composer require barryvdh/laravel-snappy Binary dependency, no longer actively maintained upstream. 3. Spatie Laravel PDF + Browsershot – The Modern Standard Uses headless Chrome (via Puppeteer). Handles modern CSS (Grid, Flexbox), JavaScript charts (Chart.js, D3), and even WebGL. Ideal for dashboards exported as PDFs.
Laravel has become the go-to PHP framework for developers building everything from small MVPs to enterprise-level systems. One recurring requirement across almost every domain—e-commerce, logistics, HR, finance, education—is the ability to generate dynamic, professional PDF documents . Whether it’s an invoice, a monthly report, a certificate, or a contract, mastering PDF output in Laravel is a non-negotiable skill for back-end and full-stack developers.
Build a demo project that generates an interactive dashboard PDF with charts, custom fonts, and a digital signature. That’s mastery in action.
Cache::put($cacheKey, $pdf->output(), now()->addHours(6)); mastering laravel pdf
public function generate($orderId)
For most new projects starting in 2025+, Spatie’s package is the future-proof path. Step-by-Step: Building Your First Laravel PDF (Using Dompdf) Let’s generate a simple invoice to illustrate the basic flow. Step 1: Install and Configure composer require barryvdh/laravel-dompdf No extra config needed; Laravel auto-discovers the service provider. Step 2: Create a Controller use Barryvdh\DomPDF\Facade\Pdf; class InvoiceController extends Controller
Better yet, use :
$pdf = Pdf::loadView('report') ->headerHtml(view('pdfs.header')->render()) ->footerHtml(view('pdfs.footer', ['page' => 'PAGE_NUMBER'])); Use setasign/fpdi + setasign/tcpdf to add signatures to existing PDFs.
$pdf = Pdf::loadView('pdfs.report'); $pdf->setOption('isHtml5ParserEnabled', true); foreach (Product::cursor() as $product) $pdf->addView('pdfs.partials.product_row', ['product' => $product]);
GeneratePDFJob::dispatch($order, auth()->id()); In the job: Handles modern CSS (Grid, Flexbox), JavaScript charts (Chart
| Package | Engine | Best For | |---------|--------|-----------| | | Dompdf | Simple HTML-to-PDF, no external dependencies | | barryvdh/laravel-snappy | wkhtmltopdf | Complex layouts, precise rendering | | spatie/laravel-pdf | Browsershot (Puppeteer) | Modern CSS/JS, charts, Tailwind CSS | | Laravel-dompdf (community) | Dompdf | Lightweight, quick invoices | 1. Dompdf – The Beginner’s Choice Perfect for 80% of use cases. It converts HTML/CSS directly to PDF without needing extra binaries.
composer require spatie/laravel-pdf Node.js and headless Chrome installed on the server.
composer require setasign/fpdi Then overlay a signature image at specific coordinates. Never generate large PDFs during a web request. Dispatch a job: class InvoiceController extends Controller Better yet