MD2PDF

A CLI tool that converts Markdown to PDF using customizable templates — think Astro, but for PDFs.

Features

• Convert Markdown to PDF with a single command
• Customizable templates with layout, styling, and components
• Supports multiple output formats (letter, a4, etc.)
• Template inheritance and partials
• Frontmatter support for metadata
• Built-in template engine (Handlebars-like syntax)
• CLI flags for quick customization
• Watch mode for development

Quick Start

# Install globally (once published)
npm install -g md2pdf2

# Or use npx
npx md2pdf2 convert input.md -o output.pdf

# Initialize a new project with sample files
md2pdf2 init

# With a custom template
md2pdf2 convert input.md --template my-template.hbs -o output.pdf

# Dev mode with live preview
md2pdf2 dev input.md

Agent Skill

Install the md2pdf2 skill for Claude Code, Amp, OpenCode etc:

npx skills add areai51/md2pdf2

This adds the skill to your Claude Code environment, enabling intelligent PDF generation with automatic template selection and markdown formatting.

MCP Server

Use md2pdf2 as an MCP server with AI agents:

# Using npx (no installation required)
npx md2pdf2-mcp

# Or install globally
npm install -g md2pdf2
md2pdf2-mcp

Configure in Claude Desktop

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "md2pdf2": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["md2pdf2-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

• convert: Convert a Markdown file to PDF
• convertMarkdown: Convert a Markdown string to PDF
• listTemplates: List available built-in templates

Example Usage

Agents can now use the MCP tools to convert markdown:

{
  "tool": "convert",
  "arguments": {
    "input": "./document.md",
    "output": "./document.pdf",
    "template": "./templates/modern.hbs",
    "format": "A4"
  }
}

Dev Mode

Start a live preview server to see your markdown rendered in different templates:

md2pdf2 dev input.md --port 3456

Opens a browser with:

• Left pane: Template selector (switch between templates)
• Right pane: Live preview of your markdown

Changes to your .md file or templates auto-reload the preview.

Built-in Templates

• default - Clean, professional look
• modern - Bold colors, Inter-style typography
• minimal - Simple, classic serif
• newsletter - Email newsletter style
• resume - CV/resume formatting

Project Structure

my-doc/
├── content/
│   └── my-doc.md
├── templates/
│   ├── default.hbs
│   ├── parts/
│   │   └── header.hbs
│   └── styles.css
├── md2pdf2.config.js
└── package.json

Templates

Templates use handlebars-like syntax for placeholders and partials:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <style>{{{styles}}}</style>
</head>
<body>
  {{> header}}
  <main>
    {{{content}}}
  </main>
</body>
</html>

Configuration

md2pdf2.config.js:

export default {
  template: './templates/default.hbs',
  style: './templates/styles.css',
  pdfOptions: {
    format: 'A4',
    margin: { top: '1cm', right: '1cm', bottom: '1cm', left: '1cm' }
  }
}

Development

# Clone and setup
git clone https://github.com/areai51/md2pdf.git
cd md2pdf
npm install

# Build
npm run build

# Test
npm test

# Link for global use
npm link

License

MIT