HTML in PDF format: How to convert HTML to PDF (5 methods)

To save an HTML file or webpage as a PDF, open it in your browser, press Control-P (Command-P on Mac), and choose Save as PDF. Check the print preview before saving. Changing the file extension from .html to .pdf won’t convert it.

For repeated conversions, choose a tool based on where the HTML runs and what the PDF must contain. Browser print and headless Chromium use print styles, so the output may differ from the screen layout. Interactive PDF forms require a converter with explicit form support.

Method 1: Use your browser (print to PDF)

Your browser’s built-in print function can save a webpage or local HTML file to PDF.

Chrome

1. Open the HTML file or webpage in Chrome
2. Press Control-P (Windows) or Command-P (Mac)
3. Change Destination to Save as PDF
4. Adjust settings (margins, scale, and background graphics)
5. Click Save and choose a location

Firefox

1. Open the HTML file or webpage in Firefox
2. Press Control-P (Windows) or Command-P (Mac)
3. Select Microsoft Print to PDF or Save to PDF
4. Adjust layout options as needed
5. Click Save

Safari

1. Open the HTML file or webpage in Safari
2. Press Command-P to open the print dialog
3. Open the PDF menu
4. Select Save as PDF
5. Choose a location and click Save

Edge

1. Open the HTML file or webpage in Edge
2. Press Control-P (Windows)
3. Change Printer to Microsoft Print to PDF or Save as PDF
4. Adjust settings and click Save

Tips for better output

• Enable Background graphics to include colors and images
• Set Margins to None or Minimum for more content per page
• Use Scale to fit wide content on the page
• Remove Headers and footers for cleaner output

Method 2: Free online HTML-to-PDF converters

Online converters handle quick conversions without installing software. Upload an HTML file or enter a URL, and the service returns a PDF.

Check the converter’s limits

Before uploading a file, check whether the service accepts a URL, an HTML file, or both. Confirm its current free allowance, watermark policy, asset support, and file retention policy. A service that accepts a public URL may not be able to access a page behind a login.

When to use online converters

Online converters make sense when you need a quick PDF and don’t want to install anything. They’re useful for one-off conversions of public webpages or simple HTML files where exact formatting isn’t critical.

Avoid them for anything automated or sensitive, or where you need consistent results across multiple conversions.

Limitations to consider

• Privacy — Your HTML content is uploaded to third-party servers, which may not be suitable for confidential documents.
• File size limits — Upload size and usage limits vary by service and plan.
• Internet required — These tools require an active internet connection and can’t work offline.
• Inconsistent rendering — CSS support varies significantly between tools, so complex layouts may not convert accurately.

Method 3: JavaScript libraries (for developers)

Several JavaScript libraries can add PDF export to your applications. These run either client-side (in the browser) or server-side (on your backend).

Client-side: html2pdf.js

html2pdf.js combines html2canvas and jsPDF to convert HTML elements to PDF in the browser. Load the bundled script before this code and run it after the element with ID content exists:

// Include via CDN.
// <script src="https://unpkg.com/html2pdf.js@0.14.0/dist/html2pdf.bundle.min.js"></script>

const element = document.getElementById('content');
html2pdf().from(element).save('document.pdf');

This works for simple documents but produces image-based PDFs with limited CSS support.

Client-side: jsPDF

jsPDF can create PDFs by drawing text and graphics directly. This example demonstrates that API; it doesn’t convert an HTML page. Load the UMD bundle before running it:

// Include via CDN.
// <script src="https://unpkg.com/jspdf@4.2.1/dist/jspdf.umd.min.js"></script>

const { jsPDF } = window.jspdf;
const doc = new jsPDF();
doc.text('Hello World', 10, 10);
doc.save('document.pdf');

Use this approach for structured documents like invoices when you want to specify the layout yourself.

Server-side: Puppeteer and Playwright

Puppeteer and Playwright automate Chromium to render HTML with browser CSS and JavaScript support. For the Playwright example, install the package and its Chromium browser:

npm install playwright
npx playwright install chromium

Save this as convert.cjs and run node convert.cjs to create invoice.pdf:

const { chromium } = require('playwright');

async function main() {
  const browser = await chromium.launch();
  try {
    const page = await browser.newPage();
    await page.setContent('<h1>Invoice</h1><p>Details here...</p>');
    await page.pdf({ path: 'invoice.pdf', format: 'A4', printBackground: true });
  } finally {
    await browser.close();
  }
}

main().catch((error) => {
  console.error('HTML to PDF conversion failed:', error.message);
  process.exitCode = 1;
});

Playwright’s PDF export(opens in a new tab) uses print CSS by default. For a live application, navigate to its URL and wait for the required content, images, and fonts before exporting. The example uses inline HTML without external assets.

Server-side: Prince (CSS-first)

Prince(opens in a new tab) is a commercial command-line tool that renders HTML and XML to PDF using CSS — including advanced print stylesheets, paged media, and complex CSS layouts. Unlike browser-based renderers, Prince is built specifically for print, so headers, footers, page numbers, and cross-references work without scripting:

prince input.html -o output.pdf

It’s a good fit when your priority is precise CSS-driven print output (books, technical manuals, regulatory documents) rather than matching exactly what a browser displays.

When to use JavaScript libraries

• Building apps with PDF export features
• Automated report generation
• Custom PDF workflows in your codebase

For a detailed comparison of JavaScript libraries, refer to our blog post on how to convert HTML to PDF with JavaScript.

Method 4: Python libraries (for developers)

Python has several libraries for converting HTML to PDF server-side. These integrate directly with web frameworks like Django and Flask, so you can generate PDFs from templates without spinning up a headless browser.

WeasyPrint

WeasyPrint(opens in a new tab) renders HTML and CSS to PDF with a layout engine designed for print. It doesn’t execute JavaScript and it requires system libraries, including Pango. CSS support differs from browsers, so test your templates and page breaks:

from weasyprint import HTML

# From an HTML string.
HTML(string="<h1>Invoice</h1><p>Details here...</p>").write_pdf("invoice.pdf")

# From a URL.
HTML(url="https://example.com").write_pdf("page.pdf")

# From a local file.
HTML(filename="template.html").write_pdf("output.pdf")

Follow the platform installation instructions(opens in a new tab) to install its system dependencies. Then install the Python package with pip install weasyprint. Use from weasyprint import HTML before calling HTML(...).write_pdf(...), as shown above.

pdfkit (wkhtmltopdf)

pdfkit(opens in a new tab) wraps the wkhtmltopdf(opens in a new tab) command-line tool, converting HTML to PDF via the QtWebKit engine. It’s still widely referenced in existing codebases but shouldn’t be used in new projects:

import pdfkit

# From a URL.
pdfkit.from_url("https://example.com", "output.pdf")

# From an HTML string.
pdfkit.from_string("<h1>Hello</h1>", "output.pdf")

# From a local file.
pdfkit.from_file("template.html", "output.pdf")

If you have an existing pdfkit dependency, the recommended migration path is WeasyPrint for Python stacks not requiring JavaScript execution, or Playwright for full browser rendering.

When to use Python libraries

• Flask or Django apps with PDF export features
• Server-side report generation from HTML templates
• Data pipelines that produce PDFs without a Node.js dependency

For a broader comparison of Python PDF tools, see our Python PDF libraries guide.

Method 5: Professional SDKs (for production apps)

Both open source tools and commercial SDKs can power production workflows. Choose based on output requirements, deployment constraints, and the support your team needs.

Why use a professional SDK?

A commercial SDK can combine conversion with other document operations and vendor support. Test rendering and resource use with representative files for any converter. Form support isn’t exclusive to commercial products: WeasyPrint also offers PDF form generation(opens in a new tab).

Nutrient solutions

Nutrient offers several options for HTML-to-PDF conversion: Document Engine for server-side processing, native SDKs for mobile and desktop platforms, a cloud API for zero-infrastructure setups, and no-code integrations for automated workflows.

Document Engine

Document Engine is a server-side toolkit that powers document processing, rendering, and automation behind the scenes of web, mobile, and desktop apps. It handles more than just HTML-to-PDF conversion: You can use it for document viewing, generation, conversion, OCR, redaction, and real-time collaboration at scale.

Preview templates in Chrome’s print view. Then test the generated PDF. Supply the required CSS, images, and fonts according to the HTML generation schema; JavaScript assets aren’t supported. Supported HTML form controls can become fillable PDF fields, but not every HTML input type has a PDF equivalent.

You can run document workflows entirely on the backend, or pair Document Engine with a frontend SDK. Size the backend and limit concurrency for the documents you process. Features like form filling, annotation, and signing work through frontend and backend syncing, so users interact with documents in the browser while the server handles processing.

Document Engine can serve applications built with .NET, Node.js, Java, iOS, Android, React Native, and Flutter. The following request requires a running Document Engine instance, an API token, and a local HTML file:

curl --fail-with-body -X POST http://localhost:5000/api/build \
  -H "Authorization: Token token=<API token>" \
  -F page.html=@/path/to/page.html \
  -F instructions='{ "parts": [{ "html": "page.html" }] }' \
  -o result.pdf

Three deployment options:

Self-hosted means you run the Docker container on your own servers. You control the infrastructure, updates, and scaling. This option works for air-gapped environments or when regulations require data to stay on-premises.

Nutrient Processor API is the fastest way to get started. You send HTTP requests to Nutrient’s servers and receive PDFs back. No infrastructure to manage, and you pay based on credits consumed. The API supports multiple languages, including JavaScript, Python, Java, C#, and PHP:

Install axios and form-data with npm install axios form-data. Save the following as convert-api.cjs, place index.html beside it, and set NUTRIENT_API_KEY in your server environment. Run node convert-api.cjs from that directory. This example uses the documented build endpoint and HTML part schema:

const axios = require('axios');
const FormData = require('form-data');
const fs = require('node:fs/promises');

async function main() {
  const apiKey = process.env.NUTRIENT_API_KEY;
  if (!apiKey) throw new Error('Set NUTRIENT_API_KEY before running this script.');

  const formData = new FormData();
  formData.append('page.html', await fs.readFile('index.html'), {
    filename: 'index.html',
    contentType: 'text/html',
  });
  formData.append('instructions', JSON.stringify({
    parts: [{ html: 'page.html' }],
  }));

  const response = await axios.post('https://api.nutrient.io/build', formData, {
    headers: formData.getHeaders({ Authorization: `Bearer ${apiKey}` }),
    responseType: 'arraybuffer',
  });
  await fs.writeFile('result.pdf', response.data);
}

main().catch((error) => {
  const detail = error.response?.data;
  console.error(detail ? Buffer.from(detail).toString('utf8') : error.message);
  process.exitCode = 1;
});

For a template with separate stylesheets, images, or fonts, upload those files and list their multipart names in the HTML part’s assets array. Keep the API key on your server.

Managed gives you a dedicated Document Engine instance that Nutrient operates on your behalf. You get the isolation of self-hosting without the operational overhead. Check the deployment and data-handling requirements for your organization before choosing a managed service.

.NET SDK

The .NET SDK brings HTML-to-PDF conversion to .NET applications. It uses Chrome-based rendering for consistent output.

The SDK integrates with C# and other .NET languages. You pass an HTML string or file path to the conversion method, and it returns a PDF document. Since it runs locally, your HTML content never leaves your servers.

Android and iOS SDKs

Our Android SDK and iOS SDK generate PDFs directly on mobile devices. Android uses the system WebView for rendering, while iOS uses WebKit. Local HTML can be converted without an external conversion server. Remote images, stylesheets, or fonts still require network access.

On-device conversion keeps sensitive data on the device instead of sending it to a server. You can convert HTML strings or local HTML files (including file and content URIs on Android).

React Native and Flutter SDKs

Our React Native SDK and Flutter SDK provide HTML-to-PDF conversion for cross-platform mobile development. Both SDKs use native implementations under the hood (WebView on Android, WebKit on iOS), so you write one codebase that works on both platforms.

In Flutter SDK 6, HTML generation uses the deprecated legacy method-channel API; it isn’t part of the bindings API yet. Follow the Flutter guide for the required import and platform options. The React Native SDK also provides PDF generation methods.

Beyond conversion, Nutrient’s mobile SDKs include viewing, annotation, form filling, and digital signature features.

Zapier and Power Automate

Zapier integration and Power Automate connectors bring HTML-to-PDF conversion to no-code workflows. You can trigger PDF generation from events in other apps without writing any code.

These integrations let you automate HTML-to-PDF generation as part of larger workflows — for example, generating documents from templates or form submissions. The PDF generation happens on Nutrient’s servers, and you receive the finished document in your workflow.

What you can build with Nutrient

Invoices — Generate branded invoices from HTML templates with dynamic data, watermarks, and automatic delivery to customers.

Reports — Generate a PDF from a report template. Then apply supported signing or encryption operations as needed.

Contracts — Convert HTML contracts to PDF with fillable signature fields.

Customer exports — Let users download reports, statements, or receipts as PDFs from your web app.

Document pipelines — Chain HTML conversion with OCR, redaction, and merging in a single API call.

HTML-to-PDF conversion methods compared

Common issues when converting HTML to PDF

FAQ

Conclusion

For one-off conversions, your browser’s print function works. For production applications that need consistent output and automated workflows, Nutrient provides self-hosted, cloud, and SDK options with Chromium-based rendering and enterprise security.

Start your free trial to test HTML-to-PDF conversion with your own templates.