svglib - SVG to ReportLab Graphics Converter

1.6.0 · active · verified Thu Apr 09

Svglib is a pure-Python library (current version 1.6.0) for reading SVG files and converting them into ReportLab Drawing objects. These objects can then be rendered to various output formats like PDF, PNG, or EPS using the ReportLab Open Source toolkit. It also includes a command-line tool, `svg2pdf`, for direct SVG to PDF conversion, offering a robust solution for integrating SVG graphics into document generation workflows.

Warnings

breaking Older versions (prior to 0.9.4) were vulnerable to XML External Entity (XXE) Injection. Ensure you are using a patched version (0.9.4 or higher) to avoid security risks.
Fix: Upgrade `svglib` to version `0.9.4` or newer: `pip install --upgrade svglib`.
gotcha Svglib does not support all SVG features due to limitations in the underlying ReportLab library. Specifically, color gradients, patterns, markers, clipping paths (beyond single paths), `textPath`, and `ForeignObject` elements are not supported. This can lead to unexpected rendering or missing elements in the output.
Fix: Simplify your SVG files to avoid unsupported features or use alternative conversion libraries if full SVG fidelity is required for these specific elements.
gotcha CSS `@import` rules within SVG stylesheets are ignored by `svglib`. While versions 1.5.0+ avoid crashing, the imported styles will simply not be applied.
Fix: Embed CSS directly within the SVG file using `<style>` tags or inline styles instead of using `@import` rules.
breaking Upgrading `svglib` from very old versions (e.g., 0.8.1 to 0.9.2) could lead to SVG images being rendered in black and white or encountering font errors in the output PDF.
Fix: Test rendering thoroughly after upgrading. If issues occur, consult the `svglib` GitHub issues or consider adjusting `reportlab` versions. The current stable `1.x` versions have improved compatibility.
deprecated Support for Python 3.8 was dropped in `svglib` 1.6.0. Users on older Python environments will need to use an earlier `svglib` version.
Fix: Upgrade to Python 3.9+ or pin `svglib` to `<1.6.0` if Python 3.8 support is required (e.g., `pip install 'svglib<1.6.0'`).

Install

pip install svglib Install latest stable version

Imports

svg2rlg
```
from svglib.svglib import svg2rlg
```
Primary function to convert an SVG file into a ReportLab Drawing object.
renderPDF
```
from reportlab.graphics import renderPDF
```
Used for rendering ReportLab Drawing objects to PDF. Part of the 'reportlab' dependency.
renderPM
```
from reportlab.graphics import renderPM
```
Used for rendering ReportLab Drawing objects to pixelmap (e.g., PNG). Part of the 'reportlab' dependency.

Quickstart

This quickstart demonstrates how to convert an SVG file to a ReportLab Drawing object, and then render it to both PDF and PNG formats. It requires a local 'example.svg' file to run, which is created dynamically in the code.

import os
from svglib.svglib import svg2rlg
from reportlab.graphics import renderPDF, renderPM

# Create a dummy SVG file for demonstration
dummy_svg_content = '''
<svg width="200" height="200" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
  <rect x="10" y="10" width="180" height="180" fill="blue" stroke="black" stroke-width="3" />
  <text x="50" y="100" font-family="sans-serif" font-size="20" fill="white">Hello svglib!</text>
</svg>
'''
with open("example.svg", "w") as f:
    f.write(dummy_svg_content)

# Convert SVG to ReportLab Drawing object
drawing = svg2rlg("example.svg")

# Render to PDF
renderPDF.drawToFile(drawing, "example.pdf")
print("Generated example.pdf")

# Render to PNG
renderPM.drawToFile(drawing, "example.png")
print("Generated example.png")

# Clean up dummy file (optional)
os.remove("example.svg")

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