You're on the train, someone's emailed you a PDF, and they want it back in Word "if possible." You don't have Word installed. You don't want to install Word for one document. You've got Safari and twenty minutes.
That's plenty.
Save the PDF to Files first
From Mail, tap the PDF attachment, then the share icon, then Save to Files. Pick a folder (iCloud Drive or On My iPhone — either works). Now you have a local copy you can hand to anything else.
If the PDF arrived through Messages or WhatsApp, the same Share menu has Save to Files.
Run it through Flint
Open Flint's PDF to Word converter in Safari. Tap the upload area, choose Choose Files > Browse, pick the PDF from wherever you saved it. Conversion runs server-side — your battery is unaffected — and the docx downloads back into Files.
Open or share the docx
Tap the downloaded docx in Files. If Word is installed, it opens there. If not, Pages on iOS can open docx files natively (File > Open). For just sharing, the Files share sheet emails or messages the docx straight on — no need to open it first.
If the docx needs minor tweaks first, do them in Pages and re-export as docx via Pages' Export menu.
Watch out for huge PDFs
Uploads on mobile data can be slow. If the PDF is over 30MB, either find Wi-Fi or compress the PDF first. Flint's compress works on iPhone too — same browser flow. Smaller upload, faster turnaround.
FAQ
Do I need any app installed?
No. Safari and Files are all you need. Word, Pages, or Google Docs are useful if you want to actually edit the result on the phone.
What about iCloud Drive sync?
Save the docx to iCloud Drive and it appears on your Mac and iPad too. Handy if you want to start the conversion on the phone and finish editing on a bigger screen.
Will scanned PDFs work?
Yes — OCR runs automatically. Photo-of-a-document quality varies, so proofread the output before sending.
Any iOS-specific bugs?
Very few. Occasionally a download fails on poor mobile data — refresh Safari and retry.
Phone, Safari, Files — that's the kit. Convert your PDF to Word right from your iPhone.