html2pic

Convert HTML + CSS to images — no browser required

A Python library that transforms HTML and CSS into images.

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Features

• Browser-Free Rendering — No browser required
• CSS Support — Flexbox layout, gradients, shadows and more
• Output Formats — PNG, JPG, and SVG (basic support for SVGs)

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Installation

pip install html2pic

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Quick Start

from html2pic import Html2Pic

html = '''
<div class="card">
    <h1>Hello, html2pic!</h1>
    <p>Transform HTML to images with ease</p>
</div>
'''

css = '''
.card {
    display: flex;
    flex-direction: column;
    align-items: center;
    padding: 40px;
    background: linear-gradient(135deg, #667eea 0%, #764ba2 100%);
    border-radius: 20px;
    width: 400px;
}

h1 {
    color: white;
    font-size: 32px;
    font-weight: bold;
    margin: 0 0 12px 0;
}

p {
    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.9);
    font-size: 18px;
    margin: 0;
}
'''

renderer = Html2Pic(html, css)
image = renderer.render()
image.save("output.png")

Result:

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How It Works

html2pic translates web markup into PicTex rendering instructions:

HTML + CSS  →  DOM Tree  →  Style Application  →  PicTex Builders  →  Image

1. Parse HTML with BeautifulSoup
2. Parse CSS with tinycss2
3. Apply Styles using CSS cascade, specificity, and inheritance
4. Translate styled nodes to PicTex layout primitives (Canvas, Row, Column, Text, Image)
5. Render using PicTex's Skia-based engine

CSS Support

html2pic supports a comprehensive subset of modern CSS. Here's what you can use:

Layout

Property	Values	Notes
display	block, flex, none	Flexbox is fully supported
flex-direction	row, column, row-reverse, column-reverse
justify-content	start, center, end, space-between, space-around, space-evenly
align-items	start, center, end, stretch
align-self	Same as align-items	Override per-item alignment
flex-grow	Number	Control growth ratio
flex-shrink	Number	Control shrink ratio
flex-wrap	wrap, wrap-reverse, nowrap	Multi-line containers
gap	px, %	Spacing between flex items

Box Model

Property	Values	Notes
width, height	px, %, auto, fit-content
min-width, max-width	px, %	Size constraints
min-height, max-height	px, %	Size constraints
aspect-ratio	Number or ratio (e.g., 16/9)	Maintain proportions
padding	px, %, em, rem	Shorthand and individual sides
margin	px, %, em, rem	Shorthand and individual sides
border	Width, style, color	Styles: solid, dashed, dotted
border-radius	px, %	Shorthand or individual corners

Individual corner radius:

• border-top-left-radius
• border-top-right-radius
• border-bottom-left-radius
• border-bottom-right-radius

Visual Styling

Property	Values	Notes
background-color	Hex, RGB, RGBA, named	Alpha channel supported
background-image	url(), linear-gradient()	See gradients section below
background-size	cover, contain, tile	For images
box-shadow	offset-x offset-y blur color	RGBA supported

Linear Gradients:

/* Angle-based */
background-image: linear-gradient(135deg, #667eea, #764ba2);

/* Direction keywords */
background-image: linear-gradient(to right, red, blue);

/* Color stops */
background-image: linear-gradient(90deg, #ff0000 0%, #00ff00 50%, #0000ff 100%);

Typography

Property	Values	Notes
font-family	Font names, file paths	See @font-face below
font-size	px, em, rem
font-weight	normal, bold, 100-900
font-style	normal, italic
color	Hex, RGB, RGBA, named
text-align	left, right, center, justify
line-height	Number, px, %
text-decoration	underline, line-through
text-shadow	offset-x offset-y blur color

@font-face Support:

@font-face {
    font-family: "CustomFont";
    src: url("./fonts/custom.ttf");
    font-weight: normal;
    font-style: normal;
}

@font-face {
    font-family: "CustomFont";
    src: url("./fonts/custom-bold.ttf");
    font-weight: bold;
}

h1 {
    font-family: "CustomFont", Arial, sans-serif;
    font-weight: bold;
}

Features:

• Multiple weights and styles per family
• Fallback chains (prioritizes @font-face, then system fonts)
• Relative, absolute paths, and URLs

Positioning & Transforms

Property	Values	Notes
position	static, relative, absolute, fixed
top, right, bottom, left	px, %, em, rem
transform	translate(), translateX(), translateY()	Only translate supported

Centering with transforms:

.centered {
    position: absolute;
    top: 50%;
    left: 50%;
    transform: translate(-50%, -50%);
}

Selectors

• Tag: div, p, h1, etc.
• Class: .my-class
• ID: #my-id
• Universal: *

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Examples

Complete examples with source code are available in the examples/ directory.

Basic Card Layout

Simple flexbox card with centered content:

User Profile Card

Social media style card with avatar and information:

Typography Showcase

Advanced text styling and formatting:

Visual Effects

Shadows, positioning, and advanced styling:

Background Images

Background image support with different sizing modes:

View all examples with source code

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API Reference

Html2Pic(html: str, css: str = "")

Main renderer class.

Methods:

Method	Returns	Description
render(crop_mode=CropMode.CONTENT_BOX)	BitmapImage	Render to PNG/JPG
render_as_svg(embed_font=True)	VectorImage	Render to SVG
debug_info()	dict	Get parsing and styling details

Output Formats:

The returned BitmapImage and VectorImage objects provide:

# Save to file
image.save("output.png")

# Convert to other formats
numpy_array = image.to_numpy()
pil_image = image.to_pillow()

# Display
image.show()

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Limitations

html2pic supports a subset of CSS, several features are not implemented:

Feature	Status	Alternative
CSS Grid	❌ Not supported	Use Flexbox
Transforms (rotate, scale, skew)	❌ Not supported	Only translate() works
Animations & Transitions	❌ Not supported	Generate static images
Radial/Conic Gradients	❌ Not supported	Use linear-gradient()
Complex Selectors	❌ Not supported	Use simple tag, class, or ID selectors
Pseudo-classes (:hover, :nth-child)	❌ Not supported	Apply styles directly
Media Queries	❌ Not supported	Set explicit dimensions
Overflow & Scrolling	❌ Not supported	Content must fit container

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to:

• Report bugs via GitHub Issues
• Suggest features or improvements
• Submit pull requests

For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss your ideas.

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License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

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Acknowledgments

Built with:

• PicTex — High-performance rendering engine (Skia + Taffy)
• BeautifulSoup — HTML parsing
• tinycss2 — CSS parsing

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Version & Status

See CHANGELOG.md for version history and migration guides.

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Development Status

Note: This software is currently in early alpha stage. It lacks test coverage and may contain bugs or unexpected behavior. Use with caution in production environments and please report any issues you encounter.