PDFsharp draws PDFs with GDI+ style commands. When the job is turning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into a PDF, IronPDF renders the page directly with a Chromium engine, with layout and page breaks handled for you. Three lines of C#.
// PDFsharp: draw the page by hand with GDI+ style commands
using PdfSharp.Pdf;
using PdfSharp.Drawing;
var document = new PdfDocument();
PdfPage page = document.AddPage();
XGraphics gfx = XGraphics.FromPdfPage(page);
var font = new XFont("Arial", 20);
gfx.DrawString("Hello World", font, XBrushes.Black,
new XRect(0, 0, page.Width, page.Height),
XStringFormats.TopLeft);
document.Save("output.pdf");
// No HTML or CSS. Wrapping and page breaks are manual.
// IronPDF: render the HTML itself, layout handled by Chromium
using IronPdf;
var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
PdfDocument pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello World</h1>");
pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");' PDFsharp: draw the page by hand with GDI+ style commands
Imports PdfSharp.Pdf
Imports PdfSharp.Drawing
Dim document = New PdfDocument()
Dim page As PdfPage = document.AddPage()
Dim gfx As XGraphics = XGraphics.FromPdfPage(page)
Dim font = New XFont("Arial", 20)
gfx.DrawString("Hello World", font, XBrushes.Black, New XRect(0, 0, page.Width, page.Height), XStringFormats.TopLeft)
document.Save("output.pdf")
' No HTML or CSS. Wrapping and page breaks are manual.
' IronPDF: render the HTML itself, layout handled by Chromium
Imports IronPdf
Dim renderer = New ChromePdfRenderer()
Dim pdf As PdfDocument = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello World</h1>")
pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf")
PM >
Install-Package IronPdf
PDFsharp is a capable, free, MIT-licensed library for building and editing PDFs programmatically with GDI+ style drawing. It has no HTML, CSS, or JavaScript engine, so a styled page means rebuilding the layout element by element, or moving to MigraDoc's document model. IronPDF renders the HTML directly with Chromium and keeps editing, merging, forms, and signing in the same library.
| PDFsharp | IronPDF | |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | Programmatic drawing (GDI+ style) | HTML, CSS, and JavaScript rendering |
| HTML / CSS / JS | Not supported | Full Chromium rendering |
| Layout | Manual coordinates, page breaks not automatic | Automatic browser layout and pagination |
| Text flow | Basic; use MigraDoc DOM for flow | Handled by HTML and CSS |
| Existing web templates | Rebuild element by element | Reuse HTML, CSS, and Razor as-is |
| PDF editing | Create, merge, split, extract text | Create, edit, merge, split, sign, forms |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained, MIT | Actively maintained, commercial |
| License | Free MIT (paid only to remove attribution) | Commercial, perpetual, 24/5 support |
| Best fit | Hand-built or programmatic PDFs | HTML-first PDF generation |
Built for developers who would rather render an HTML template than position every element in code.
%20-107C10?logo=visual-studio-code&color=106E58&cacheSeconds=432000){kind=icon}
Install-Package IronPdf
40%SAVING
Where in the past we might have to go out and use one plug-in or one package for OCR, and another one for PDF, having them all integrated into one low-cost package was really great for us.
David JonesLead Software EngineerRead the case study
SAVING20%
Green2view achieved 20% savings, 30% faster document turnaround, and 100% compliance.
Read the case study
LESS ADMIN WORK40%
It just works—automated PDF generation delivers pixel-perfect financial reports every time.
Read the case study
Can IronPDF convert HTML and CSS to PDF, which PDFsharp does not?YES!
Can I reuse existing HTML, CSS, or Razor templates instead of drawing with coordinates?YES!
Does IronPDF handle text flow, layout, and page breaks automatically?YES!
Can IronPDF render JavaScript and modern CSS such as flexbox and grid?YES!
Can I still create, merge, split, edit, and extract text as I would with PDFsharp?YES!
Is IronPDF actively maintained with commercial support?YES!
Can I render pixel-perfect PDFs from complex HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript?YES!
Can I convert an HTML string to PDF in one line of C# code?YES!
Can I convert a URL to PDF with authentication, cookies, and custom headers?YES!
Can I generate a PDF from Razor, CSHTML, or ASPX views?YES!
Can I add custom headers, footers, page numbers, and watermarks during conversion?YES!
Can I run HTML to PDF conversion in Docker, Azure Functions, or AWS Lambda?YES!
Can I deploy my application using the library to Linux, macOS, or Windows, including Docker containers?YES!
Is the library thread-safe for use in highly concurrent, multi-threaded server applications and APIs?YES!
Can I set custom viewport dimensions and print media CSS to control responsive layouts?YES!
Is IronPDF compatible with Azure Functions?YES!
Can I permanently redact sensitive text and images from PDF documents?YES!
Can I generate a PDF from a URL that requires authentication via custom headers, cookies, or form logins?YES!
Can I access PDF DOM through ObjectModel property?YES!
Can I programmatically fill, read, and flatten interactive AcroForm?YES!
Does it support generating PDF/A and PDF/UA compliant documents for archiving and accessibility standards?YES!
Can I secure a document with 256-bit AES password encryption and set user permissions?YES!
Can I apply and verify digital signatures on a PDF using X.509 certificates?YES!
Can I test IronPDF in my live project for free now?YES! 
Click here to start your 30-day free trial
Nuget Downloads 20,389,208|Version:2026.8just released
10 .NET API products for your office documents
When you need your PDF to look like HTML, fast.
