pdf2svg

converts PDF files to Scalable Vector Graphics format

TLDR

Convert PDF page to SVG

$ pdf2svg [input.pdf] [output.svg]

Convert specific page

$ pdf2svg [input.pdf] [output.svg] [2]

Convert all pages

$ pdf2svg [input.pdf] [output_%d.svg] all

SYNOPSIS

pdf2svg input.pdf output.svg [page|all]

pdf2svg converts PDF files to Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) format. It preserves vector graphics, text, and formatting, making the output suitable for web use and editing.The tool uses Poppler for PDF parsing and Cairo for SVG rendering. To convert every page in a single run, use all as the page argument and include the %d placeholder in the output filename — pdf2svg substitutes the page number at write time (e.g. `pdf2svg book.pdf page%d.svg all` produces `page1.svg`, `page_2.svg`, …).

PARAMETERS

input.pdf

Input PDF file.

output.svg

Output SVG file.

page

Page number (1-indexed).

all

Convert all pages.

INSTALL

sudo apt install pdf2svg

sudo dnf install pdf2svg

sudo pacman -S pdf2svg

sudo zypper install pdf2svg

brew install pdf2svg

nix profile install nixpkgs#pdf2svg

CAVEATS

One page per SVG file (no multi-page SVG output). Complex PDFs may produce very large SVGs. Fonts are typically converted to outline paths, which preserves rendering fidelity but loses selectable text.

HISTORY

pdf2svg was created by David Barton using Poppler for PDF parsing and Cairo for SVG rendering.