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The correct Selenium method depends on what you are looking at. If Selenium rendered an HTML report and you need to create a PDF, call the browser’s print endpoint with print_page, decode the returned Base64 data, and write the bytes to a file. If a URL already serves a PDF, configure the browser to download application/pdf, navigate or click the link, and wait for the completed file. Do not try to automate Chrome’s or Firefox’s built-in PDF viewer with DOM selectors.
Choose the right workflow first
| What the tab contains | Use | What you save | Main caveat |
|---|---|---|---|
| HTML report, dashboard or document rendered by the page | Selenium print command | PDF generated by the browser | Layout follows print CSS and browser rendering |
| An existing PDF returned by a server URL | Configured browser download | The server’s PDF bytes | You must handle download preferences and temporary files |
These paths produce different documents. Printing an HTML page is not the same as downloading a PDF that the server has already generated. Decide from the network response or the URL: a response with Content-Type: application/pdf is a download case; an HTML response that displays a report is a print case.
Print a rendered page to PDF (Python)
Selenium’s Python binding exposes driver.print_page(). It returns Base64-encoded PDF data, which you decode before writing. Chromium’s Selenium print example requires headless mode, so the example below enables the current headless implementation.
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- Create the destination directory before starting the browser.
- Navigate to the report and wait for its data to finish rendering.
- Call
print_page, decode the result and write the bytes. - Quit the driver in a
finallyblock.
from pathlib import Path
import base64
from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options
from selenium.webdriver.common.print_page_options import PrintOptions
out = Path("artifacts/report.pdf")
out.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
options = Options()
options.add_argument("--headless=new")
driver = webdriver.Chrome(options=options)
try:
driver.get("https://example.test/report")
# Add an explicit wait here if the report loads data asynchronously.
print_options = PrintOptions()
# Optional: print_options.page_ranges = ["1-3"]
pdf_b64 = driver.print_page(print_options)
if not pdf_b64:
raise RuntimeError("Selenium returned empty PDF data")
out.write_bytes(base64.b64decode(pdf_b64))
if out.stat().st_size == 0:
raise RuntimeError("The PDF file is empty")
finally:
driver.quit()The resulting file is a browser-generated PDF. Use PrintOptions for print settings supported by your Selenium binding, including page ranges where available. CSS such as @media print, page breaks and the browser’s print layout affect the output, so a screen-perfect page can legitimately produce a different PDF.
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Wait for the report, not merely the URL
driver.get() only guarantees that navigation completed according to the page-load strategy. A single-page application may still be fetching rows or charts. Wait for a distinctive report element, a loading indicator to disappear, or a known application condition before printing. Otherwise the PDF can be valid but incomplete.
Download a PDF that the server already provides
When the tab opens an existing PDF, the viewer is not a normal web page. Selectors aimed at the viewer’s toolbar or document canvas are fragile and browser-specific. Set download behavior before navigation, then wait for the final file.
Firefox: destination, MIME type and viewer bypass
Firefox preferences can specify a download directory and MIME types that should be saved without a prompt. The MIME type must match the server’s response; inspect response headers if the download still opens in the viewer.
from pathlib import Path
from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.firefox.options import Options
folder = Path("artifacts/pdfs").resolve()
folder.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
opts = Options()
opts.set_preference("browser.download.folderList", 2)
opts.set_preference("browser.download.dir", str(folder))
opts.set_preference("browser.helperApps.neverAsk.saveToDisk", "application/pdf")
# Practical viewer-bypass preference; verify it with the Firefox version in CI.
opts.set_preference("pdfjs.disabled", True)
driver = webdriver.Firefox(options=opts)
try:
driver.get("https://example.test/files/report.pdf")
finally:
driver.quit()pdfjs.disabled is version-sensitive. Keep it as a project setting only after verifying it with the Firefox build used in local and CI runs.
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Chrome or Chromium: download instead of opening
Chrome’s user setting is Settings → Privacy and security → Site Settings → Additional content settings → PDF documents → Download PDFs. Automated sessions should also set an explicit download directory through the Chrome options or preferences supported by the Selenium binding and environment. Configure it before calling get() or clicking the PDF link.
from pathlib import Path
from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options
folder = Path("artifacts/chrome-pdfs").resolve()
folder.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
options = Options()
options.add_experimental_option("prefs", {
"download.default_directory": str(folder),
"download.prompt_for_download": False,
"download.directory_upgrade": True,
"plugins.always_open_pdf_externally": True,
})
driver = webdriver.Chrome(options=options)
try:
driver.get("https://example.test/files/report.pdf")
finally:
driver.quit()Preference names and driver behavior can vary by browser version and execution environment. If your binding exposes a browser-specific download command, use that in addition to the profile preferences.
Wait for the completed file safely
Downloads are asynchronous. Chromium commonly writes a .crdownload file while Firefox commonly uses .part. A robust test cleans the directory first, waits for the expected final name (or a newly created PDF), requires a nonzero size, and confirms that no temporary file remains.
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import time
from pathlib import Path
def wait_for_pdf(folder: Path, timeout: float = 60) -> Path:
deadline = time.monotonic() + timeout
while time.monotonic() < deadline:
temporary = list(folder.glob("*.crdownload")) + list(folder.glob("*.part"))
pdfs = [p for p in folder.glob("*.pdf") if p.is_file() and p.stat().st_size > 0]
if pdfs and not temporary:
candidate = max(pdfs, key=lambda p: p.stat().st_mtime)
with candidate.open("rb") as fh:
if fh.read(5) != b"%PDF-":
raise RuntimeError(f"Not a PDF: {candidate}")
return candidate
time.sleep(0.25)
raise TimeoutError(f"No completed PDF appeared in {folder}")Use a deterministic filename when the application supplies one, or rename the newly detected file after validation. Never accept an old file left by a previous run: remove or isolate the directory at test start.
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Authentication and session handling
A PDF link may require the same login as the surrounding application. Navigating with Selenium preserves the browser’s cookies, local state and interactive authentication. If you replace the browser download with an HTTP client, transfer every requirement deliberately: cookies, authorization headers, redirects, user-agent expectations and any anti-bot challenge. Otherwise the client may save an HTML login page with a .pdf name.
For a known URL, direct retrieval can be simpler:
import requests
response = requests.get(
"https://example.test/files/report.pdf",
cookies={"session": "..."},
timeout=60,
)
response.raise_for_status()
if response.headers.get("Content-Type", "").split(";", 1)[0].lower() != "application/pdf":
raise RuntimeError("The response is not an application/pdf")
with open("artifacts/report.pdf", "wb") as fh:
fh.write(response.content)Use this only when the request is known to be equivalent to the authenticated browser request. Selenium is safer when redirects, short-lived tokens or browser-only checks are involved.
Print versus download: fidelity, control and CI stability
| Criterion | Print API | Browser download |
|---|---|---|
| Input | Rendered HTML | Existing PDF response |
| Fidelity | Browser layout, fonts and @media print |
Server-produced bytes |
| Browser control | PrintOptions and print command |
Download directory, MIME preferences and viewer settings |
| Authentication | Uses current Selenium session | Uses current session when navigated or clicked |
| CI concerns | Headless Chromium requirement in the documented example; wait for page data | Temporary files, filename collisions and browser-specific preferences |
Choose print when the browser is the document generator and download when the server is. Converting a server PDF to a printed PDF can change text selection, metadata, pagination and visual fidelity.
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Verification checklist
- Use a clean, dedicated output directory for each run.
- Wait for the expected file and for
.crdownloador.partfiles to disappear. - Require a nonzero file size.
- Check that the first five bytes are
%PDF-, or parse the document with a PDF library. - For print output, verify the Base64 return value before decoding.
- Record the final path in test logs so a CI failure is diagnosable.
Troubleshooting common failures
The file is HTML, not PDF
The request probably reached a login page, error page or bot check. Inspect the response headers and the first bytes, then authenticate in the Selenium session or transfer the required cookies and headers for a direct request.
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Chrome still opens the viewer
Set the download preferences before navigation, include external-PDF handling where supported, and confirm the profile is not being replaced by a managed CI policy. Do not rely on clicking the viewer’s Save button.
Firefox prompts or opens PDF.js
Check that browser.helperApps.neverAsk.saveToDisk contains the exact server MIME type, including a possible vendor-specific PDF type. Verify pdfjs.disabled against the Firefox version in use.
The wait times out
Log the directory contents during polling. A wrong directory, a download blocked by policy, a different filename, a still-present temporary file or a failed HTTP response are the usual causes. Increase the timeout only after identifying which condition is slow.
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Ensure the page has finished rendering, use a supported Selenium/browser combination, and run Chromium headless as in the documented example. Check that the returned value is present before Base64 decoding.
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The printed PDF misses charts or rows
Wait on a report-specific readiness condition rather than a fixed short sleep. For pages that lazy-load content, scroll or trigger the application’s own completion signal before invoking print.
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curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.pdfSee the ScreenshotNeo documentation for PDF parameters such as paper size, margins, landscape mode and page ranges. The free plan includes 1,000 shots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 shots. Sign up at ScreenshotNeo.
Python and Node.js API alternatives
Python
import requests
r = requests.get("https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot", params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"}, timeout=90)
open("shot.pdf", "wb").write(r.content)Node.js
const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);
const data = Buffer.from(await res.arrayBuffer());
await import('node:fs/promises').then(fs => fs.writeFile('shot.pdf', data));Use the API when you do not need a live browser session, viewer interaction or application-specific login flow. Selenium remains the appropriate choice when the PDF depends on an authenticated, stateful browser or when you must reproduce print CSS exactly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Selenium save a PDF opened in a new tab?
Yes. Configure downloads before the action that opens the tab, switch to the new window if needed, and monitor the configured download directory rather than the PDF viewer DOM.
How can I control the output filename?
The server may choose the download name. Detect and validate the newly completed file, then rename it to a deterministic name in your own output directory.
Does Selenium’s print command preserve the original server PDF?
No. It creates a new PDF from the rendered page. Preserve the original bytes by downloading the server response instead.
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