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Top Python HTML to PDF Libraries in 2025

· 7 min read
Michał Szymanowski
Michał Szymanowski
PDFBolt Co-Founder

Google Trends overview showing the relative search interest for HTML-to-PDF conversion libraries over the past 12 months

In this article, we present the top Python libraries for converting HTML to PDF based on their popularity. We explore their unique features and benefits, provide detailed download statistics and simple code examples to give you insights into their real-world usage. This data-driven approach helps you understand which libraries are widely trusted by the developer community, so you can choose the perfect tool for your projects.

Library Download Statistics Comparison​

Below is the comparison table with download statistics sourced from PyPI Stats:

LibraryDownloads Last MonthDownloads Last WeekDownloads Last Day
Playwright7,839,1542,359,162332,932
WeasyPrint3,453,558969,938206,713
pdfkit1,734,355436,99880,347
Pyppeteer1,439,492352,46955,012
xhtml2pdf1,387,548364,14062,000

The table above provides a quantitative comparison of the top HTML to PDF conversion libraries in Python. It presents the number of downloads each library has received over the last month, week, and day, offering a clear indication of their popularity and adoption within the developer community.

Deep Dive into Python's PDF Libraries​

Playwright​

Playwright Usage Stats

Playwright is a powerful browser automation library for Python (and other languages) that can be used to render HTML content and generate high-quality PDFs using headless browsers. It leverages Chromium's native rendering engine, ensuring that your PDFs accurately reflect the original HTML and CSS. An advantage of Playwright is its cross-language support and excellent handling of dynamic, JavaScript-heavy content.

note

For additional insights on Playwright, check out our previous article.

➡️ Installation​

To install Playwright, run the following command:

pip install playwright

` After installing the package, install the necessary browser binaries with:

playwright install

➡️ Converting HTML to PDF using Playwright​

The following example demonstrates how to use Playwright to convert a simple HTML string into a PDF:

import asyncio
from playwright.async_api import async_playwright

async def generate_pdf():
    async with async_playwright() as p:
        # Launch a headless Chromium browser
        browser = await p.chromium.launch()
        page = await browser.new_page()

        # Define a simple HTML content
        html_content = """
        <html>
          <head>
            <meta charset="utf-8">
            <title>Sample PDF generated using Playwright</title>
          </head>
          <body>
            <h1>Hello!</h1>
            <p>Why do Python developers prefer dark mode?</p>
            <p><strong>Because light attracts bugs!</strong></p>
          </body>
        </html>
        """

        # Set the page content to the HTML
        await page.set_content(html_content)

        # Generate a PDF of the page and save it
        await page.pdf(path="document_playwright.pdf")

        # Close the browser
        await browser.close()

# Execute the asynchronous function
asyncio.run(generate_pdf())

WeasyPrint​

WeasyPrint Usage Stats

WeasyPrint is a robust and versatile Python library that converts HTML and CSS into high-quality PDF documents without relying on a headless browser. It supports modern CSS standards to produce professional, print-ready PDFs. Its precise rendering of complex layouts makes it a solid choice for reliable PDF generation.

➡️ Installation​

To install WeasyPrint, run the following command:

pip install weasyprint

For detailed installation steps and troubleshooting on your specific system, refer to the WeasyPrint Documentation.

➡️ Converting HTML to PDF using WeasyPrint​

The example below shows how to convert a basic HTML string into a PDF with WeasyPrint:

from weasyprint import HTML

# Define a simple HTML content
html_content = """
<html>
  <head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title>Sample PDF generated using WeasyPrint</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello!</h1>
    <h3>How many Python developers does it take to screw in a lightbulb?</h3>
    <p><strong>None. It’s a hardware problem.</strong></p>
  </body>
</html>
"""

# Convert the HTML content to PDF and save it
HTML(string=html_content).write_pdf("document_weasyprint.pdf")
Want to learn more?

Check our detailed guide: Generate PDF from HTML Using WeasyPrint and PyPDF2.

pdfkit​

pdfkit Usage Stats

pdfkit is a lightweight Python wrapper for wkhtmltopdf. It leverages the WebKit rendering engine to convert static HTML content into high-quality PDFs while faithfully preserving CSS styling. However, it requires a separate installation of wkhtmltopdf and may struggle with dynamic, JavaScript-heavy content compared to browser-based solutions.

➡️ Installation​

To install pdfkit, run the following command:

pip install pdfkit
note

Ensure that you have wkhtmltopdf installed on your system. You can download it from wkhtmltopdf.org.

➡️ Converting HTML to PDF using pdfkit​

Below is an example code snippet using pdfkit to generate a PDF from a simple HTML string:

import pdfkit

# Define a simple HTML content
html_content = """
<html>
  <head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title>Sample PDF generated using pdfkit</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello!</h1>
    <p>What happens when Python developers ask a silly question?</p>
    <p><strong>They get a silly ANSI.</strong></p>
  </body>
</html>
"""

# Convert the HTML content to PDF and save it
pdfkit.from_string(html_content, 'document_pdfkit.pdf')
Further Reading

For a complete walkthrough, read our full tutorial: How to Convert HTML to PDF Using Python-PDFKit.

Pyppeteer​

Pyppeteer Usage Stats

Pyppeteer is an unofficial port of Puppeteer for Python. It enables you to control headless Chrome to render HTML content and generate high-quality PDFs. With its straightforward API, Pyppeteer is ideal for those who prefer a familiar Puppeteer-like experience in Python.

note

For additional insights on Pyppeteer and a step-by-step guide to generating certificate PDF, check out our previous article.

➡️ Installation​

To install Pyppeteer, run the following command:

pip install pyppeteer

➡️ Converting HTML to PDF using Pyppeteer​

Below is an example of generating a PDF from a simple HTML string with Pyppeteer:

import asyncio
from pyppeteer import launch

async def generate_pdf():
    # Launch a headless Chrome browser
    browser = await launch(headless=True)
    page = await browser.newPage()

    # Define a simple HTML content
    html_content = """
    <html>
      <head>
        <meta charset="utf-8">
        <title>Sample PDF generated using Pyppeteer</title>
      </head>
      <body>
        <h1>Hello!</h1>
        <p>Why did the Python developer get kicked out of school?</p>
        <p><strong>Because he kept breaking the class rules!</strong></p>
      </body>
    </html>
    """

    # Set the page content to the HTML
    await page.setContent(html_content)

    # Generate a PDF of the page and save it
    await page.pdf({'path': 'document_pyppeteer.pdf'})

    # Close the browser
    await browser.close()

# Execute the asynchronous function
asyncio.get_event_loop().run_until_complete(generate_pdf())

xhtml2pdf​

xhtml2pdf Usage Stats

xhtml2pdf is a Python library that converts HTML and CSS into PDFs using the ReportLab Toolkit. Fully written in Python, it supports HTML5 and CSS 2.1 (with partial CSS3 support), making it a great choice for converting straightforward HTML content into PDFs. xhtml2pdf is easy to use for developers, but it may struggle with highly complex layouts or advanced styling.

➡️ Installation​

To install xhtml2pdf, run:

pip install xhtml2pdf

➡️ Converting HTML to PDF using xhtml2pdf​

Here's an example using xhtml2pdf to convert a simple HTML string into a PDF:

from xhtml2pdf import pisa

# Define a simple HTML content
html_content = """
<html>
  <head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title>Sample PDF generated using xhtml2pdf</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello!</h1>
    <h2>Why did the Python developer get stuck in traffic?</h2>
    <h3>Because he couldn't find a free route!</h3>
  </body>
</html>
"""

# Convert the HTML content to PDF and save it
with open("document_xhtml2pdf.pdf", "wb") as output_file:
    pisa.CreatePDF(html_content, dest=output_file)

Learn More

Convert HTML to PDF in Python Using xhtml2pdf – check our comprehensive tutorial for more examples and advanced usage.

HTML to PDF API Alternative​

While the Python libraries above provide excellent control over PDF generation, managing dependencies, browser installations, and server infrastructure can add complexity to your projects. If you're looking for a simpler approach that eliminates these overhead concerns, PDFBolt offers an API‑based alternative for HTML to PDF conversion.

Why Consider an API Approach?

Instead of handling browser automation and dependency management in your Python application, PDFBolt's REST API lets you:

  • Eliminate Dependencies: No browser installations or version management required.
  • Better Resource Management: Avoid memory-heavy browser processes on your servers.
  • Scale Effortlessly: Handle high-volume PDF generation without infrastructure management.
  • Use Templates: Create reusable layouts that separate design from data.

PDF Generation via API

➡️ Here's how you can generate a PDF using PDFBolt's API in Python:

import requests
import json
import base64

# Define HTML content
html_content = """
<html>
  <head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title>Sample PDF generated using PDFBolt API</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello!</h1>
    <p>Why do Python developers love PDFs?</p>
    <p><strong>Because they're always looking for a good conversion!</strong></p>
  </body>
</html>
"""

# Encode HTML as base64
base64_html = base64.b64encode(html_content.encode()).decode()

url = "https://api.pdfbolt.com/v1/direct"
headers = {
    "API-KEY": "XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX",
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
}

data = {
    "html": base64_html,
    "format": "A4",
    "margin": {
        "top": "30px",
        "left": "30px"
    }
}

try:
    response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=data)
    response.raise_for_status()

    with open('document_pdfbolt.pdf', 'wb') as f:
        f.write(response.content)
    print("PDF generated successfully")

except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
    print(f"HTTP {response.status_code}")
    print(f"Error Message: {response.text}")
except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
    print(f"Error: {e}")

After running the script, take a look at the result:

PDF generated using PDFBolt API in Python

Template-Based PDF Generation

For more complex use cases, PDFBolt also supports dynamic templates. This approach is ideal when you need standardized document formatting and want to separate design logic from application code.

data = {
    "templateId": "your-template-id",
    "templateData": {
        "recipient_name": "Jane Doe",
        "course_name": "Advanced Python Programming",
        "completion_date": "2025-03-12"
    }
}
Learn More

Conclusion​

In summary, this article has explored the top Python libraries for converting HTML to PDF in 2025, including Playwright, WeasyPrint, pdfkit, Pyppeteer, and xhtml2pdf. Each library offers unique benefits – from robust handling of dynamic, JavaScript-heavy content with Playwright and Pyppeteer to the simplicity and platform independence of WeasyPrint and xhtml2pdf. Whether you need to generate high-fidelity, print-ready documents or require a lightweight solution for static content, these libraries provide a range of options to suit your project needs.

By comparing download statistics and providing practical code examples, you can choose the right library for efficient PDF generation in your Python projects.

For teams seeking to reduce infrastructure complexity and focus on application logic rather than PDF generation, API-based approaches like PDFBolt offer a streamlined, scalable alternative.

Keep coding and remember, a positive mindset is sometimes the best debugging tool! 😎