Browser Add-ons

Save as PDF
Lets you save web pages to PDF in one click.
  Install for Google Chrome or Firefox
Send to Google Docs is another Google Chrome extension using Pdfcrowd, written by Shaun Blake.
Send to Google Docs
Allows you to upload a PDF version of the current page to your Google Docs.
  Install for Google Chrome

Save as PDF Explained

The Save as PDF extension works right out of the box using the default settings. It is free, you don't need an account to use it. If you are a power user and want to customize your PDFs beyond the defaults you might consider enabling premium features.

Toolbar button

The Save as PDF toolbar button is updated after each conversion:
  • A little red dot indicates that you are not logged in at Pdfcrowd or that your license is not active, hence the default settings were used.
  • A red rectangle indicates an error. Hover your mouse over the button and a tooltip will display the error message.

How to customize your PDFs

  1. Sign up for an account
  2. Edit the settings on the main page
  3. Click the Save Settings button
  4. Navigate to the web page you want to convert and click the Save as PDF button on your toolbar.

You must stay logged in at pdfcrowd.com or your custom settings won't be applied.

How the extension works

Converting a web page to PDF involves the following steps:

  1. You navigate to a web page you want to convert, let's say www.example.com.
  2. You click the Save as PDF toolbar button. The add-on sends the address of the web page to the Pdfcrowd service.
  3. Pdfcrowd sends a request to www.example.com.
  4. Pdfcrowd downloads the contents of www.example.com.
  5. Pdfcrowd creates PDF.
  6. If you have an active license your custom settings are applied to the PDF. Otherwise the defaults are used.
  7. The created PDF is sent back to your browser.

Save As PDF explained

Limitations

Pdfcrowd does not support:
  • Web pages requiring a login (see below why)
  • Frameset web pages
  • Flash

It is important to realize that the PDF is not created on your computer but on Pdfcrowd servers. When you click the Save as PDF button, the only information sent to Pdfcrowd is the web address. Pdfcrowd fetches the web page and converts it to PDF. Of course, it does not know about your local settings, cookies, or other installed add-ons so the created PDF might look different to what you see in your browser.

For instance converting a web page that uses a server-side session to identify the user (e.g. your web mailbox) will typically end up with a login page in the PDF.