Comparison
Formfeed as a DocRaptor alternative
DocRaptor is an HTML-to-PDF conversion API powered by Prince, known for print CSS fidelity. Formfeed renders with Chromium, so web CSS behaves as in the browser, and adds the template layer: data in, document out, with a preview that paginates the way the PDF will.
Last checked 2026-10-17 · DocRaptor: pricing page
Free plan with 100 units a month, no credit card
| Formfeed | DocRaptor | |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | Chromium (web CSS, fonts, JavaScript for charts) with Paged.js in the preview | Prince (print CSS; PDF/A, PDF/X and PDF/UA as profiles) |
| Accessible PDF (PDF/UA-1) | A setting (pdf.ua) on every plan: tagged, repaired and checked with veraPDF against PDF/UA-1’s machine-checkable rules on every render, with the report; the file names PDF/UA-1 only when it passed, and the editor names each finding at its line in the template | A profile of the request (PDF/UA-1) that tags the document; checking the result is left to tools such as PAC |
| Template languages | Jinja2, Liquid and Handlebars with the same helpers; the same tags in your own Word and PowerPoint files (Starter and above) | HTML only; templating happens in your code |
| Template editing | Code editor in the browser with autocomplete, diagnostics and a paginated preview in which the wording can be edited; a canvas for image templates (beta); templates also as files with CLI, hot-reload dev server and test helpers | No template editor |
| Data residency | EU only: database and rendering in Frankfurt, files in Cloudflare R2 under EU jurisdiction; a document leaves the EU only for a bucket of your own that you configure; DPA with every paid plan (data residency) | Renders on AWS in US East (N. Virginia); EU transfers under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework |
| Pricing | EUR plans from €19 a month with included units (one unit is an image or a PDF of up to five pages), extra units at the plan’s rate per 1,000, and a free plan with 100 units; test keys are not metered | USD plans by documents per month, from $15 for 125; test documents are free |
| Outputs | PDF, PNG, JPG, WebP; DOCX and PPTX from Word and PowerPoint templates | PDF, XLS/XLSX |
| AI agents (MCP) | MCP server @formfeed/mcp with eight tools, among them checks of templates and e-invoices that cost no units; setup guides for 18 clients and frameworks; hosted at mcp.formfeed.dev with an API key or sign-in | No first-party MCP server |
When DocRaptor fits better
If your documents depend on Prince’s print CSS, must be PDF/A or are Excel files, DocRaptor makes them; Formfeed writes PDF/A only as part of an e-invoice and writes no Excel files. DocRaptor also states a SOC 2 Type II audit and offers HIPAA business associate agreements on paid plans; Formfeed holds no such certification.
Switching in three steps
- Send the same HTML to
/v1/renderswithhtml; check print CSS that relies on Prince-specific properties. - Move repeated markup into a template and send data instead of HTML.
- Where a request set the profile
PDF/UA-1, setpdf.ua: the file is tagged, repaired and checked with veraPDF on every render, and the report says what the check found (accessible PDFs). A bookmark outline ispdf.outline; PDF/A is written only as part of an e-invoice.
Competitor details come from their public pages on the date above and are reviewed quarterly; tell us at hello@formfeed.dev if something changed.