PDF Options

Generate customized PDF documents from HTML

Overview

When generating PDFs, use the pdf_options parameter to control page size, margins, scaling, and background printing.

To get a PDF instead of an image, add .pdf to your image URL:

https://hcti.io/v1/image/abc123.pdf

Parameters

The pdf_options object accepts the following properties:

Property	Type	Description
page_width	`String`	Width of the page with unit (px, in, cm, mm, pt). Example: `8.5in`
page_height	`String`	Height of the page with unit (px, in, cm, mm, pt). Example: `11in`
scale	`Number`	Scale of the webpage rendering. Range: `0.1` to `2`. Default: `1`
margins	`Array`	Page margins as 4 values: [top, right, bottom, left]. Example: `["1cm", "1cm", "1cm", "1cm"]`
print_background	`Boolean`	Whether to print background graphics. Default: `false`

Common page sizes

Size	Dimensions	Use Case
Letter	`8.5in` x `11in`	US standard documents
A4	`210mm` x `297mm`	International standard
Legal	`8.5in` x `14in`	Legal documents
A5	`148mm` x `210mm`	Smaller documents

Example usage

Basic PDF generation

Create an image and access it as PDF:

curl -X POST https://hcti.io/v1/image -u 'UserID:APIKey' \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{
       "html": "<h1>Invoice #1234</h1><p>Thank you for your purchase.</p>"
     }'

Then append .pdf to the returned URL:

https://hcti.io/v1/image/abc123.pdf

Letter size with margins

{
  "html": "<div class='invoice'>...</div>",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "8.5in",
    "page_height": "11in",
    "margins": ["0.5in", "0.5in", "0.5in", "0.5in"],
    "print_background": true
  }
}

A4 document

{
  "html": "<div class='report'>...</div>",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "210mm",
    "page_height": "297mm",
    "margins": ["20mm", "15mm", "20mm", "15mm"],
    "print_background": true
  }
}

Scaled content

If your HTML is too large for the page, use scale to fit:

{
  "html": "<div style='width: 1200px'>Wide content...</div>",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "8.5in",
    "page_height": "11in",
    "scale": 0.75,
    "print_background": true
  }
}

Common use cases

Invoices and receipts

{
  "html": "<div class='invoice'><h1>Invoice</h1>...</div>",
  "css": ".invoice { font-family: Arial; padding: 40px; }",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "8.5in",
    "page_height": "11in",
    "margins": ["0.75in", "0.75in", "0.75in", "0.75in"],
    "print_background": true
  }
}

Certificates

{
  "html": "<div class='certificate'>...</div>",
  "css": ".certificate { background: linear-gradient(...); }",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "11in",
    "page_height": "8.5in",
    "print_background": true
  }
}

Reports

{
  "html": "<div class='report'><h1>Monthly Report</h1>...</div>",
  "pdf_options": {
    "page_width": "210mm",
    "page_height": "297mm",
    "margins": ["25mm", "20mm", "25mm", "20mm"],
    "print_background": true
  }
}

Best practices

Always set print_background if you have CSS backgrounds, gradients, or colors
Use appropriate margins for your content - typically 0.5-1 inch for printable documents
Test your page size before bulk generation
Use print media queries in your CSS for optimal PDF styling:

@media print {
  .no-print { display: none; }
  body { font-size: 12pt; }
}

Units

All size values support these units:

Unit	Description	Example
`px`	Pixels	`612px`
`in`	Inches	`8.5in`
`cm`	Centimeters	`21cm`
`mm`	Millimeters	`210mm`
`pt`	Points (1/72 inch)	`72pt`

Tip

For print documents, use inches (in) or millimeters (mm) for more accurate sizing.

Need help?

We’re always looking to improve this documentation. Please send us an email: support@htmlcsstoimage.com. We respond fast.