Convert website HTML page to PDF
wkhtmltopdf is an open-source command-line development tool. This app enables you to extract data from an HTML page and turn it into PDF files or images. With its QT Webkit rendering engine, it allows you to copy the entire HTML content and save it to a local file. You can also specify parameters before copying the content. If you’re not fond of command-line tools, there’s a C library option available for you.
How do I install Wkhtmltopdf on Windows?
To install this on your Windows device, you must run its downloaded file first. Afterward, a license agreement screen will show up, and you have to click the I Agree-button. In the component selection prompt, you must tick the boxes of Wkhtmltopdf and Modify PATH to install it, then click Next. You can specify the destination folder of this installed file. If it’s not specified, click Install as the default value.
Once the installation is complete, hit the Close button. Then you can check if the installation is done correctly by entering wkhtmltopdf –version at your command prompt. If it displays the program’s name, license, and authors, the file is installed successfully. Its file package is consists of two executable files—wkhtmltopdf.exe and wkhtmltoimage.exe. Both x86 and x64 architectures are supported, and it even comes with dedicated executables for each of them.
The first package bundle contains HTML content in a PDF document, while the second package is used for pictures exclusively. Either of these functions works well under the command line and PowerShell instances. Once you run a function here, it will deliver the set of instructions and necessary switches that can be used to manipulate the output. When you build PDF files, you will be presented with a variety of options such as to collate, no-collate, grayscale, generate low-quality PDF, set orientation, etc.
A smart tool
No doubt, wkhtmltopdf is a slick program to have, especially if you are familiar with programming languages. With this, you can instantly convert any HTML page to a PDF document. You can also manipulate your parameters to produce the output you desire. However, this software could be overwhelming for beginners and non-tech savvy users.
