix commands.
An optional cache is stored under ${XDG_CACHE_HOME}/pdfgrep when --cache is enabled. This is runtime cache data, not a configuration or credentials file.
The --password option can open protected PDFs, but the official man page warns that its value can appear in shell history and process listings.
Why package nerds care
pdfgrep exemplifies the Unix pattern of extending a familiar text-processing interface to a specialized file format. It composes naturally with find, xargs, and GNU parallel while hiding PDF text extraction behind grep-like options.
Timeline
- 2010: Version 1.0 released on May 3.
- 2015: Version 1.4 added PCRE and fixed-string support.
- 2017: Version 2.0 released on January 25.
- 2024: Version 2.2.0 released on March 25.
Related projects
- pdfgrep intentionally follows GNU grep where that behavior makes sense and uses Poppler for PDF processing. Optional PCRE2 support supplies Perl-compatible regular expressions.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: green
narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:no-higher-risk-signals
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
- Installs with 4 runtime dependencies.
- Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
pdfgrep | cli | global executable |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-09-19
manager version2.2.0
manager updated2026-09-13
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://pdfgrep.org/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:pdfgrep |
|---|---|
| Version | 2.2.0 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/pdfgrep |
| Homepage | https://pdfgrep.org/ |
| Upstream docs | https://pdfgrep.org/ |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Source archive | https://pdfgrep.org/download/pdfgrep-2.2.0.tar.gz |
| Last updated | 2026-09-13T06:33:17Z |
| Pulse | updated |
| Dependencies | libgcrypt, libgpg-error, pcre2, poppler |
| Build dependencies | pkgconf |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | pdfgrep |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 3 |
| Head Version | HEAD |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Debian apt95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-0.1+b2
search in pdf files for strings matching a regular expression
sudo apt install pdfgrep- Section: utils
- Architecture: amd64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 6 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
Nix95%
pdfgrep
nix profile install nixpkgs#pdfgrep- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
Ubuntu apt95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-0.1
search in pdf files for strings matching a regular expression
sudo apt install pdfgrep- Section: universe/utils
- Architecture: amd64
- 6 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
apk95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-r1
Commandline utility to search text in PDF files
sudo apk add pdfgrep- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
apk95%
pdfgrep-bash-completion 2.2.0-r1
Bash completions for pdfgrep
sudo apk add pdfgrep-bash-completion- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
apk95%
pdfgrep-doc 2.2.0-r1
Commandline utility to search text in PDF files (documentation)
sudo apk add pdfgrep-doc- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
apk95%
pdfgrep-zsh-completion 2.2.0-r1
Zsh completions for pdfgrep
sudo apk add pdfgrep-zsh-completion- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
dnf95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-10.fc45
Tool to search text in PDF files
sudo dnf install pdfgrep- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 7 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
pacman95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-6
A tool to search text in PDF files
sudo pacman -S pdfgrep- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- 3 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
zypper95%
pdfgrep 2.2.0-1.6
Search in pdf files for strings matching a regular expression
sudo zypper install pdfgrep- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Category: Productivity/Text/Utilities
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 6 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
zypper95%
pdfgrep-bash-completion 2.2.0-1.6
Bash Completion for pdfgrep
sudo zypper install pdfgrep-bash-completion- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Category: Productivity/Networking/Security
- Architecture: noarch
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 2 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
zypper95%
pdfgrep-zsh-completion 2.2.0-1.6
ZSH completion for pdfgrep
sudo zypper install pdfgrep-zsh-completion- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Category: Productivity/Networking/Security
- Architecture: noarch
- Source Package: pdfgrep
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
MacPorts95%
pdfgrep
sudo port install pdfgrep- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Pdfgrep
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment
- pkg.so package database
- pkgdb category and tag curation