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Use Playwright’s page.pdf() with Chromium to create a PDF from a rendered page. The method can preserve link targets in the output, but the Playwright API reference does not guarantee that every PDF will contain working clickable link annotations. Keep links as ordinary HTML anchors, then test external and in-document links in the PDF viewer your readers will use.
Use Chromium and Playwright’s PDF API
Playwright’s Page API says that page.pdf() “generates a pdf of the page with print css media.” The method returns a PDF buffer; pass a path option to save it to a file. PDF export through Playwright is Chromium-only, even though Playwright supports other browser engines for automation generally. See the Page API, PDF Export tool documentation, and browser installation guide.
Install Playwright and its Chromium browser before running the example. Playwright documents installation commands for browser binaries and operating-system dependencies; use the commands appropriate to your environment and keep the package and browser installation aligned.
npm install playwright
npx playwright install --with-deps chromiumThe following illustrative Node.js script navigates to a page, waits for network activity to settle, and writes an A4 PDF. Choose a wait condition appropriate to your site; applications that continue loading data after navigation may need an application-specific readiness check.
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const { chromium } = require('playwright');
(async () => {
const browser = await chromium.launch();
try {
const page = await browser.newPage();
await page.goto('https://example.com', { waitUntil: 'networkidle' });
await page.pdf({
path: 'page.pdf',
format: 'A4',
printBackground: true
});
} finally {
await browser.close();
}
})();This pattern applies to a page you navigate to and to HTML you prepare in the browser. For supplied or dynamically generated HTML, wait until its content and fonts or images that matter to the document have rendered before calling page.pdf(). page.pdf() uses Chromium’s print rendering; its return value is a buffer if you want to handle or stream the PDF in your own code instead of saving it with path.
Keep links in the HTML and verify the PDF
Use standard anchor elements with valid href values, for example <a href="https://example.org">Reference</a>. The HTML Standard defines hyperlink semantics for anchors and their href attributes, but that alone does not establish how a PDF renderer will encode links. Playwright’s cited API reference does not expressly guarantee clickable annotations in every exported PDF.
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- Generate the PDF from the page with its normal anchor markup intact.
- Open the resulting file in the target PDF viewer and click at least one external link.
- Check in-document links too, such as links to a section or page fragment; confirm they navigate to the intended destination.
- If links are absent or inactive, compare the source HTML’s
hrefvalues with the PDF behavior and test in the viewer your audience uses. Do not infer link preservation solely from valid HTML.
Choose print or screen styling deliberately
By default, PDF generation uses print CSS media. A page that looks right in a browser window can therefore produce a different PDF because its @media print rules hide, resize, or rearrange content. Inspect both @media print and @page rules when the exported layout differs from the screen.
If the intended output should use screen styling, emulate screen media before calling page.pdf():
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await page.emulateMedia({ media: 'screen' });
await page.pdf({ path: 'page.pdf', format: 'A4' });Use this only when screen media is the desired rendering. It does not replace checking the actual PDF: paper dimensions, pagination, margins, and viewer behavior still affect the result.
Set paper size, margins, and other layout options
Playwright documents several options that control PDF layout. The format default is Letter, scale defaults to 1, and preferCSSPageSize, background printing, outline, and tagged output default to false. Check the current Page API reference for the full option types and current behavior.
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| Option | What it controls | When to adjust it |
|---|---|---|
format |
Named paper format; documented default is Letter. | Set a format such as A4 when the document is intended for a different paper standard. |
width, height |
Explicit page dimensions. | Use when a named format is not the required page size. |
margin |
Page margins. | Adjust usable content area or avoid content being too close to page edges. |
pageRanges |
Which pages to include. | Export only selected pages when the full document is not needed. |
scale |
Rendering scale; default is 1. |
Use cautiously to fit content; scaling changes the size of text and other page elements. |
printBackground |
Whether to print background graphics; default is false. |
Set to true when background colors or images are part of the intended design. |
preferCSSPageSize |
Whether CSS page size takes precedence; default is false. |
Set intentionally when the page’s @page CSS defines the desired paper size. |
outline, tagged |
Optional PDF outline and tagged output; both default to false. |
Enable only when these document features are useful for your output and supported by the installed Playwright version. |
For example, choose a paper format, include backgrounds, and set margins explicitly rather than relying on defaults:
await page.pdf({
path: 'report.pdf',
format: 'A4',
margin: { top: '15mm', right: '12mm', bottom: '15mm', left: '12mm' },
printBackground: true,
preferCSSPageSize: false
});If your stylesheet’s @page size should govern instead, set preferCSSPageSize: true and ensure the CSS rule expresses the size you want. Avoid setting conflicting paper dimensions in CSS and Playwright options without deciding which should win.
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Use the Chrome CLI only when a script is unnecessary
Chrome also documents a headless --print-to-pdf command for saving a target page as PDF. Its headless command-line reference describes optional flags for omitting headers and footers and setting a capture timeout. That can suit a one-off command-line export, while Playwright is the appropriate route when your application needs browser automation, page preparation, or programmatic control of PDF options. See the Chrome headless command-line reference.
Troubleshoot common PDF problems
- PDF export fails in Firefox or WebKit: Playwright’s documented PDF export capability is Chromium-only. Launch Chromium for
page.pdf(). - Content is missing or stale: The page may not have finished rendering when the PDF call ran. Wait for the content your application needs, using a condition suited to that page rather than assuming one navigation wait works for all sites.
- The PDF differs from the browser view: Print CSS is the default. Inspect
@media printand@page; emulate screen media only if screen styling is specifically intended. - Colors or background images are absent: Background printing defaults to off. Set
printBackground: trueif those elements belong in the document. - Paper size is unexpected: The documented format default is Letter. Set
formator explicit dimensions, and decide whether CSS page size should take precedence throughpreferCSSPageSize. - Links are not clickable: Confirm the original anchors have correct
hrefvalues, then inspect the exported PDF in the intended viewer. Valid source markup is not a guarantee that every renderer-viewer combination will expose active PDF links. - Chromium will not launch on a clean machine: Install the browser binary and required operating-system dependencies using Playwright’s browser installation guidance, then keep Playwright and its browser installation updated.
Or skip the browser setup
ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server; its PDF endpoint can capture a URL as a PDF in one request. The example saves the response body as a PDF:
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://example.com -o page.pdfSee the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for request options. ScreenshotNeo accepts cookie and consent banners and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets before capture; those steps can be turned off. Bot checks, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed, and response headers report the page verdict and billing status. Its MCP server provides take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf tools for AI agents and MCP clients. The Free plan includes 1,000 shots per month without a card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 shots. For details, visit ScreenshotNeo.
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Can I use Playwright’s PDF export with Firefox or WebKit?
No. Playwright’s documented PDF export path requires Chromium.
Does Playwright guarantee that exported PDFs have clickable links?
The cited Page API does not state such a guarantee. Preserve normal anchor markup and check the generated file in your intended PDF viewer.
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