pdfmake

What is pdfmake?

The pdfmake npm package is a server-side and client-side library for generating PDF documents from a JSON-based structure. It provides a declarative API that allows developers to layout text, images, vectors, and other elements in a PDF document.

What are pdfmake's main functionalities?

Text and Typography

This feature allows you to add text to your PDF with various typography settings such as font size, style, and weight.

{"content": [{"text": "Hello World", "style": "header"}], "styles": {"header": {"fontSize": 18, "bold": true}}}

Lists

With this feature, you can create ordered and unordered lists within your PDF document.

{"content": [{"ul": ["Item 1", "Item 2", "Item 3"]}]}

Tables

This feature allows you to insert tables into your PDF, with customizable rows, columns, and styling.

{"content": [{"table": {"body": [["Column 1", "Column 2", "Column 3"], ["Value 1", "Value 2", "Value 3"]]}}]}

Images

This feature enables you to embed images in your PDF documents, with support for various formats and base64 encoded sources.

{"content": [{"image": "data:image/jpeg;base64,...", "width": 200}]}

Vector Graphics

With vector graphics, you can draw shapes and paths to create custom illustrations and designs in your PDF.

{"content": [{"canvas": [{"type": "rect", "x": 0, "y": 0, "w": 100, "h": 100, "color": "#E53935"}]}]}

Other packages similar to pdfmake

html-pdf

html-pdf is a Node.js package that converts HTML to PDF. It uses PhantomJS as a rendering engine. Unlike pdfmake, which uses a JSON structure, html-pdf allows you to define your PDF layout using HTML and CSS.

pdf-lib

pdf-lib is a library for creating and modifying PDF documents in any JavaScript environment. It provides low-level PDF manipulation capabilities and differs from pdfmake by offering more control over the PDF creation process at the expense of a steeper learning curve.

README

pdfmake

Client/server side PDF printing in pure JavaScript