ng2-pdfjs-viewer

Angular PDF viewer powered by Mozilla's PDF.js

The most reliable, feature-rich Angular PDF viewer component powered by Mozilla's PDF.js

Live Demo • Documentation • API Reference • Examples • Server Examples • Migration Guide

ng2-pdfjs-viewer is the most comprehensive and feature-rich Angular PDF viewer component available. Born in 2018 and still going strong with over 7+ million downloads, this battle-tested library has been trusted by developers worldwide for over 8 years, powering thousands of applications.

This powerful library enables developers to seamlessly integrate PDF viewing capabilities into Angular applications with enterprise-grade features, custom theming, and mobile-first responsive design. Built on Mozilla's PDF.js v5.3.93, ng2-pdfjs-viewer provides advanced PDF rendering, document navigation, search functionality, and extensive customization options.

Whether you need a simple embedded PDF viewer or a complex document management system, this component delivers the performance and flexibility required for modern Angular applications. The most mature and reliable Angular PDF viewer solution with continuous updates and long-term support.

Why Choose ng2-pdfjs-viewer?

• 🚀 Always Up-to-Date - Continuously updated with the latest PDF.js versions and Angular compatibility
• 🏗️ Enterprise-Ready - Built for production with comprehensive error handling and performance optimization
• 🎨 Highly Customizable - Extensive theming options, custom templates, and flexible configuration
• 📱 Mobile Optimized - Touch-friendly interface with responsive design for all screen sizes
• 🔧 Developer Friendly - Full TypeScript support, comprehensive documentation, and easy integration
• ⚡ High Performance - Event-driven architecture with efficient memory management and lazy loading
• 🌍 Global Support - Multi-language support with automatic locale detection and RTL compatibility
• 🛡️ Production Tested - Trusted by thousands of applications with millions of downloads
• 📈 Proven Track Record - 8+ years of continuous development and community support
• 🔒 Security Focused - Regular security updates and vulnerability patches

🆕 Latest Features (v25.x)

Feature	Description	Status
Advanced Theme System	CSS custom properties for complete visual customization	✅ New
Template-Based UI	Custom loading spinners and error displays using Angular templates	✅ New
Convenience Configuration	Object-based configuration for cleaner, more maintainable code	✅ New
Event-Driven Architecture	Pure event-based system with universal action dispatcher	✅ New
Enhanced Error Handling	Multiple error display styles with custom templates	✅ New
Mobile-First Design	Responsive layout optimized for touch devices	✅ New
TypeScript Strict Mode	Full type safety with comprehensive API coverage	✅ New

🏆 Unique Advantages

• Universal Action Dispatcher - Single pathway for all actions with readiness validation
• Template-Based Customization - Use Angular templates for loading and error states
• Comprehensive Event System - 24+ events covering all user interactions and state changes
• Advanced Configuration Objects - Clean, object-based configuration for complex setups
• Production-Ready Architecture - Event-driven design with no timeouts or polling
• Complete API Coverage - 19+ methods with consistent Promise-based returns

🎯 Perfect For

• Enterprise Applications - Robust, scalable PDF viewing for business applications
• Document Management Systems - Complete PDF handling with search and navigation
• E-Learning Platforms - Interactive PDF viewing for educational content
• Financial Applications - Secure PDF viewing for reports and statements
• Healthcare Systems - Reliable PDF viewing for medical documents
• Government Portals - Accessible PDF viewing for public services
• E-Commerce Platforms - Product catalogs and documentation viewing
• Content Management Systems - Integrated PDF viewing and management

📋 Table of Contents

• Quick Start
• Features
• Installation
• Basic Usage
• Advanced Configuration
• API Reference
• Examples
• Migration Guide
• Deprecated Features
• Contributing
• License

🚀 Quick Start

🎯 Live Demo: https://angular-pdf-viewer-demo.vercel.app/
📚 Documentation: https://angular-pdf-viewer-docs.vercel.app/
📁 Source Code: https://github.com/intbot/ng2-pdfjs-viewer/tree/main/SampleApp

1. Install the Package

npm install ng2-pdfjs-viewer --save

2. Import the Module

import { NgModule } from "@angular/core";
import { BrowserModule } from "@angular/platform-browser";
import { PdfJsViewerModule } from "ng2-pdfjs-viewer";

@NgModule({
  imports: [BrowserModule, PdfJsViewerModule],
  // ... rest of your module
})
export class AppModule {}

3. Use in Your Component

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  pdfSrc="assets/sample.pdf"
  [showSpinner]="true"
  [theme]="'light'"
>
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

4. Configure Assets (Required)

Add PDF.js assets to your angular.json:

{
  "projects": {
    "your-app": {
      "architect": {
        "build": {
          "options": {
"assets": [
              {
                "glob": "**/*",
                "input": "node_modules/ng2-pdfjs-viewer/pdfjs",
                "output": "/assets/pdfjs"
              }
            ]
          }
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

✨ Features

🎉 7+ Million Downloads & Counting! - Trusted by developers worldwide for reliable PDF viewing in Angular applications since 2018.

🎯 Core PDF Viewing Features

• 📄 High-Quality PDF Rendering - Powered by Mozilla's PDF.js v5.3.93 for superior document display
• 🔄 Multiple Display Modes - Embedded viewer, new window, or external tab options
• 📱 Mobile-First Responsive Design - Touch-friendly controls optimized for all devices
• 🌍 Complete Internationalization - Support for 50+ languages with automatic locale detection
• ⚡ Optimized Performance - Lazy loading, memory management, and efficient rendering

🎨 Visual Customization

• 🎨 Theme System - Light, dark, and auto themes with custom color schemes
• 🎭 Custom Styling - CSS custom properties for complete visual control
• 🔄 Loading States - Custom loading spinners with template support
• ❌ Error Handling - Multiple error display styles with custom templates
• 📐 Layout Control - Toolbar density, sidebar width, and positioning options

🔧 Developer Features

• 📝 TypeScript Support - Full type safety with strict mode
• 🔌 Event System - Comprehensive event handling for all user interactions
• ⚙️ Configuration Objects - Convenience setters for cleaner code
• 🛠️ API Methods - Promise-based methods for programmatic control
• 🐛 Debugging - Built-in diagnostic logging and error tracking

📊 Advanced Features

• 🔍 Search & Navigation - Full-text search with highlighting
• 📖 Bookmarks & Attachments - Document structure navigation
• 🖨️ Print & Download - Built-in print and download functionality
• 🔄 Rotation & Zoom - Document manipulation with smooth animations
• 📱 Touch Gestures - Mobile-optimized touch interactions

📦 Installation

Prerequisites

• Angular: 20.0+ (recommended) | 2.0+ (supported)
• Node.js: 18.0+
• TypeScript: 5.0+

Angular Version Support

Angular Version	Support Level	Notes
20.0+	✅ Recommended	Fully tested and optimized
15.0 - 19.x	✅ Supported	Should work with minor testing
10.0 - 14.x	✅ Supported	Compatible with testing
2.0 - 9.x	⚠️ Legacy	May require additional testing

Note: While the library supports Angular 2.0+, it's primarily tested and optimized for Angular 20+. For production use with older versions, thorough testing is recommended. The library uses relaxed peer dependencies (Angular >=10.0.0) to ensure compatibility across different Angular versions.

Install Package

# Using npm
npm install ng2-pdfjs-viewer --save

# Using yarn
yarn add ng2-pdfjs-viewer

# Using pnpm
pnpm add ng2-pdfjs-viewer

Configure Assets

Add PDF.js assets to your angular.json:

{
  "projects": {
    "your-app": {
      "architect": {
        "build": {
          "options": {
            "assets": [
              {
                "glob": "**/*",
                "input": "node_modules/ng2-pdfjs-viewer/pdfjs",
                "output": "/assets/pdfjs"
              }
            ]
          }
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

🎯 Basic Usage

Simple PDF Viewer

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer pdfSrc="assets/document.pdf" [showSpinner]="true">
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

Advanced Configuration

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  pdfSrc="assets/document.pdf"
  [theme]="'dark'"
  [primaryColor]="'#007acc'"
  [showSpinner]="true"
  [customSpinnerTpl]="customSpinner"
  [customErrorTpl]="customError"
  (onDocumentLoad)="onDocumentLoaded($event)"
  (onPageChange)="onPageChanged($event)"
>
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

Programmatic Control

import { Component, ViewChild } from "@angular/core";
import { PdfJsViewerComponent } from "ng2-pdfjs-viewer";

@Component({
  template: `
    <ng2-pdfjs-viewer #pdfViewer pdfSrc="document.pdf"></ng2-pdfjs-viewer>
    <button (click)="goToPage(5)">Go to Page 5</button>
  `,
})
export class MyComponent {
  @ViewChild("pdfViewer") pdfViewer!: PdfJsViewerComponent;

  async goToPage(page: number) {
    await this.pdfViewer.goToPage(page);
  }
}

Advanced Configuration

Theme Customization

// Component
export class MyComponent {
  themeConfig = {
    theme: "light",
    primaryColor: "#007acc",
    backgroundColor: "#ffffff",
    toolbarColor: "#f5f5f5",
    textColor: "#333333",
    borderRadius: "8px",
  };
}

<!-- Template -->
<ng2-pdfjs-viewer [themeConfig]="themeConfig" [customCSS]="customStyles">
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

Custom Loading Spinner

<ng-template #customSpinner>
  <div class="custom-spinner">
    <div class="spinner"></div>
    <p>Loading PDF...</p>
  </div>
</ng-template>

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  [customSpinnerTpl]="customSpinner"
  [spinnerClass]="'my-spinner'"
>
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

Custom Error Display

<ng-template #customError>
  <div class="error-container">
    <mat-icon>error</mat-icon>
    <h3>Failed to Load PDF</h3>
    <p>Please check your internet connection and try again.</p>
    <button mat-button (click)="retry()">Retry</button>
  </div>
</ng-template>

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer [customErrorTpl]="customError" [errorClass]="'my-error'">
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

📚 API Reference

Input Properties

Property	Type	Default	Description
pdfSrc	string | Blob | Uint8Array	-	PDF source (URL, Blob, or byte array)
viewerId	string	auto	Unique viewer identifier
viewerFolder	string	'assets'	Path to PDF.js assets
externalWindow	boolean	false	Open in new window
externalWindowOptions	string	-	External window options
target	string	'_blank'	Target for external window
theme	'light' | 'dark' | 'auto'	'light'	Theme selection
primaryColor	string	'#007acc'	Primary color for UI elements
backgroundColor	string	'#ffffff'	Background color
pageBorderColor	string	-	Page border color
toolbarColor	string	-	Toolbar background color
textColor	string	-	Text color
borderRadius	string	-	Border radius
customCSS	string	-	Custom CSS styles
showSpinner	boolean	true	Show loading spinner
customSpinnerTpl	TemplateRef	-	Custom spinner template
spinnerClass	string	-	Custom spinner CSS class
customErrorTpl	TemplateRef	-	Custom error template
errorClass	string	-	Custom error CSS class
errorOverride	boolean	false	Override default error handling
errorAppend	boolean	true	Append to default error messages
errorMessage	string	-	Custom error message
locale	string	'en-US'	UI language
useOnlyCssZoom	boolean	false	Use CSS-based zoom for mobile
diagnosticLogs	boolean	false	Enable diagnostic logging
zoom	string	'auto'	Initial zoom level (two-way binding)
page	number	1	Initial page number
namedDest	string	-	Named destination to navigate to
cursor	string	'select'	Cursor type (two-way binding)
scroll	string	'vertical'	Scroll mode (two-way binding)
spread	string	'none'	Spread mode (two-way binding)
pageMode	string	'none'	Page mode (two-way binding)
rotation	number	0	Document rotation (two-way binding)
showOpenFile	boolean	true	Show open file button
showDownload	boolean	true	Show download button
showPrint	boolean	true	Show print button
showFind	boolean	true	Show search button
showFullScreen	boolean	true	Show fullscreen button
showViewBookmark	boolean	true	Show bookmark button
showAnnotations	boolean	false	Show annotations
showToolbarLeft	boolean	true	Show left toolbar section
showToolbarMiddle	boolean	true	Show middle toolbar section
showToolbarRight	boolean	true	Show right toolbar section
showSecondaryToolbarToggle	boolean	true	Show secondary toolbar toggle
showSidebar	boolean	true	Show sidebar
showSidebarLeft	boolean	true	Show left sidebar
showSidebarRight	boolean	true	Show right sidebar
toolbarDensity	'compact' | 'default' | 'comfortable'	'default'	Toolbar density
sidebarWidth	string	-	Sidebar width (e.g., '280px')
toolbarPosition	'top' | 'bottom'	'top'	Toolbar position
sidebarPosition	'left' | 'right'	'left'	Sidebar position
responsiveBreakpoint	string | number	-	Responsive breakpoint
downloadOnLoad	boolean	false	Auto-download on load
printOnLoad	boolean	false	Auto-print on load
rotateCW	boolean	false	Rotate clockwise on load
rotateCCW	boolean	false	Rotate counter-clockwise on load
showLastPageOnLoad	boolean	false	Go to last page on load
downloadFileName	string	-	Custom download filename
controlVisibility	ControlVisibilityConfig	-	Control visibility configuration
autoActions	AutoActionConfig	-	Auto actions configuration
errorHandling	ErrorConfig	-	Error handling configuration
viewerConfig	ViewerConfig	-	Viewer configuration
themeConfig	ThemeConfig	-	Theme configuration
groupVisibility	GroupVisibilityConfig	-	Group visibility configuration
layoutConfig	LayoutConfig	-	Layout configuration

Output Events

Event	Type	Description
onDocumentLoad	EventEmitter<void>	Fired when document loads
onDocumentInit	EventEmitter<void>	Fired when document initializes
onDocumentError	EventEmitter<DocumentError>	Fired when document fails to load
onPageChange	EventEmitter<ChangedPage>	Fired when page changes
onPagesInit	EventEmitter<PagesInfo>	Fired when pages are initialized
onPageRendered	EventEmitter<PageRenderInfo>	Fired when a page is rendered
onScaleChange	EventEmitter<ChangedScale>	Fired when zoom/scale changes
onRotationChange	EventEmitter<ChangedRotation>	Fired when rotation changes
onPresentationModeChanged	EventEmitter<PresentationMode>	Fired when presentation mode changes
onOpenFile	EventEmitter<void>	Fired when open file is clicked
onFind	EventEmitter<FindOperation>	Fired when search is performed
onUpdateFindMatchesCount	EventEmitter<FindMatchesCount>	Fired when search matches are updated
onMetadataLoaded	EventEmitter<DocumentMetadata>	Fired when document metadata loads
onOutlineLoaded	EventEmitter<DocumentOutline>	Fired when document outline loads
onAnnotationLayerRendered	EventEmitter<AnnotationLayerRenderEvent>	Fired when annotation layer renders
onBookmarkClick	EventEmitter<BookmarkClick>	Fired when bookmark is clicked
onIdle	EventEmitter<void>	Fired when viewer becomes idle
onBeforePrint	EventEmitter<void>	Fired before printing
onAfterPrint	EventEmitter<void>	Fired after printing
zoomChange	EventEmitter<string>	Fired when zoom changes (two-way binding)
cursorChange	EventEmitter<string>	Fired when cursor changes (two-way binding)
scrollChange	EventEmitter<string>	Fired when scroll changes (two-way binding)
spreadChange	EventEmitter<string>	Fired when spread changes (two-way binding)
pageModeChange	EventEmitter<string>	Fired when page mode changes (two-way binding)

Methods

Method	Parameters	Returns	Description
refresh()	-	void	Refresh viewer
goToPage(page: number)	page: number	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Navigate to specific page
setPage(page: number)	page: number	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set current page
setZoom(zoom: string)	zoom: string	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set zoom level
setCursor(cursor: string)	cursor: 'select' | 'hand' | 'zoom'	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set cursor type
setScroll(scroll: string)	scroll: 'vertical' | 'horizontal' | 'wrapped' | 'page'	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set scroll mode
setSpread(spread: string)	spread: 'none' | 'odd' | 'even'	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set spread mode
setPageMode(mode: string)	mode: 'none' | 'thumbs' | 'bookmarks' | 'attachments'	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Set page mode
triggerDownload()	-	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Trigger download
triggerPrint()	-	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Trigger print
triggerRotation(direction: string)	direction: 'cw' | 'ccw'	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Rotate document
goToLastPage()	-	Promise<ActionExecutionResult>	Navigate to last page
sendViewerControlMessage(action: string, payload: any)	action: string, payload: any	Promise<any>	Send custom control message
getActionStatus(actionId: string)	actionId: string	Promise<ActionExecutionResult | null>	Get action status
getQueueStatus()	-	{ queuedActions: number; executedActions: number }	Get queue status
clearActionQueue()	-	void	Clear action queue
reloadViewer()	-	void	Reload viewer (alias for refresh)
goBack()	-	void	Go back in browser history
closeViewer()	-	void	Close viewer window
getErrorTemplateData()	-	any	Get error template data

🎨 Examples

🎯 Live Demo: https://angular-pdf-viewer-demo.vercel.app/
📚 Documentation: https://angular-pdf-viewer-docs.vercel.app/
📁 Source Code: https://github.com/intbot/ng2-pdfjs-viewer/tree/main/SampleApp

1. Basic PDF Viewer

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer pdfSrc="assets/sample.pdf" [showSpinner]="true">
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

2. Themed PDF Viewer

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  pdfSrc="assets/sample.pdf"
  [theme]="'dark'"
  [primaryColor]="'#ff6b6b'"
  [backgroundColor]="'#2c3e50'"
>
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

3. Custom Loading & Error

<ng-template #loadingTemplate>
  <div class="loading">
    <mat-spinner></mat-spinner>
    <p>Loading your document...</p>
</div>
</ng-template>

<ng-template #errorTemplate>
  <div class="error">
    <mat-icon>error_outline</mat-icon>
    <h3>Oops! Something went wrong</h3>
    <p>We couldn't load your PDF. Please try again.</p>
    <button mat-button (click)="retry()">Retry</button>
</div>
</ng-template>

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  pdfSrc="assets/sample.pdf"
  [customSpinnerTpl]="loadingTemplate"
  [customErrorTpl]="errorTemplate"
>
  </ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

4. Convenience Setters (Object-Based Configuration)

export class PdfController {
  // Group visibility configuration
  groupVisibility = {
    "download": true,
    "print": true,
    "find": true,
    "fullScreen": true,
    "openFile": true,
    "viewBookmark": true,
    "annotations": false
  };

  // Auto actions configuration
  autoActions = {
    "downloadOnLoad": false,
    "printOnLoad": false
  };

  // Control visibility configuration
  controlVisibility = {
    "showToolbarLeft": true,
    "showToolbarMiddle": true,
    "showToolbarRight": true,
    "showSecondaryToolbarToggle": true,
    "showSidebar": true,
    "showSidebarLeft": true,
    "showSidebarRight": true
  };
}

<ng2-pdfjs-viewer
  pdfSrc="assets/sample.pdf"
  [groupVisibility]="groupVisibility"
  [autoActions]="autoActions"
  [controlVisibility]="controlVisibility"
>
</ng2-pdfjs-viewer>

5. Programmatic Control

export class PdfController {
  @ViewChild("pdfViewer") pdfViewer!: PdfJsViewerComponent;

  async loadDocument(url: string) {
    this.pdfViewer.pdfSrc = url;
    await this.pdfViewer.refresh();
  }

  async goToPage(page: number) {
    await this.pdfViewer.goToPage(page);
  }

  async setZoom(zoom: string) {
    await this.pdfViewer.setZoom(zoom);
  }
}

6. Server-Side Integration

For server-side developers, we provide comprehensive examples for integrating PDF APIs with ng2-pdfjs-viewer:

📋 Server-Side Examples - Complete examples for:

• ASP.NET Core (C#) - RDLC reports, physical files, iTextSharp
• Node.js (Express) - File serving, PDFKit, Puppeteer
• Python (FastAPI) - ReportLab, WeasyPrint, file handling
• Java (Spring Boot) - iText, JasperReports, file serving
• PHP (Laravel) - TCPDF, DomPDF, file management
• Go (Gin) - gofpdf, file serving, PDF generation

Each example includes proper Content-Type headers, error handling, CORS configuration, and Angular integration patterns.

🔄 Migration Guide

From v20.x to v25.x

Breaking Changes

• PDF.js Upgrade: Updated to v5.3.93 - some APIs may have changed
• Theme System: New theme properties replace old styling options
• Error Handling: Template-based error system replaces HTML strings

Migration Steps

• Update Dependencies

  npm install ng2-pdfjs-viewer@latest
  

• Update Theme Configuration

  // Old way
  [customCSS]="'body { background: red; }'"
  
  // New way
  [theme]="'light'"
  [primaryColor]="'#ff0000'"
  [backgroundColor]="'#ffffff'"
  

• Update Error Handling

  <!-- Old way -->
  [errorHtml]="'<div>Custom error</div>'"
  
  <!-- New way -->
  <ng-template #errorTemplate>
    <div>Custom error</div>
  </ng-template>
  <ng2-pdfjs-viewer [customErrorTpl]="errorTemplate"></ng2-pdfjs-viewer>
  

• Update Spinner Handling

  <!-- Old way -->
  [spinnerHtml]="'<div class=\"spinner\">Loading...</div>'"
  
  <!-- New way -->
  <ng-template #spinnerTemplate>
    <div class="spinner">Loading...</div>
  </ng-template>
  <ng2-pdfjs-viewer [customSpinnerTpl]="spinnerTemplate"></ng2-pdfjs-viewer>
  

  // Old way
  this.pdfViewer.setSpinnerHtml('<div>Loading...</div>');
  
  // New way
  // Use [customSpinnerTpl] with ng-template
  

Deprecated Features

The following features are deprecated and will be removed in future versions:

Deprecated Properties

Deprecated	Replacement	Description
[startDownload]	[downloadOnLoad]	Download document automatically when it opens
[startPrint]	[printOnLoad]	Print document automatically when it opens
[errorHtml]	[customErrorTpl]	Custom error HTML (use template instead)
[errorTemplate]	[customErrorTpl]	Custom error template (renamed)
[spinnerHtml]	[customSpinnerTpl]	Custom spinner HTML (use template instead)

Deprecated Methods

Deprecated	Replacement	Description
setErrorHtml()	Use [customErrorTpl]	Set custom error HTML (use template instead)
setSpinnerHtml()	Use [customSpinnerTpl]	Set custom spinner HTML (use template instead)

Migration Help

// Deprecated - Error Handling
this.pdfViewer.setErrorHtml("<div>Error</div>");

// New way - Error Handling
// Use [customErrorTpl] with ng-template

// Deprecated - Spinner Handling
this.pdfViewer.setSpinnerHtml("<div>Loading...</div>");

// New way - Spinner Handling
// Use [customSpinnerTpl] with ng-template

📚 Additional Resources

• Custom CSS Examples - Complete styling guide with theme customization examples
• Error Display Examples - Custom error template examples and styling options
• Contributing Guide - How to contribute to the project

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

Development Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/intbot/ng2-pdfjs-viewer.git


# Clear Angular cache (Windows)
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "SampleApp\.angular"


# Build and test - All at once (Windows)
@test.bat

📄 License

This project is licensed under the Apache License 2.0 + Commons Clause License Condition v1.0 - see the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Community Contributors - For bug reports, feature requests, and contributions
• 7+ Million Users - For trusting us with your PDF viewing needs
• Mozilla PDF.js Team - For the amazing PDF.js library

📞 Support

• 📖 Documentation: GitHub Wiki
• 💬 Community: GitHub Discussions
• 🐛 Issues: GitHub Issues
• 📧 Email: [e-mail]
• 📧 Author: Aneesh Gopalakrishnan