---
name: "pdf123-markdown-to-pdf"
description: "Convert a Markdown file into a PDF. Runs the PDF123 \"Markdown to PDF\" tool (pdf123.xyz) over its REST API with curl, no account needed. Use when the user wants this done to their file. Also known as: Markdown 转 PDF, Markdown a PDF, Markdown से PDF, Markdown إلى PDF, Markdown para PDF, Markdown ke PDF, Markdown vers PDF, Markdown в PDF, MarkdownからPDF, Markdown in PDF, Markdown을 PDF로, Markdown sang PDF, Markdown'dan PDF'e, Markdown 轉 PDF, Markdown เป็น PDF, Markdown na PDF, Markdown у PDF, Markdown naar PDF, Markdown till PDF, Markdown σε PDF, Markdown към PDF, Markdown kuwa PDF."
compatibility: "Needs curl 7.76+ and outbound HTTPS to pdf123.xyz, or PDFX_API_BASE pointing at a self-hosted pdfx-server."
---

# Markdown to PDF (PDF123)

Convert a Markdown file into a PDF.

Web version: https://pdf123.xyz/markdown-to-pdf · All tools: https://pdf123.xyz/skills/pdf123.md

## When to use

- Print a README or spec to PDF
- Turn OCR Markdown into a printable PDF
- Share a CommonMark note as a paginated file

## Run it

Replace the sample file names and values with the user's, then run:

```bash
API="${PDFX_API_BASE:-https://pdf123.xyz}"
curl -sS --fail-with-body -X POST "$API/api/v1/convert/markdown/pdf" \
  -F "fileInput=@input.md" \
  --output-dir "pdf123-output/$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)" --create-dirs -OJ -w '%{filename_effective} %{content_type}\n'
```

## Inputs

Everything is `multipart/form-data`. The command above already sends each field with its default; keep them all and change only the values the user asked for, since some endpoints reject a missing optional field.

| Field | Type | Required | Default | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `fileInput` | file | yes | | .md (one file) |

## Result

curl saves the result in a new `pdf123-output/<timestamp>/` directory under the server's file name and prints its path and content type. Several output files come back as one ZIP. Tell the user where the file is.

## Limits

- No Pandoc filters, no JS, no theme picker
- Website picker does not expose ZIP even though the API allows it
- Must be UTF-8 Markdown
- Upload limit on this website: 500 MB per file, sent in chunks above about 95 MB. A single direct API request body is capped at 100 MB.

## Errors

- A non-zero curl exit means the request failed. The saved file then holds `application/problem+json`; read it and report its `detail` to the user instead of retrying blindly.
- `413`: the upload exceeds 100 MiB. `429`: wait for `Retry-After` seconds, then retry once.
- Send `X-API-KEY: $PDFX_API_KEY` only if the user has a PDF123 API key; anonymous calls work without it.

## Privacy

Files are uploaded to the API host, processed, and deleted once the response is sent. For confidential files, ask before uploading, or use a self-hosted server via `PDFX_API_BASE`.