Convert PDF pages to images. This endpoint renders each page of a PDF as a rasterized image, useful for generating thumbnails, previews, or processing PDF content with image-based tools.

Endpoint

POST /pdfToImage

Authentication

Requires a valid API key or OAuth token in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

See Authentication for details.

Request Body (JSON)

Content-Type: application/json

*One of pdf_base64 or pdf_url is required.

Field Details

pdf_base64

Base64-encoded PDF content. Use this when you have the PDF file data in memory or need to avoid additional HTTP requests.

pdf_url

URL to fetch the PDF from. The API will download the PDF from this URL before processing. Must be publicly accessible.

pages (optional)

Array of page numbers to convert. Pages are 1-indexed (first page is 1, not 0). If omitted, all pages in the PDF are converted.

"pages": [1, 3, 5]  // Convert pages 1, 3, and 5

format (optional)

Output image format. Supported values:

• "png" - PNG format with transparency support (default)
• "jpeg" - JPEG format (smaller file size, no transparency)

Note: When using JPEG format, RGBA images are automatically converted to RGB.

dpi (optional)

Image resolution in dots per inch. Higher values produce larger, sharper images:

• 72 - Screen resolution (smallest)
• 150 - Good for web previews
• 200 - Default, balanced quality/size
• 300 - Print quality

Request Body (Multipart Form)

Content-Type: multipart/form-data

Example Requests

JSON - Convert All Pages

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "pdf_url": "https://example.com/document.pdf",
    "format": "png",
    "dpi": 200
  }'

JSON - Convert Specific Pages

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "pdf_base64": "JVBERi0xLjQKJeLjz9...",
    "pages": [1, 2, 5],
    "format": "jpeg",
    "dpi": 150
  }'

Multipart Form - File Upload

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -F "file=@document.pdf" \
  -F "pages=1,3,5" \
  -F "format=png" \
  -F "dpi=300"

Response

Success

Returns JSON with base64-encoded images for each converted page.

{
  "images": [
    {
      "page": 1,
      "format": "png",
      "image_base64": "iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAA..."
    },
    {
      "page": 2,
      "format": "png",
      "image_base64": "iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgBB..."
    }
  ],
  "total_pages": 5
}

Response Fields:

Error

{
  "error": "Failed to convert PDF to images",
  "message": "Error description"
}

Status Codes:

Example: Python Integration

import requests
import base64

API_KEY = "YOUR_API_KEY"
API_URL = "https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage"

# Convert PDF from URL
response = requests.post(
    API_URL,
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    json={
        "pdf_url": "https://example.com/document.pdf",
        "format": "png",
        "dpi": 200
    }
)

if response.status_code == 200:
    data = response.json()
    print(f"Converted {len(data['images'])} of {data['total_pages']} pages")

    # Save each page as an image file
    for img in data['images']:
        image_data = base64.b64decode(img['image_base64'])
        with open(f"page-{img['page']}.{img['format']}", "wb") as f:
            f.write(image_data)
    print("Images saved successfully!")
else:
    print(f"Error: {response.status_code}")

Using Base64 Input

import requests
import base64

API_KEY = "YOUR_API_KEY"
API_URL = "https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage"

# Read and encode PDF to base64
with open("document.pdf", "rb") as f:
    pdf_base64 = base64.b64encode(f.read()).decode("utf-8")

response = requests.post(
    API_URL,
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    json={
        "pdf_base64": pdf_base64,
        "pages": [1, 2],  # Convert only first two pages
        "format": "jpeg",
        "dpi": 150
    }
)

if response.status_code == 200:
    data = response.json()
    for img in data['images']:
        image_data = base64.b64decode(img['image_base64'])
        with open(f"page-{img['page']}.{img['format']}", "wb") as f:
            f.write(image_data)
    print("Images saved successfully!")
else:
    print(f"Error: {response.status_code}")

Example: Node.js Integration

const fs = require('fs');

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const API_URL = 'https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage';

async function convertPdfToImages() {
  const response = await fetch(API_URL, {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      pdf_url: 'https://example.com/document.pdf',
      format: 'png',
      dpi: 200
    })
  });

  if (response.ok) {
    const data = await response.json();
    console.log(`Converted ${data.images.length} of ${data.total_pages} pages`);

    // Save each page as an image file
    for (const img of data.images) {
      const buffer = Buffer.from(img.image_base64, 'base64');
      fs.writeFileSync(`page-${img.page}.${img.format}`, buffer);
    }
    console.log('Images saved successfully!');
  } else {
    console.error('Error:', response.status);
  }
}

convertPdfToImages();

Using Base64 Input

const fs = require('fs');

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const API_URL = 'https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage';

async function convertPdfToImages() {
  // Read and encode PDF to base64
  const pdfBase64 = fs.readFileSync('document.pdf').toString('base64');

  const response = await fetch(API_URL, {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      pdf_base64: pdfBase64,
      pages: [1, 2],  // Convert only first two pages
      format: 'jpeg',
      dpi: 150
    })
  });

  if (response.ok) {
    const data = await response.json();
    for (const img of data.images) {
      const buffer = Buffer.from(img.image_base64, 'base64');
      fs.writeFileSync(`page-${img.page}.${img.format}`, buffer);
    }
    console.log('Images saved successfully!');
  } else {
    console.error('Error:', response.status);
  }
}

convertPdfToImages();

Working with Base64 Images

Decoding in JavaScript

const response = await fetch('https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    pdf_url: 'https://example.com/document.pdf'
  })
});

const data = await response.json();

// Display first page as image
const img = document.createElement('img');
img.src = `data:image/png;base64,${data.images[0].image_base64}`;
document.body.appendChild(img);

// Or download as file
const link = document.createElement('a');
link.href = `data:image/png;base64,${data.images[0].image_base64}`;
link.download = `page-${data.images[0].page}.png`;
link.click();

Decoding in Python

import base64
import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage',
    headers={'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY'},
    json={'pdf_url': 'https://example.com/document.pdf'}
)

data = response.json()

# Save each page as a file
for img in data['images']:
    image_data = base64.b64decode(img['image_base64'])
    with open(f"page-{img['page']}.{img['format']}", 'wb') as f:
        f.write(image_data)

Decoding in Node.js

const fs = require('fs');

const response = await fetch('https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    pdf_url: 'https://example.com/document.pdf'
  })
});

const data = await response.json();

// Save each page to disk
for (const img of data.images) {
  const buffer = Buffer.from(img.image_base64, 'base64');
  fs.writeFileSync(`page-${img.page}.${img.format}`, buffer);
}

Use Cases

Thumbnail Generation

Generate preview thumbnails for PDF documents:

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "pdf_url": "https://example.com/document.pdf",
    "pages": [1],
    "format": "jpeg",
    "dpi": 72
  }'

High-Quality Print Previews

Generate print-quality images:

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/pdfToImage \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "pdf_url": "https://example.com/document.pdf",
    "format": "png",
    "dpi": 300
  }'

Tips and Best Practices

Performance

• Use lower DPI (72-150) for web previews to reduce file size
• Convert only the pages you need using the pages parameter
• Use JPEG format for smaller file sizes when transparency is not needed

Format Selection

• PNG: Best for documents with text, graphics, or transparency
• JPEG: Best for photos or when file size is a priority

Memory Considerations

• Large PDFs with many pages will produce multiple images
• High DPI settings (300+) significantly increase output size
• Consider processing large PDFs in batches using the pages parameter

Related Endpoints

• HTML to PDF - Create PDFs from HTML
• Image to PDF - Convert images to PDF (reverse operation)
• Extract Text - Extract text content from PDFs
• Page Count - Get page count before processing

Credit Usage

Approximately 1 credit per page converted.