3 posts tagged with "pdf"

Generating PDFs from application data is one of the most common tasks in Java backend development. Invoices, financial reports, contracts, certificates, compliance documents — all of these end up as PDF files served from a REST endpoint, attached to an email, or stored in an archive.

The Java ecosystem has several libraries for this, and the differences between them go beyond feature lists. Licensing determines whether you can use the library at all. Dependency footprint affects your deployment. Determinism determines whether you can write meaningful tests for your output.

This article compares the four most relevant Java PDF libraries in 2026: iText, Apache PDFBox, OpenPDF, and PDFixa. The goal is to help you make an informed decision based on your actual requirements.

iText is one of the most established PDF libraries in the Java ecosystem. It is also one of the most commonly searched for alternatives.

The reasons teams look for a replacement are predictable: a licensing model change that blocks commercial use, a dependency footprint that conflicts with a microservice architecture, or simply the need for a library that better fits a specific use case. This article covers the available options, what each one is suited for, and how to choose.

Java backend teams usually evaluate PDF tools on API simplicity, deployment footprint, licensing, and testability.