API Documentation

The PDFGate API provides a collection of simple HTTP endpoints for working with PDF files. You can generate PDFs from HTML or URLs, create fillable form fields, flatten or extract data from existing PDFs, and apply watermarks or security settings. Each endpoint is designed to be fast, reliable, and easy to integrate into your applications.

Authentication

All API requests to PDFGate must be authenticated using an API key. Authentication is handled via the Authorization header in your HTTP requests.

To get started, log in to your PDFGate account and create an API key from the Settings page in the dashboard. Ensure the key is active before using it in your code.

Include the API key in your request headers like this:

PDFGate supports two types of API keys:

• Production: live_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
• Sandbox: test_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Use sandbox keys for testing purposes and production keys in your live environment.

Rate limits

The PDFGate API uses different rate limits for each account type in the production environment. In the sandbox environment, the rate limits are the same for all account types.

Errors

Generate PDF

The Generate PDF endpoint converts HTML content into a PDF document. You can provide the content either as a publicly accessible URL or as raw HTML in the request body.

By default, the endpoint returns the generated PDF as a binary file. If you prefer a JSON response, you can include the jsonResponse field in your request.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

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RUBY

curl \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ --request POST \ --data '{"pageSizeType":"a4","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PDF"}' \ https://api.pdfgate.com/v1/generate/pdf \ -o output.pdf

Request body fields

Flatten PDF

The Flatten PDF endpoint converts an interactive PDF (with fillable form fields or annotations) into a static, non-editable version.

If a documentId is provided, the API will always create a new flattened file in the database, rather than overwriting the existing one.

In this case, the response includes a derivedFrom parameter (when jsonResponse is set to true), it indicates the original document ID from which the flattened file was created.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

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RUBY

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfgate.com/forms/flatten" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -F "file=@YOUR_FILE.pdf" \ -F "jsonResponse=false" \ -F "metadata={\"author\":\"John Doe\",\"documentType\":\"Contract\"}" \ --output flattened.pdf

Request body fields

Extract PDF Form Data

The Extract PDF Form Data endpoint lets you read data from a fillable PDF. It extracts all form fields in the document along with their current values and returns them as a JSON object.

You can either upload a new PDF file directly or provide the documentId of an existing file stored on the server.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

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curl -X POST "https://api.pdfgate.com/forms/extract-data" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -F "file=@YOUR_FILE.pdf"

Request body fields

Watermark PDF

The Watermark PDF endpoint adds a watermark to an existing PDF document. You can apply either a text watermark or an image watermark, depending on your needs.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

RUBY

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfgate.com/watermark/pdf" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -F "file=@YOUR_FILE.pdf" \ -F "type=text" \ -F 'text=My watermark!' \ -F 'fontColor=rgb(156, 50, 168)' \ -F "rotate=30" \ -F "opacity=0.2" \ --output watermarked.pdf

Request body fields

Protect PDF

The Protect PDF endpoint secures a PDF document by applying password protection and permission restrictions.

You can encrypt the PDF using AES-128 or AES-256, set user and owner passwords, and control which actions are allowed, such as printing, copying, or editing.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

RUBY

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfgate.com/protect/pdf" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -F "file=@YOUR_FILE.pdf" \ -F "ownerPassword=ownerPassword" \ -F "userPassword=userPassword" \ -F "disablePrint=true" \ -F "disableCopy=true" \ -F "disableEditing=true" \ --output protected.pdf

Request body fields

Compress PDF

The Compress PDF endpoint reduces the file size of a PDF without changing its visual appearance. You can also enable linearization so the first page loads faster when the PDF is opened over a network.

Note:
In the sandbox environment, the compression result may be limited because our watermark image is automatically added to the document. As a result, the file size will be increased. We recommend testing this endpoint in the production environment.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

RUBY

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfgate.com/compress/pdf" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -F "file=@YOUR_FILE.pdf" \ -F "linearize=true" \ --output compressed.pdf

Request body fields

Get document

Retrieves a generated document object containing metadata and file details.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

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curl --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ --request GET \ https://api.pdfgate.com/document/{documentId}

Get file

Retrieves a raw PDF file previously generated.

Note: To access a generated file, the “Save files for one month” option must be enabled in your Dashboard's settings. This option is disabled by default.

Endpoint

Examples

CURL

NODE.JS

PYTHON

GO

PHP

JAVA

C#

RUBY

curl -L -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ "https://api.pdfgate.com/file/{documentId}" > output.pdf