Create PDF file from PHP script tutorial

Download FPDF from here.

https://www.fpdf.org

Keep the fpdf.php file in your working directory, keep the font directory in the same place.
Directory with fpdf class and font file

Important Notice for PHP 8.x Users

If you are using PHP 8.x, some older FPDF versions may not work properly.

📌 Solution: Download the latest FPDF version from fpdf.org.

Installation and generating PDF document in PHP using FPDF class and showing Hello World

Run this code , you are ready with your first pdf file created from FPDF class.

<?Php
require('fpdf.php');
$pdf = new FPDF(); 
$pdf->AddPage();
$pdf->SetFont('Arial','B',16);
$pdf->Cell(80,10,'Hello World!');
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','I'); // Send to browser and display
?>

Check the output to display the string in PDF
Above code will display the string, we can manage this output by adding border , alignment, colour , link etc..

<?Php
require('fpdf.php');
$pdf = new FPDF(); 
$pdf->AddPage();
$pdf->SetFont('Arial', 'B', 16);
$pdf->Cell(80, 10, 'Hello World!',1, 0, 'R', false,'https://www.plus2net.com');
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf', 'I'); // Send to browser and display
?>

String with border , alignment, background fill in PDF
In the above code we have used cell to add our text to the pdf file with border, alignment , background fill and a link. Here is the details of Cell

Cell for creating pdf document

Try to change the script by adding backgroud color like this.

$pdf->SetFillColor(1,255,255);
$pdf->Cell(80,10,'Hello World!',1,0,'R',true,'https://www.plus2net.com');
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','D');

Output with background color is here
Note : Cell function background fill option must be set to true

Adding font colour by SetTextColor()

<?Php
require('fpdf.php');
$pdf = new FPDF(); 
$pdf->AddPage();
$pdf->SetFont('Arial','B',16);
$pdf->SetFillColor(1,99,255); // input R ,G , B
$pdf->SetTextColor(255,254,254); // input R , G , B
$pdf->Cell(80,10,'Hello World!',1,0,'C',true,'https://www.plus2net.com');
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','I'); // Send to browser and display
?>

Output with background and Font color is here

FPDF generating PDF file with Cell() & Output() with the options to manage border, file save in PHP

With border colour by SetDrawColor() and border size by SetLineWidth()

<?Php
require('fpdf.php');
$pdf = new FPDF(); 
$pdf->AddPage();
$pdf->SetFont('Arial','B',16);
$pdf->SetFillColor(1,99,255); // input R ,G , B
$pdf->SetTextColor(255,254,254); // input R , G , B
$pdf->SetDrawColor(255,1,1); // input R , G , B
$pdf->SetLineWidth(1);
$pdf->Cell(80,10,'Hello World!',1,0,'C',true,'https://www.plus2net.com');
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','I'); // Send to browser and display
?>

Output with border width and colour is here
We can add border in any side or in all sides or we can remove the borders of the cell by assigning different values.

Example : To add border to Left , Right and top we can give the option as 'LRT', similarly we can assign border to bottom only by giving the option as 'B'.
Check the border option value with different sides to add border.

Saving the PDF file

We used $pdf->Output('my_file','D'); to get output directly. This line will force download to user machine as pdf file my_file.pdf. We can change this output to save the file in local ( server ) side machine.

$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','I'); // Send to browser and display
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','D'); // Force file download with name given (name can be changed)
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','F'); // Saved in local computer with the file name given
$pdf->Output('my_file.pdf','S'); // Return the document as a string

Cell and MultiCell

When we are not aware about the length of the string we are going to use inside Cell, then the string may cross the cell boarder and goes out. In MultiCell the text will wrap and will add line breaks to remain within the boundaries of the MulitCell.

MultiCell Creating PDF with Pie chat

Questions

How do you generate a PDF file using FPDF in PHP?
What are the basic steps involved in creating a PDF document with FPDF?
How do you add text content to a PDF file using FPDF in PHP?
Can you customize the font style, size, and color of the text in the PDF file using FPDF?
How do you add headers and footers to the PDF document using FPDF?
What are the methods for creating tables in a PDF file with FPDF?
How do you add images to a PDF file using FPDF in PHP?
Can you add hyperlinks to the PDF document using FPDF?
How do you set page dimensions, margins, and orientation for the PDF file using FPDF?
What are some advanced features or functionalities available in FPDF for creating complex PDF documents, such as multiple columns or page breaks?

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Subhendu Mohapatra

Author

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Passionate about coding and teaching, I publish practical tutorials on PHP, Python, JavaScript, SQL, and web development. My goal is to make learning simple, engaging, and project‑oriented with real examples and source code.

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	20-11-2020
Excellent post. Nice work keep it up. Thanks for sharing the knowledge.

	26-11-2021
Excellent post. Nice work keep it up. Thanks for sharing the knowledge.

	19-01-2023
fpdf was run complatly in local host , browser but cant use in live server why?

PHP Script to create PDF document using FPDF