How to Convert HTML to PDF using PHP: Comparing Methods

Converting HTML to PDF Using PHP

It is possible to convert HTML to PDF using PHP through various methods. The choice of method depends on specific requirements, such as whether the PDF should be created or converted.

Creating PDFs:

• pdflib: A PHP library that enables the direct creation of PDF files from PHP code.

Converting HTML to PDFs:

• DOMPDF: A PHP class that renders HTML into a PDF using PHP functionality. It supports basic CSS customization and is suitable for smaller and less complex HTML documents.
• HTML2PS: Similar to DOMPDF, it converts HTML to PostScript (.ps) and then to PDF. It supports CSS better than DOMPDF but may have performance issues with larger documents.

External Software Integration:

• wkhtmltopdf: A command-line tool that uses WebKit to render HTML into PDF. It is fast and supports advanced CSS, making it suitable for complex HTML documents.
• htmldoc: An older tool that converts HTML to PDF but has limited CSS support. It is known for its stability and low resource consumption.

When selecting a method, consider the size and complexity of the HTML, the desired degree of CSS compatibility, and the speed and resource requirements of the server.

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