HTML to PDF Conversion: Complete Guide
Converting HTML to PDF is essential for developers generating invoices, designers sharing mockups, and anyone who needs to archive or distribute web content as a document. Our free tool uses your browserβs native rendering engine β the same technology that powers Chromeβs built-in "Print to PDF" feature β for pixel-perfect output.
How the Print Dialog Works
Unlike our other tools that download a file directly, HTML to PDF uses your browserβs print function. When you click Convert, the HTML is rendered in a new window and the print dialog opens automatically. To save the PDF:
- Google Chrome / Edge: Set Destination to "Save as PDF", then click Save.
- Firefox: Choose "Microsoft Print to PDF" or "Save to PDF" from the printer list.
- Safari: Click the PDF button in the bottom left and choose "Save as PDF".
Controlling Page Layout with CSS
You can control page layout precisely using CSS @page and @media print rules in your HTML:
@page { size: A4; margin: 20mm; }β sets page size and margins@page { size: landscape; }β forces landscape orientation@media print { .no-print { display: none; } }β hides elements in the printed PDFpage-break-before: alwaysβ forces a new page before an element
Tips for Best Results
- Use inline CSS or a
<style>tag in your HTML β external stylesheet URLs may not load in the print preview window. - Avoid JavaScript-dependent dynamic content β scripts do not execute in the print preview.
- For complex multi-page documents, test with
@media printstyles to ensure clean page breaks. - After saving, compress large PDFs with our PDF Compressor.