Markdown has become a popular choice for writing structured text due to its simplicity and readability, making it widely used for documentation, README files, and note-taking. However, sometimes there arises a need to present this content in a more universal and polished format, such as PDF, which is compatible across various devices and platforms without formatting inconsistencies. Converting Markdown files to PDF documents not only enhances portability but also adds a professional touch, enabling easier distribution for reports, manuals, or sharing content with non-technical audiences who may not be familiar with Markdown syntax.

This article will demonstrate how to convert Markdown files to PDF documents using Spire.Doc for Python to automate the conversion process.

• Convert Markdown Files to PDF Documents with Python
• Convert Markdown to PDF and Customize Page Settings

Install Spire.Doc for Python

This scenario requires Spire.Doc for Python and plum-dispatch v1.7.4. They can be easily installed in your Windows through the following pip command.

pip install Spire.Doc

If you are unsure how to install, please refer to: How to Install Spire.Doc for Python on Windows

Convert Markdown Files to PDF Documents with Python

With Spire.Doc for Python, developers can load Markdown files using Document.LoadFromFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.Markdown) method, and then save the files to PDF documents using Document.SaveToFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.PDF) method. Besides, developers can also convert Markdown files to HTML, XPS, and SVG formats by specifying enumeration items of the FileFormat enumeration class.

The detailed steps for converting a Markdown file to a PDF document are as follows:

• Create an instance of Document class.
• Load a Markdown file using Document.LoadFromFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.Markdown) method.
• Convert the Markdown file to a PDF document and save it using Document.SaveToFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.PDF) method.

from spire.doc import *
from spire.doc.common import *

# Create an object of Document class
doc = Document()

# Load a Markdown file
doc.LoadFromFile("Sample.md", FileFormat.Markdown)

# Save the file to a PDF document
doc.SaveToFile("output/MarkdownToPDF.pdf", FileFormat.PDF)

doc.Dispose()

Convert Markdown to PDF and Customize Page Settings

Spire.Doc for Python supports performing basic page setup before converting Markdown files to formats like PDF, allowing for control over the appearance of the converted document.

The detailed steps to convert a Markdown file to a PDF document and customize the page settings are as follows:

• Create an instance of Document class.
• Load a Markdown file using Document.LoadFromFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.Markdown) method.
• Get the default section using Document.Sections.get_Item() method.
• Get the page settings through Section.PageSetup property and set the page size, orientation, and margins through properties under PageSetup class.
• Convert the Markdown file to a PDF document and save it using Document.SaveToFile(string: fileName, FileFormat.PDF) method.

from spire.doc import *
from spire.doc.common import *

# Create an instance of Document class
doc = Document()
# Load a Word document
doc.LoadFromFile("Sample.md", FileFormat.Markdown)

# Get the default section
section = doc.Sections.get_Item(0)

# Get the page settings
pageSetup = section.PageSetup

# Customize the page settings
pageSetup.PageSize = PageSize.A4()
pageSetup.Orientation = PageOrientation.Landscape
pageSetup.Margins.All = 50

# Save the Markdown document to a PDF file
doc.SaveToFile("output/MarkdownToPDFPageSetup.pdf", FileFormat.PDF)

doc.Dispose()

Apply for a Temporary License

If you'd like to remove the evaluation message from the generated documents, or to get rid of the function limitations, please request a 30-day trial license for yourself.