PDF SDK for Editing Existing PDFs
Target and modify existing PDF content from Python, Node.js/TypeScript, or Java. PDFDancer provides language-specific clients for a hosted editing service, with result diagnostics and explicit layout controls for production workflows.
Use the SDK to edit approved PDFs inside automated PDF workflowsthat already handle approval and release.
Choose Your Language
Official PDFDancer SDKs
All three clients use the same PDFDancer editing service. Choose the package that matches your application runtime, then continue with its implementation guide.
Python PDF SDK
Python 3.10+
Use the Python client in scripts, automation jobs, and backend applications.
python -m pip install pdfdancer-client-python==3.0.2Explore the Python PDF SDK Using FastAPI? View the framework guideNode.js / TypeScript PDF SDK
Node.js 20+
Use the typed client in server-side JavaScript and TypeScript applications.
npm install pdfdancer-client-typescript@3.0.1Explore the Node.js / TypeScript PDF SDK Java PDF SDK
Java 17+
Use the Java client in JVM applications with Maven or Gradle.
com.pdfdancer.client:pdfdancer-client-java:3.0.1Explore the Java PDF SDK Shared Editing Model
Open, target, edit, inspect, and save
The released clients follow the same operation lifecycle. This example changes one value on page one, checks operation errors, and saves a new PDF.
What to inspect
Shared Capabilities
One editing model across three languages
Use document- or page-scoped interfaces to target content, apply an operation, and validate the result. Operation-specific documentation defines the available requests and diagnostics.
Target content
Scope operations to a document or page, then select text by literal content or a regular expression.
Text selection documentationEdit text
Replace, insert, delete, or style selected text, including replacing a text selection with an image.
Text editing documentationControl layout
Choose source-anchored placement, reflow with fallback, or required reflow that reports unsupported targets.
Text layout documentationEdit PDF objects
Work with pages, images, vector paths, AcroForms, Form XObjects, and registered fonts.
PDF object documentationExtract structured text
Analyze a document or page as semantic reading units with roles, reading order, provenance, bounds, and relationships.
Structured text documentationProduce output
Save an edited PDF to disk or retrieve its output bytes for the next step in your application.
Error handling documentationWorkflow Fit
Match the SDK to the job
PDFDancer is designed for programmatic changes to existing PDF documents. Adjacent document workflows may require a different category of tool.
| Workflow | Fit | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Update text in an existing PDF | Strong fit | The target must be selectable, editable PDF text. |
| Personalize a finished template | Strong fit | Validate replacement length, font coverage, and layout diagnostics. |
| Modify pages, images, forms, or vector objects | Supported | Use the operation-specific SDK interfaces and inspect the saved result. |
| Generate primarily from HTML or source templates | Different workflow | A source-driven document generator may be a more direct fit. |
| Extract structured text for search or analytics | Supported in all three SDKs | Analyze the complete document or one page as semantic reading units with roles, reading order, source provenance, page-space bounds, and relationships. |
| Edit image-only scans | Not directly editable as text | Text operations require editable PDF text rather than a page image. |
| Perform security redaction | Not supported | Deleting selected text does not provide a security-redaction guarantee. |
| Provide an interactive browser editor | Different product category | PDFDancer provides programmatic SDK clients rather than an embeddable visual editor. |
Technical Evaluation
Test the PDFs your workflow actually receives
What runs where
Your code runs the SDK client. The client creates a session with the hosted PDFDancer service, submits operations, and retrieves the edited output.
- Evaluation
- Anonymous session with watermarked output
- Authenticated use
- API token supplied to the client
- Output
- File on disk or PDF bytes
- Run the quick start against a representative production PDF.
- Confirm the target is selectable text rather than outlines, paths, or a page image.
- Test both longer and shorter replacements.
- Choose a layout mode and inspect its diagnostics instead of inferring reflow from a successful change.
- Check changed counts, warnings, and errors before accepting the output.
- Verify that the selected font contains every character required by the replacement.
- Reopen and render the saved PDF in the viewers used by your workflow.
- Validate PDF/A requirements and digital signatures separately when they matter.
- Exercise authentication, network failures, file handling, and service errors in the intended server environment.
Technical Resources
Continue with the operation you need
Concepts and operations
Language quick starts and API references
Questions
PDF SDK evaluation questions
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Prefer to test the editing workflow first? Run the anonymous quick start. Current plan details are available on the pricing page.