Convert to PDF API Tool - Extensive File Format Conversion to PDF

Convert to PDF is a REST API tool that accepts a wide range of file types as input and reliably converts each into a standardized PDF document. It's designed to provide developers with robust, high-quality document conversion capabilities, ensuring seamless integration and consistent, compliant PDF output for diverse applications.

Key Benefits of Convert to PDF API

Support robust format conversion for a wide range of input files including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, images (JPEG, TIF, BMP, PNG), Email (.eml), PostScript, and HTML from URLs.
Generate standardized PDF documents optimized with high-quality Adobe® PDF Library™ technology, ensuring consistent and reliable compliance with PDF ISO 32000 specifications.
Fine-tune PDF output files with adjustable controls for image compression, downsampling, and creating tagged PDFs from Office files for accessibility compliance.
Customize HTML conversions by setting page size, margins, orientation, and web layout for responsive designs.
Streamline document archiving by converting various file types into a universal, long-term preservation format.
Automate content standardization workflows, eliminating manual steps and ensuring consistent document presentation across your systems.

Try Now with API Lab

Start right from your browser - upload files, choose parameters, generate code, and send API Calls directly from API Lab!

Request

POST

Headers

Api-Key

Don't have a key? Create an account to get one.

Response-Type

Choose between a full response after processing completes or an immediate response containing only the requestId to poll for the processing status later.

Full Response

Request ID

Required Parameters

file

File to be uploaded and processed

Alphanumeric ID (UUID) of existing file on server to be processed

url

URL of web page to process

Optional Parameters

output

Name of the generated output file, without extension

compression

Image compression for PostScript, Microsoft Office, HTML conversion

downsample

Downsample images during PostScript, Microsoft Office, HTML conversion or preserve original resolutions with the 'off' option

tagged_pdf

Microsoft Office file conversion only: Create a tagged PDF document, required for accessibility compliance

page_size

HTML conversion only: Select a page size for the PDF file. Options correspond to standard paper sizes

page_margin

HTML conversion only: Set margins for a PDF file in inches or millimeters

page_orientation

HTML conversion only: Set the page orientation

web_layout

HTML conversion only: For web pages with responsive design, select the intended web layout

Code

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfrest.com/pdf" \
  -H "Accept: application/json" \
  -H "Content-Type: multipart/form-data" \
  -H "Api-Key: xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx" \

Response

The response for your API Call will display here.

Once you've sent your POST request and received a valid response, you can download your output file using the output URL.

Build Your Solution

You have document processing problems, we have Solutions. Explore the many ways pdfRest can align your documents with your business objectives.

Browse all solutions

Many different file type icons (XLS, PNG, HTML, etc) are all marging with arrows into a large PDF file icon

Convert and Merge Multiple Types of Files Together

Access PDF Processing Power with AI Magic

Microsoft Work, Powerpoint, and XLS icons corkscrew towards a PDF/A labelled document icon.

Optimize Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Files for Long-Term Preservation

Convert HTML Newsletter to PDF to Preserve Content

Expedite Litigation Workflows with PDF and Word Conversions

Integrate pdfRest with Microsoft Power Automate

Why is pdfRest the best API to convert files to PDF?

pdfRest's Convert to PDF API stands out by offering unparalleled format support, guaranteed ISO 32000 compliance, and granular control over the final PDF's key properties.

Seamlessly Convert Common Office & Image Files to PDF

pdfRest's single, powerful tool is designed to take a wide array of common file types and convert them into a professional PDF document. This robust format support eliminates the need for multiple conversion tools or complex, multi-step workflows. With one simple API call, developers can standardize documents from various sources into a single, universal format, simplifying development and ensuring consistency across all applications.

The tool works with all of the following file types:

Word (.doc, .docx)
Excel (.xls, .xlsx)
PowerPoint (.ppt, .pptx)
PostScript (.ps)
Encapsulated PostScript (.eps)
JPEG (.jpg, .jpeg)
TIF (.tif, .tiff)
BMP (.bmp)
PNG (.png)
Email (.eml)
HTML (.html, from URL)

Generate High-Quality, ISO-Compliant PDFs for Professional Workflows

Not all PDFs are created equal. Many conversion tools on the market struggle to generate documents that meet all the requirements of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This can lead to painful problems down the line, including inconsistent rendering, compatibility issues, and long-term archival risks.

With pdfRest’s Convert to PDF Tool, every file is optimized using high-quality Adobe® PDF Library™ technology to ensure consistent and reliable compliance with the PDF ISO 32000 specifications. This guarantees that your PDFs are not only visually correct but also structurally sound for:

Long-term digital archiving and preservation
Consistent rendering across all devices and software
Reliable interoperability within your workflows

Fine-Tune Your PDF Output with Customizable Conversion Parameters

The Convert to PDF API provides developers with granular control over the final document output. You can fine-tune every detail and optimize your PDFs for specific use cases, from web accessibility to file size reduction.

Adjustable parameters empower you to support a wide range of use cases:

Create tagged PDFs from Office files to ensure accessibility (WCAG compliance) for screen readers.
Control compression and downsampling to reduce file size without sacrificing quality, which is ideal for web performance.
Set page size, margins, and orientation for precise HTML and web page conversions.
And more!

See our documentation for full details on all the available parameters and how they can be used to optimize your conversion workflows.

Check out other videos

Start from Code Examples

See more code examples in our GitHub repository

Need more help?

Start with a Tutorial for step-by-step guidance

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Customize Your Solution

Learn about the parameters for this tool to create your custom solution.

File

The file parameter allows you to select a local file to be uploaded to pdfRest’s processing server for conversion.

This is a required field unless you include the id or url parameter instead.

See Documentation

The id parameter allows you to submit a resource ID for a file already on the processing server. Each of our API Tools assigns a unique resource ID to all uploaded input files and generated output files and returns these IDs in the response to each API Call. This allows you to store the IDs from one call and submit them to the next, chaining requests together without having to download intermediate files between requests.

This is a required field unless you include the file or url parameter instead.

See Documentation

URL

The url parameter lets you convert a web page to a PDF directly from its URL and does not require uploading or referencing the id of a file.

This is a required field for web page conversion from URL only.

See Documentation

Output

The output parameter lets you provide a filename (without extension) for your new PDF.

See Documentation

Compression

The compression parameter lets you choose between “lossy” and “lossless” image compression. “Lossy” will sacrifice image quality for a drop in data size, whereas “lossless” will retain image quality.

See Documentation

Downsample

The downsample parameter lets you adjust downsampling of image resolution when converting from PostScript, Microsoft Office files, or HTML. Downsampling can be adjusted or completely switched off.

See Documentation

Tagged PDF

The tagged_pdf parameter allows you to create a tagged PDF when converting a Microsoft Office file. A tagged PDF enables accessibility features in supported viewers.

See Documentation

Page Size

The page_size lets you select from a list of standard page sizes when converting from HTML to PDF, including: letter, legal, ledger, A3, A4, A5.

See Documentation

Page Margin

The page_margin parameter lets you set the page margin size in inches or millimeters when converting from HTML to PDF.

Tip: Setting this to zero allows content to flow to the edges of the document, allowing a PDF to match the appearance of a website.

See Documentation

Page Orientation

The page_orientation parameter lets you set the page orientation to either landscape or portrait when converting from HTML to PDF.

See Documentation

Web Layout

The web_layout parameter lets you select the target layout of a web page to render when converting from HTML to PDF.

This has the biggest impact for web pages that use responsive design to adjust content to fit different screen resolutions. Choose from desktop, tablet, or mobile layouts.

See Documentation

Convert to PDF

Key Benefits of Convert to PDF API

Seamlessly Convert Common Office & Image Files to PDF

Generate High-Quality, ISO-Compliant PDFs for Professional Workflows

Fine-Tune Your PDF Output with Customizable Conversion Parameters

Need more help?

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