HTML to PDF

Convert an HTML document, including its CSS and JavaScript, into a PDF file. This is the only endpoint PigDF exposes.

Endpoint

POST https://pigdf.com/api/html-to-pdf

Requires a valid API key (see Introduction) and an active subscription whose plan includes the HTML to PDF functionality.

Request body

Send a JSON body with these fields:

Field	Type	Description
content	string	Required. The full HTML document, with its CSS and JavaScript inline. Maximum 10 MB.
settings	object	Optional. Rendering options.
settings.page_size	object	Optional. The page dimensions, given in pixels. If you do not send page_size, the PDF uses A4 size by default.
settings.page_size.width	number	Page width in pixels. Required when page_size is given.
settings.page_size.height	number	Page height in pixels. Required when page_size is given.

Example request body:

{
  "content": "<h1>Invoice</h1>",
  "settings": {
    "page_size": { "width": 794, "height": 1123 }
  }
}

794 × 1123 px is roughly A4 at 96 DPI. Backgrounds are always printed, and any JavaScript in your HTML runs before the page is captured.

Response

Every response uses the same JSON envelope, on success and on error:

Field	Type	Description
status	boolean	true when the PDF was generated, false on any error.
errors	array	A list of { "type": ..., "message": ... } objects. Empty on success.
content	string or null	On success, the base64-encoded PDF. null on error.

Success:

{
  "status": true,
  "errors": [],
  "content": "JVBERi0xLjQKJeLjz9MK..."
}

Error:

{
  "status": false,
  "errors": [
    { "type": "subscription", "message": "You do not have an active subscription." }
  ],
  "content": null
}

Decoding the PDF

JSON cannot carry raw bytes, so the PDF is returned as a base64 string in content. To get a usable file you must base64-decode that string and write the result to a .pdf file. Always check that status is true first.

curl https://pigdf.com/api/html-to-pdf \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pigdf_YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"content": "<h1>Hello, PigDF</h1>", "settings": {"page_size": {"width": 794, "height": 1123}}}' \
  | jq -r '.content' | base64 --decode > document.pdf

import base64
import requests

response = requests.post(
    "https://pigdf.com/api/html-to-pdf",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer pigdf_YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={
        "content": "<h1>Hello, PigDF</h1>",
        "settings": {"page_size": {"width": 794, "height": 1123}},
    },
)

result = response.json()
if result["status"]:
    with open("document.pdf", "wb") as file:
        file.write(base64.b64decode(result["content"]))
else:
    print("Failed:", result["errors"])

import { writeFileSync } from "node:fs";

const response = await fetch("https://pigdf.com/api/html-to-pdf", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    "Authorization": "Bearer pigdf_YOUR_API_KEY",
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    content: "<h1>Hello, PigDF</h1>",
    settings: { page_size: { width: 794, height: 1123 } },
  }),
});

const result = await response.json();
if (result.status) {
  writeFileSync("document.pdf", Buffer.from(result.content, "base64"));
} else {
  console.error("Failed:", result.errors);
}

The cURL example assumes success; it needs jq and base64 installed.

Errors

On failure, status is false and errors describes what went wrong. Each error has a type:

type	HTTP	Meaning
authentication	401	Missing or invalid API key.
subscription	403	No active subscription on your account.
functionality	403	Your plan does not include HTML to PDF.
usage_limit	429	You have reached your plan's usage limit for this feature.
request	400	Invalid JSON, missing content, or invalid page size.
request	413	The content is larger than 10 MB.
render	408	Rendering took longer than 30 seconds.
render	502	The content could not be rendered.
render	413	The generated PDF is larger than 10 MB.

Limits & behavior

The input HTML and the generated PDF are each capped at 10 MB.
Rendering times out after 30 seconds.
Each plan feature has a usage limit. Every successful request counts as one use, and once the limit is reached further requests return a usage_limit error (unless the feature is marked unlimited).
CSS, JavaScript, and background colors and images are all rendered.
Page size is given in pixels; omit page_size for A4.
For security, references in your HTML to local or private addresses and file:// URLs are blocked.