How to Use Bing AI (Now Copilot) to Summarize PDF Documents (2026 Guide)

Bing AI — now rebranded as Microsoft Copilot — can summarize PDF documents directly inside Microsoft Edge. If you’ve been searching for “Bing AI summarize PDF,” here’s what you need to know: the feature still exists, it’s now called Copilot, and it’s built right into Edge’s sidebar and PDF reader. This guide covers the exact steps to summarize any PDF using Copilot in Edge, plus alternatives if Copilot doesn’t work for your situation.

Important update: Microsoft rebranded Bing Chat to Microsoft Copilot in late 2023/early 2024. Every reference to “Bing Chat” or “Bing AI” in older guides now applies to Copilot. The feature works the same way — it’s just accessed through the Copilot icon instead of the old Bing/Discover sidebar.

What You Need Before Starting

Before you can use Copilot to summarize PDFs in Edge, make sure you have these basics covered:

Microsoft Edge (latest version) — Copilot is only available in Edge, not Chrome or Firefox. Update Edge by going to Settings → About Microsoft Edge and installing any pending updates.
A Microsoft account — You need to be signed into Edge with a Microsoft account to access Copilot. Free Microsoft accounts work, though some advanced features require a Copilot Pro subscription.
A text-based PDF — Copilot can only summarize PDFs that contain selectable text. Scanned documents (image-only PDFs) won’t work unless you run OCR on them first. To test, try highlighting text in your PDF — if you can select it, Copilot can read it.

This is the standard method that works with any text-based PDF opened in Edge.

Step 1: Open Your PDF in Microsoft Edge

Right-click the PDF file on your computer, select Open with, and choose Microsoft Edge. Alternatively, drag the PDF file directly into an open Edge window. For online PDFs, simply click the PDF link and Edge will open it in its built-in PDF viewer.

Click the Copilot icon in the top-right corner of the Edge toolbar. It looks like a rounded star/ribbon icon. You can also press Ctrl + Shift + Period (.) on Windows or Cmd + Shift + Period (.) on Mac to toggle the sidebar.

If you don’t see the Copilot icon, enable it by going to Settings → Sidebar → Copilot and toggling it on.

Step 3: Ask Copilot to Summarize

Once the sidebar opens, Copilot will automatically detect that you have a PDF open. You’ll typically see a suggested prompt like “Summarize this document.” Click it, or type your own prompt such as:

“Summarize this PDF”
“What are the key points in this document?”
“Give me a bullet-point summary of this PDF”
“Summarize the main arguments in this paper”

Copilot will process the document and return a summary within a few seconds.

Step 4: Ask Follow-Up Questions

After the initial summary, you can dig deeper by asking Copilot specific questions about the PDF content. For example:

“What data is presented in section 3?”
“List all the dates mentioned in this document”
“Explain the methodology described in this paper”
“What are the conclusions?”

Copilot maintains context about the open PDF throughout your conversation, so each follow-up question builds on what you’ve already discussed.

Method 2: Use the Built-In Summarize Button (Edge 145+)

Starting with Edge version 145 (released in early 2026), Microsoft added dedicated Summarize and Explain buttons directly into Edge’s PDF reader. This is the fastest way to summarize a PDF.

How to Use It

Open a PDF in Microsoft Edge
Look for the Summarize button in the PDF toolbar at the top of the page
Click Summarize — Copilot generates an overview of the entire document
To understand a specific section, highlight the text you want explained and click Explain

This method doesn’t require opening the Copilot sidebar separately. The Summarize and Explain results appear in a compact panel alongside your PDF.

Note: This feature is rolling out gradually. If you don’t see the Summarize button, make sure Edge is fully updated. Go to Settings → About Microsoft Edge and check for updates.

Method 3: Upload a PDF to Copilot Directly

You don’t have to open the PDF in Edge’s viewer first. You can upload it directly to Copilot:

Open the Copilot sidebar in Edge (or go to copilot.microsoft.com)
Click the attachment/upload icon in the chat input area
Select your PDF file
Type “Summarize this document” and press Enter

This method works well when you want to analyze a PDF without navigating away from your current tab.

Limitations You Should Know About

Copilot’s PDF summarization has some important constraints:

Limitation	Details
Scanned PDFs	Won’t work — Copilot needs selectable text, not images of text
Password-protected PDFs	Must be unlocked before Copilot can access the content
Very long documents	Copilot may only summarize the first portion of extremely long PDFs (200+ pages)
Accuracy	Summaries are AI-generated and may miss nuances — always verify critical details against the original
Enterprise restrictions	Some organizations disable Copilot or restrict what data it can access via DLP policies
Browser requirement	Only works in Microsoft Edge — no support for Chrome, Firefox, or Safari

Alternatives to Copilot for PDF Summarization

If Copilot doesn’t meet your needs — maybe you don’t use Edge, or your PDFs are scanned images — here are the best alternatives as of 2026:

Tool	Free Tier	Max PDF Size	Best For
ChatGPT (GPT-4o)	Yes (with uploads)	~100 pages	General-purpose summarization with strong accuracy
Google Gemini	Yes	~1,000 pages	Very long documents; handles mixed text and images
Claude (Anthropic)	Yes	~500 pages (200K token window)	Detailed analysis of long, complex documents
Google NotebookLM	Yes (unlimited)	Multiple PDFs at once	Research projects; can generate audio summaries
ChatPDF	Yes (limited)	120 pages free	Quick one-off PDF summaries without an account
Adobe Acrobat AI Assistant	Trial, then paid	Large files	Users already in the Adobe ecosystem

Quick Alternative: Google Gemini

If you prefer a browser-agnostic option, Google Gemini at gemini.google.com lets you upload PDFs directly in chat and can handle documents up to roughly 1,000 pages — significantly more than most competitors.

Quick Alternative: ChatGPT

OpenAI’s ChatGPT now supports PDF uploads even on the free tier (with GPT-4o). Go to chatgpt.com, click the attachment icon, upload your PDF, and ask for a summary.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Copilot icon missing from Edge toolbar
Go to Settings → Sidebar → Copilot and make sure the toggle is on. If it’s still missing, update Edge to the latest version. Some enterprise-managed Edge installations have Copilot disabled by IT policy — check with your admin.

Copilot says it can’t read the PDF
Your PDF is likely a scanned image rather than text. Open it in Adobe Acrobat (paid) or use a free OCR tool like OCR.space to convert it to searchable text first, then re-open in Edge.

Summary is incomplete or cuts off
For very long PDFs, Copilot may only process the first section. Try asking for summaries of specific sections instead: “Summarize pages 10-20” or “What are the conclusions in the final section?”

Copilot gives inaccurate information
AI summaries can occasionally miss details or misinterpret context. Always cross-check critical facts, figures, and quotes against the original PDF. This applies to all AI summarization tools, not just Copilot.

“This feature is not available” error
Make sure you’re signed into Edge with a Microsoft account, your Edge version is up to date, and you’re in a supported region. Copilot availability varies by country.

Bottom Line

Microsoft Copilot (formerly Bing AI/Bing Chat) remains one of the easiest ways to summarize PDFs because it’s built directly into Edge — no extra software or accounts beyond what most Windows users already have. The new Edge 145+ Summarize button makes it even faster. For longer or more complex documents, or if you don’t use Edge, Google Gemini and ChatGPT are strong alternatives that work in any browser.