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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11Use Playwright’s Chromium browser to open the page, then call page.pdf(). By default, PDF generation uses print CSS; set printBackground: true to include background graphics, or emulate screen media first if you want the page’s screen styling.
Convert a webpage to PDF with TypeScript
Install Playwright in your project with npm install playwright. The example below uses the documented Playwright APIs to launch Chromium, navigate to a URL, save an A4 PDF, and close the browser even if navigation or PDF generation fails. It is an illustrative combination of the documented APIs, not a claim that this exact snippet was tested.
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import { chromium } from 'playwright';
async function savePageAsPdf(): Promise<void> {
const browser = await chromium.launch();
try {
const page = await browser.newPage();
await page.goto('https://example.com');
await page.pdf({ path: 'page.pdf', format: 'A4' });
} finally {
await browser.close();
}
}
await savePageAsPdf();page.goto() navigates the page to the target URL. page.pdf() writes the PDF to the supplied path; it also returns a PDF Buffer, which you can use instead when the output should be handled by your application rather than saved directly. See the Playwright Pages guide and the Page API reference.
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Choose print or screen styling
Use print CSS for a print-oriented document
page.pdf() renders using print CSS media by default. That can produce a different layout from the page shown in a browser tab because sites often define separate print styles.
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Use screen CSS when you want the on-screen appearance
Emulate screen media before calling page.pdf() when the PDF should use screen styles:
await page.emulateMedia({ media: 'screen' });
await page.pdf({ path: 'page.pdf', format: 'A4' });This changes the media style used for rendering; it does not guarantee that the PDF will fit on one page or preserve every screen interaction. The default and media behavior are documented in the Page API reference.
Set page size, margins, backgrounds, and pagination
Start with only the options that answer a real layout need. The API supports these controls:
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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →| Need | Option | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Choose common paper size | format |
Accepts named formats such as A4 and Letter. When supplied, it takes precedence over width and height. |
| Set exact dimensions | width, height |
Dimensions accept px, in, cm, or mm; a value without a unit is interpreted as pixels. |
| Honor the page’s CSS size | preferCSSPageSize |
Use this when CSS @page sizing should take precedence over API-provided size settings. |
| Include background graphics | printBackground |
Defaults to false. Set to true to print background graphics. |
| Change orientation or whitespace | landscape, margin |
Choose landscape orientation and margins appropriate to the document. |
| Scale the rendered page | scale |
The documented range is 0.1 to 2. |
| Export selected pages | pageRanges |
Use page ranges when only part of a longer document is needed. |
| Add page furniture or structure | displayHeaderFooter, templates, outline, tagged |
Configure headers/footers or request an outline or tagged PDF where appropriate. |
For example, this saves an A4 PDF with backgrounds and landscape orientation:
await page.pdf({
path: 'page.pdf',
format: 'A4',
landscape: true,
printBackground: true,
margin: { top: '12mm', right: '12mm', bottom: '12mm', left: '12mm' }
});Background graphics and exact CSS colors are separate concerns: setting printBackground includes background graphics, but PDF colors are modified for printing by default. The API points to the CSS property -webkit-print-color-adjust for exact color rendering. Validate the output if color fidelity matters. Header and footer templates have limitations: scripts are not evaluated, and page styles are not visible inside the templates. Refer to the current Page API reference for option details.
Return the PDF buffer instead of saving a file
Omit path to receive the generated PDF as a buffer and pass it to the next step of your application, such as storage or a response handler:
const pdfBuffer = await page.pdf({ format: 'A4' });The returned value is a PDF Buffer, as documented by Playwright. Choose this form when your application needs to control what happens to the bytes; use path for a direct local file.
Handle common PDF problems
- Backgrounds are missing:
printBackgrounddefaults tofalse. Set it totrueif background graphics should appear. - The PDF looks different from the browser tab: PDF output defaults to print media. Call
page.emulateMedia({ media: 'screen' })beforepage.pdf()if screen CSS is the desired presentation. - The page size is not what you expect: When
formatis set, it takes precedence overwidthandheight. To let CSS@pagesizing take precedence, usepreferCSSPageSize. - Colors look muted or altered: Printing modifies PDF colors by default. Background inclusion and exact color rendering are different settings; review
printBackgroundand the documented-webkit-print-color-adjustguidance. - A header or footer is missing page-specific styling or script output: Header/footer templates do not see page styles, and scripts in templates are not evaluated.
- The file was not written: Check that the process can write to the requested path and that
browser.close()is reached only afterpage.pdf()completes. The example usestry/finallyso browser cleanup occurs on errors.
Or skip the browser setup
ScreenshotNeo can return a PDF from one GET request. For parameters and response details, see the ScreenshotNeo documentation.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot"
-d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY
--data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com
-o page.pdf
-d format=pdfScreenshotNeo removes cookie banners, newsletter popups, and chat widgets before capture; bot checks, blank pages, and failed loads are never billed. It also has an MCP server so AI agents can take screenshots. The Free plan includes 1,000 shots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 shots. Visit ScreenshotNeo or sign up free for 1,000 screenshots a month with no card.
Sources and support scope
The Playwright documentation says page.pdf() generates a PDF using print CSS media. A separate page for the Playwright MCP PDF Export tool says PDF generation there is Chromium-only; that statement applies to that MCP tool and is not a complete browser-support statement for every use of page.pdf(). The reviewed Page API reference does not establish a full browser-support matrix, so check its current documentation for the support details relevant to your Playwright version.
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