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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallFor print-oriented documents built from HTML and CSS, start with WeasyPrint: its Python API can render an HTML string, file, or URL to PDF. If you need a real browser to render an existing page, use Playwright’s Python API and page.pdf(). Neither choice guarantees identical support for every modern browser feature, so test the CSS, fonts, images, and page breaks your document actually uses.
Choose a renderer for the document you have
The key choice is not simply “which library supports HTML5 and CSS3?” It is whether your application is composing a document for print, exporting a browser-rendered page, or constructing a PDF with a layout model of its own. The available documentation describes capabilities and behavior, not a universal winner for fidelity or speed.
| Option | Best fit | What to account for |
|---|---|---|
| WeasyPrint | Print-oriented documents authored as HTML and CSS | Python API writes PDFs; CSS support has documented limits, and resource fetching and untrusted markup require attention. WeasyPrint First Steps and API reference |
| Playwright for Python | Exporting an existing page or a workflow that needs browser-based rendering | page.pdf() uses print media by default. Screen-media rules and print color behavior may need deliberate handling. Playwright Page API |
| ReportLab | Programmatically composed PDFs where browser-like HTML conversion is not central | Its guide documents RML and the rml2pdf workflow; this is a different approach from directly rendering a website’s HTML/CSS. ReportLab user guide |
For the common case—an invoice, report, or other print layout you control—WeasyPrint is a practical first choice. If the page already exists in a browser workflow and relies on browser rendering, Playwright may fit better. Choose ReportLab when you want to construct the PDF through its own document model rather than convert a web page.
Generate a PDF with WeasyPrint
Install WeasyPrint using the current instructions for your operating system and Python environment. Its installation requirements can vary by platform; the documentation linked here is the place to check the prerequisites for the environment you deploy. No specific package version or minimum Python version is established here.
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The smallest working example passes the markup explicitly with string= and writes the PDF to a file:
from weasyprint import HTML
html = """
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<title>Report</title>
<style>
@page { size: A4; margin: 18mm; }
body { font-family: sans-serif; color: #222; }
h1 { font-size: 24pt; }
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Quarterly report</h1>
<p>Generated from Python and HTML.</p>
</body>
</html>
"""
HTML(string=html).write_pdf("report.pdf")Using HTML(string=...) matters: the documentation warns that a bare string argument can be interpreted as a filename. The API also accepts a filename, URL, or readable object. For example, to render a saved document, use HTML(filename="report.html").write_pdf("report.pdf"); to render a URL, pass its URL through the documented URL input. Pick the input form that matches how your application obtains the HTML.
Keep the document’s CSS and assets available
For a standalone document, inline CSS is straightforward. For a larger template, supply stylesheets using the documented API and keep track of the document’s base URL so relative paths resolve as intended. Images, stylesheets, and fonts can change the result; a PDF that opens successfully can still have missing assets or unexpected layout if those resources were not reachable during rendering.
WeasyPrint can load local and HTTP resources. Its default HTTP client does not handle advanced cookies or authentication. If a resource requires credentials or special fetching behavior, use an appropriate custom URL fetcher rather than assuming the default fetcher can access it. Review the API reference’s URL and CSS notes for the constraints relevant to your inputs.
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Use web fonts deliberately
If your CSS uses @font-face, ensure the font files are available to the renderer and configure fonts as part of the HTML-and-CSS rendering flow. WeasyPrint’s First Steps documentation demonstrates using a FontConfiguration. Verify the resulting PDF in the same environment where production rendering will run; a font available on a developer’s machine may not be available on a deployment host.
Use Playwright when browser rendering is the better fit
Playwright’s page.pdf() produces a PDF using print CSS media by default. That means @media print rules apply unless you change the emulated media before export. The following example opens a page, waits for its load event, and saves the PDF:
from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright
with sync_playwright() as p:
browser = p.chromium.launch()
page = browser.new_page()
page.goto("https://example.com", wait_until="load")
page.pdf(path="page.pdf", format="A4", print_background=True)
browser.close()Install and configure Playwright and its browser binaries according to its current Python installation documentation. The snippet uses the synchronous Python API. For an asynchronous application, use the corresponding async API and await the navigation and PDF calls.
Choose print or screen media consciously
If you want screen styles rather than print styles, call page.emulate_media(media="screen") before page.pdf(). Conversely, leave the default print media in place when the page is designed for paper. The setting affects which CSS rules apply, so a screen-looking page is not automatically the right print document.
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Check color output
Playwright documents that PDF generation changes colors for printing by default. If exact CSS colors matter, its documentation points to -webkit-print-color-adjust as the control to investigate. Apply it deliberately to the relevant elements, then inspect the exported PDF; color adjustment cannot correct other layout differences between screen and print styles.
Wait for the content you need
Do not export before your application has populated the page and its essential assets are ready. The Playwright API reference establishes the PDF behavior, but readiness conditions are application-specific: a static page may be ready at navigation load, while a page that fetches data or renders charts may need an explicit wait for a selector or application signal. Set and test that condition in your own workflow rather than relying on an arbitrary delay.
What “HTML5 and CSS3 support” means in practice
HTML and CSS standards are broad, and a renderer’s support is not the same as complete parity with every current browser. WeasyPrint documents broad support for many W3C CSS specifications, but also lists unsupported features and print-specific limits. Its CSS 2.1 support has exceptions, including right-to-left or bidirectional text and some table and page-box cases. Consult the current support reference for any feature your layout depends on; do not infer support merely from the label “CSS3.”
Before committing to a renderer, make a representative test document containing the hardest parts of your actual output: long tables, page breaks, headers or footers, non-Latin text, web fonts, images, and the CSS features your templates rely on. Inspect the generated PDF, not just the HTML in a browser. The documentation’s feature list narrows what to test, but cannot prove that your particular combination renders as intended.
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Security, reliability, and operating cost
Do not render arbitrary untrusted markup without controls
WeasyPrint explicitly warns: “Using WeasyPrint with untrusted HTML or untrusted CSS may lead to various security problems.” Treat user-supplied markup and styles as a security boundary. Sanitize or constrain inputs, control which local files and network resources the renderer can fetch, and avoid exposing sensitive services or files through resource URLs. The exact safeguards depend on your application and deployment.
Make external resources predictable
A PDF render can fail or look incomplete if a stylesheet, image, or font cannot be fetched. Relative URLs depend on a suitable base location; protected resources may require a custom fetching approach. For reliable production output, keep assets under your control where practical, validate that they are reachable in the deployment environment, and check logs and the PDF when output differs from expectation.
Reuse processes for repeated WeasyPrint work
For workloads that generate many documents, WeasyPrint notes that a long-lived process can avoid repeated startup costs. That is an operational consideration, not a published throughput guarantee: do not assume a particular speed advantage without measuring your own templates, assets, and deployment. Keep rendering isolated and resource-limited according to your application’s security and reliability needs.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Troubleshooting common PDF problems
- The renderer says a string is a file path: pass markup as
HTML(string=html), rather than as a bare positional string. - An image, stylesheet, or font is missing: check its resolved URL, deployment availability, and whether it requires authentication. Use the documented fetching options where the default HTTP client is insufficient.
- The PDF differs from the browser view: confirm the renderer supports the CSS features involved, inspect print-specific styles and page breaks, and compare a representative output in the target environment.
- Playwright omits screen-only styling: its PDF operation defaults to print media. Emulate screen media before calling
page.pdf()if that is the intended output. - Backgrounds or colors look different in a Playwright PDF: account for print color behavior and review the documentation’s
-webkit-print-color-adjustguidance. - Content is absent or unfinished: make the navigation and application-specific readiness condition explicit before PDF export; do not assume a page’s initial response means its dynamic content has finished.
- Output is unsafe or reaches unexpected resources: treat untrusted HTML/CSS and URL fetching as security-sensitive; constrain input and resource access before rendering.
Or skip the browser setup
If what you need is a PDF capture of a webpage—not a locally composed PDF document—ScreenshotNeo provides a one-request screenshot API and PDF output. This is a different workflow from rendering your own HTML string with WeasyPrint or exporting a Playwright page; consult the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for PDF output settings.
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Which approach should you use?
Use WeasyPrint when your input is a document you control and your goal is a print-oriented HTML/CSS PDF. Use Playwright when the output should reflect a browser page and its rendering workflow. Consider ReportLab when HTML conversion is incidental and your application is constructing a PDF through a dedicated PDF layout workflow. In all cases, validate the actual output and dependencies in the environment that will produce the final files.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can WeasyPrint convert a URL directly to PDF?
Yes. Its API accepts a URL as an input; account for relative assets and any authentication or custom fetching the page requires.
Does Playwright use print styles when creating a PDF?
Yes. Its Python `page.pdf()` uses print media by default; call `page.emulate_media(media=”screen”)` first when screen media is intended.
Is ReportLab a direct HTML-to-PDF converter?
The cited ReportLab guide documents RML and the `rml2pdf` workflow, a markup-oriented PDF-generation approach rather than direct browser-like rendering of website HTML and CSS.
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