n8n Integration | pdf-mcp Documentation

Integrate pdf-mcp with n8n to automate PDF generation in your workflows. This guide covers setting up HTTP Request nodes to generate invoices, reports, certificates, and any HTML-based documents.

What is n8n?

n8n is a powerful workflow automation platform that connects apps and services. With pdf-mcp integration, you can:

Generate PDFs from form submissions or webhooks
Create invoices automatically when orders are placed
Produce reports on a schedule
Convert HTML templates to PDFs in any workflow

Prerequisites

Before you begin:

An n8n instance (cloud or self-hosted)
A pdf-mcp account with an API key (Get your API key)
Basic familiarity with n8n workflows

Quick Setup

Step 1: Create HTTP Header Auth Credential

In n8n, go to Credentials in the left sidebar
Click Add Credential
Search for and select Header Auth
Configure the credential:
- Name: pdf-mcp API
- Name: Authorization
- Value: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
Click Save

Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your actual API key from the dashboard.

Step 2: Add HTTP Request Node

Add an HTTP Request node to your workflow
Configure it using the settings below or import the ready-to-use JSON

HTTP Request Node Configuration

Basic Settings

Setting	Value
Method	`POST`
URL	`https://api.pdf-mcp.io/htmlToPdf`
Authentication	Header Auth
Credential	`pdf-mcp API` (created above)

Headers

Header	Value
Content-Type	`application/json`

Body (JSON)

{
  "html": "<h1>Hello from n8n!</h1><p>This PDF was generated automatically.</p>",
  "filename": "document.pdf"
}

Ready-to-Import Node JSON

Copy and paste this JSON directly into n8n to create a pre-configured HTTP Request node:

HTML to PDF Node

{
  "parameters": {
    "method": "POST",
    "url": "https://api.pdf-mcp.io/htmlToPdf",
    "authentication": "genericCredentialType",
    "genericAuthType": "httpHeaderAuth",
    "sendHeaders": true,
    "headerParameters": {
      "parameters": [
        {
          "name": "Content-Type",
          "value": "application/json"
        }
      ]
    },
    "sendBody": true,
    "bodyParameters": {
      "parameters": [
        {
          "name": "html",
          "value": "={{ $json.html }}"
        },
        {
          "name": "filename",
          "value": "={{ $json.filename || 'document.pdf' }}"
        }
      ]
    },
    "options": {
      "response": {
        "response": {
          "responseFormat": "file"
        }
      }
    }
  },
  "name": "Generate PDF",
  "type": "n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest",
  "typeVersion": 4.2
}

To import:

Copy the JSON above
In your n8n workflow, press Ctrl+V (or Cmd+V on Mac)
The node will be added to your canvas
Connect your Header Auth credential

Dynamic HTML with Expressions

Use n8n expressions to generate dynamic content from previous nodes:

Invoice Generation Example

{
  "parameters": {
    "method": "POST",
    "url": "https://api.pdf-mcp.io/htmlToPdf",
    "authentication": "genericCredentialType",
    "genericAuthType": "httpHeaderAuth",
    "sendHeaders": true,
    "headerParameters": {
      "parameters": [
        {
          "name": "Content-Type",
          "value": "application/json"
        }
      ]
    },
    "sendBody": true,
    "specifyBody": "json",
    "jsonBody": "={{ JSON.stringify({ html: `<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><title>Invoice</title></head><body><h1>Invoice #${$json.invoice_number}</h1><p>Customer: ${$json.customer_name}</p><table style=\"width:100%; border-collapse:collapse;\"><tr style=\"background:#f0f0f0;\"><th style=\"border:1px solid #ddd; padding:8px;\">Item</th><th style=\"border:1px solid #ddd; padding:8px;\">Amount</th></tr><tr><td style=\"border:1px solid #ddd; padding:8px;\">${$json.item_description}</td><td style=\"border:1px solid #ddd; padding:8px;\">$${$json.amount}</td></tr></table><p><strong>Total: $${$json.amount}</strong></p></body></html>`, css: '@page { size: A4; margin: 2cm; }', filename: `invoice-${$json.invoice_number}.pdf` }) }}",
    "options": {
      "response": {
        "response": {
          "responseFormat": "file"
        }
      }
    }
  },
  "name": "Generate Invoice PDF",
  "type": "n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest",
  "typeVersion": 4.2
}

This expects input data with fields: invoice_number, customer_name, item_description, amount.

Common Use Cases

1. Form Submission to PDF

Trigger: Webhook or Form node receiving submissions

[Webhook] → [Generate PDF] → [Send Email with Attachment]

2. Scheduled Report Generation

[Schedule Trigger] → [Database Query] → [Generate PDF Report] → [Upload to S3/Google Drive]

3. Order Confirmation Invoice

[Stripe Webhook] → [Format Invoice Data] → [Generate Invoice PDF] → [Email to Customer]

4. Certificate Generation

[Google Sheets Trigger] → [Generate Certificate PDF] → [Send via Email]

All API Endpoints

Configure your HTTP Request node with these endpoints:

Endpoint	Method	Description
`/htmlToPdf`	POST	Convert HTML to PDF
`/textToPdf`	POST	Convert plain text to PDF
`/imageToPdf`	POST	Convert images to PDF
`/pdfToImage`	POST	Convert PDF pages to images
`/extractText`	POST	Extract text from PDF
`/extractPages`	POST	Extract specific pages
`/mergePdfs`	POST	Combine multiple PDFs
`/pageCount`	POST	Get PDF page count

See the API Reference for detailed documentation on each endpoint.

cURL Examples

Test the API directly before configuring n8n:

Basic HTML to PDF

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/htmlToPdf \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "html": "<h1>Hello, World!</h1><p>Generated from n8n workflow.</p>"
  }' \
  --output document.pdf

Styled Invoice

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/htmlToPdf \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "html": "<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><title>Invoice</title></head><body><h1>Invoice #12345</h1><table><tr><th>Item</th><th>Amount</th></tr><tr><td>Service Fee</td><td>$99.00</td></tr></table><p>Total: $99.00</p></body></html>",
    "css": "@page { size: A4; margin: 2cm; } body { font-family: Arial, sans-serif; } table { width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; } th, td { border: 1px solid #ddd; padding: 8px; }",
    "filename": "invoice-12345.pdf"
  }' \
  --output invoice-12345.pdf

Text to PDF

curl -X POST https://api.pdf-mcp.io/textToPdf \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "text": "Meeting Notes\n\nDate: January 15, 2025\n\n1. Project status review\n2. Timeline discussion\n3. Next steps",
    "filename": "meeting-notes.pdf"
  }' \
  --output meeting-notes.pdf

MCP Integration

Using AI Agents? MCPs (Model Context Protocols) provide plug-and-play connectivity with pdf-mcp. AI agents like Claude can generate PDFs natively using our MCP Server without any HTTP configuration.

Handling the Response

The HTTP Request node returns the PDF as binary data. Here’s how to work with it:

Save to File

Use a Write Binary File node after the HTTP Request to save locally.

Send via Email

Connect to an Email Send node (Gmail, SMTP, etc.) and attach the binary data.

Upload to Cloud Storage

Use nodes like AWS S3, Google Drive, or Dropbox to store generated PDFs.

Return via Webhook Response

If your workflow was triggered by a webhook, use Respond to Webhook to return the PDF.

Error Handling

Add an Error Trigger node to handle failures gracefully.

Common Status Codes

Code	Description	Solution
200	Success	PDF generated successfully
401	Unauthorized	Check your API key in credentials
403	Forbidden	Verify API key permissions or credit balance
400	Bad Request	Check your request body format
500	Server Error	Review HTML syntax or contact support

Error Handling Workflow

[HTTP Request] → [IF Node (check status)] → [Success: Continue] or [Error: Send Alert]

Troubleshooting

PDF is empty or not generated

Verify your API key is correct and has credits
Check that the html field contains valid HTML
Test with a simple HTML string first

Authentication errors

Ensure the Header Auth credential has Authorization as the name
The value must be Bearer YOUR_API_KEY (with a space after Bearer)
API key should not include quotes

Binary data issues

Set Response Format to File in node options
Make sure downstream nodes expect binary data

n8n expression errors

Use the expression editor to validate expressions
Escape special characters in template literals
Test with hardcoded values first

Tips and Best Practices

Performance

Keep HTML simple for faster generation
Use inline CSS instead of external stylesheets
Batch operations when generating multiple PDFs

Reliability

Add retry logic for transient failures
Store generated PDFs in cloud storage for durability
Log workflow executions for debugging

Security

Never expose your API key in shared workflows
Use n8n credentials system for secure storage
Sanitize user input in HTML templates

Quick Start - Get your API key
HTML to PDF - Detailed endpoint documentation
API Reference - All available endpoints
MCP Server - AI agent integration
Zapier Integration - Alternative automation platform
Make Integration - Integromat/Make setup

Credit Usage

API calls from n8n workflows use the same credit system as direct API calls:

PDF generation: ~1 credit per page
Text extraction: ~1 credit per page processed
Page count: ~0.1 credits per request

Monitor your usage in the dashboard.