Renderly vs WeasyPrint

WeasyPrint is a solid Python PDF library — but it requires a stack of system dependencies (GTK, Pango, Cairo), doesn't support JavaScript, and is limited to Python apps. Renderly is a language-agnostic REST API with Chrome-quality rendering.

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Feature comparison

	Renderly API	WeasyPrint
Language support	Any — REST API	Python only
Rendering engine	Chromium (Chrome-quality)	Python CSS parser (Pango/Cairo)
CSS fidelity	Chrome-accurate	Good — but diverges from browsers on complex layouts
JavaScript support	Full V8	None — static HTML only
Custom fonts	Yes, CSS @font-face	Yes, but requires GTK/Pango system fonts
Docker deps	None — cloud API	WeasyPrint + Pango + Cairo + GTK (~300MB)
Setup time	~60 seconds	30+ min (Python deps, system libs, Docker layers)
Cold start	< 200ms	2–5s for WeasyPrint import + first render
Scaling	Automatic	Manual — worker per process
Maintenance	None	Python version + system lib updates on you

Migration example

before.py — WeasyPrint

<span class="cm"># ❌ Before — Python-only, system dependencies required</span>
<span class="kw">from</span> weasyprint <span class="kw">import</span> HTML

pdf_bytes = HTML(<span class="fn">string</span>=html_content).<span class="fn">write_pdf</span>()

after.py — Renderly API

<span class="cm"># ✅ After — works in any language, no system deps</span>
<span class="kw">import</span> requests

res = requests.<span class="fn">post</span>(
    <span class="str">"https://api.renderlyapi.com/v1/pdf/from-html"</span>,
    headers={<span class="str">"Authorization"</span>: <span class="str">"Bearer rly_live_…"</span>},
    json={<span class="str">"html"</span>: html_content, <span class="str">"format"</span>: <span class="str">"A4"</span>},
)
pdf_bytes = res.content

Why teams switch from WeasyPrint

📦

Slim Docker images

WeasyPrint pulls in GTK, Pango, and Cairo — adding 300MB+ to Docker images. Renderly has zero system dependencies.

🌍

Not just Python

WeasyPrint is Python-only. Your Node.js, PHP, or Go services can call Renderly the same way via the REST API.

⚡

JavaScript support

WeasyPrint renders static HTML only. Renderly uses real Chrome, so chart libraries, dynamic content, and Vue/React-rendered templates all work.

🎨

Pixel-perfect layout

Complex Flexbox layouts, CSS Grid, and sticky positioning render exactly as they do in a browser — because Renderly uses Chrome.

🔒

No system lib vulnerabilities

System-level GTK and Pango have their own CVE surface. Renderly's managed API abstracts all of that away.

📈

Scales beyond a single process

WeasyPrint blocks a Python process per render. Renderly handles concurrency automatically — no worker pool tuning needed.

Drop the system dependencies

Free tier — 50 PDFs/month, no credit card, API key on sign-up.

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