pdfrender vs Gotenberg
Gotenberg is a free, self-hosted Docker API (Chromium + LibreOffice) you operate yourself; pdfrender is the hosted, zero-ops alternative.
| Gotenberg | open-source (MIT-licensed), Docker-first conversion API — Chromium and LibreOffice engines; free, self-hosted |
|---|---|
| pdfrender | hosted API — no container to run, patch, scale or monitor; free tier + flat subscriptions |
Gotenberg is excellent, and if "run it yourself" is what you want,
you should: it is a mature open-source project that packages Chromium and
LibreOffice behind a clean HTTP API in one Docker image, with no per-render
cost. The comparison is not features — it is who operates the renderer. With
Gotenberg that is you: keeping Chromium patched, sizing memory for
concurrent renders, monitoring, and upgrading. With pdfrender that is us,
behind POST /v1/render.
When Gotenberg is the better fit
- You already run container infrastructure and want zero external dependencies and zero per-render cost at high volume.
- Documents may not leave your network.
- You need its Chromium (JS-executing) or LibreOffice (Office-file) conversion routes.
When pdfrender fits
- You want PDF generation this afternoon without adding a service to your infrastructure — the free tier (100 renders/month) needs no card, and €20/mo covers 10,000 renders.
- Sympathetic scale: pdfrender is itself a self-hosted-friendly, solo-operator service — small, boring, honest — so the economics stay simple instead of enterprise-shaped.
- You want the MCP server and metered API keys without building either around a raw renderer.
Try pdfrender free — or start with the no-signup browser tool.