Create PDFs with AI: Step-by-Step

Ask for a document in plain language and get a finished PDF: an invoice, a report with a chart, a certificate. This guide shows two ways to do it, one step at a time. No PDF or programming knowledge is needed for the first.

Both are free and open source (MIT), and both use the same TerraPDF engine.

How it works

Two parts work together:

• The AI model is the writer. It understands your request and decides what goes in the document: headings, tables, totals, charts.
• TerraPDF is the printer. The AI hands it a structured description of the document through a tool called create_pdf. TerraPDF checks it, lays out the pages, and saves a real PDF file.

If the AI's description has a mistake, such as a table row with too many cells, TerraPDF names the exact problem. The AI fixes it and tries again, usually without you noticing. TerraPDF only ever saves into the folder you choose, and it never replaces an existing file: a new version is saved next to it as name-2.pdf.

Use TerraPDF.Mcp in your AI app

TerraPDF.Mcp is an add-on for AI chat apps. It connects through MCP (Model Context Protocol), the standard way AI apps plug in extra tools. You set it up once, then ask for PDFs in the chat.

What you need

• An AI app that supports MCP: Claude Desktop, VS Code with GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or Claude Code.
• The .NET 10 SDK (free). It lets your computer download and run TerraPDF.Mcp.

Step 1: Install .NET 10

1. Download and install the .NET 10 SDK from dotnet.microsoft.com/download. Choose the SDK, version 10 or newer: the dnx command used below ships with .NET 10.

2. Open a terminal (Windows: Start, then type Terminal; macOS: Applications, Utilities, Terminal) and run:

   Terminal

   dotnet --version
   

   A number starting with 10 means you're ready.

Step 2: Choose a folder for your PDFs

Pick the folder where PDFs should be saved, for example Documents\PDFs, and note its full path. It doesn't need to exist yet; TerraPDF creates it.

• Write Windows paths with forward slashes, such as C:/Users/Priya/Documents/PDFs. Windows accepts them, and backslashes would need doubling inside the settings file.
• Always set this folder. Some apps start add-ons in a system folder, so without it your PDFs could be saved somewhere unexpected.

Step 3: Connect TerraPDF.Mcp to your app

Every app does the same thing: start TerraPDF with dnx TerraPDF.Mcp --yes and tell it where to save PDFs. The first start downloads TerraPDF automatically, so it can take a minute.

Claude Desktop

1. Open Settings, then Developer, then Edit Config. This opens claude_desktop_config.json.

2. Add the mcpServers section, using your own folder path:

   JSON

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "terrapdf": {
         "command": "dnx",
         "args": ["TerraPDF.Mcp", "--yes"],
         "env": { "TERRAPDF_OUTPUT_DIR": "C:\\Users\\ansari\\Documents\\PDFs" }
       }
     }
   }
   

3. Save the file, then fully quit Claude Desktop: right-click its icon in the system tray or menu bar and choose Quit. Closing the window leaves it running. Then reopen it.

4. In a new chat, open the tools menu next to the message box and check that terrapdf is listed.

If the file already has content (such as a "preferences" section), keep it and add "mcpServers" at the top level, next to "preferences", not inside it. Claude Desktop ignores a mcpServers section nested inside another one. Separate the sections with commas:

JSON

{
  "preferences": { … },
  "mcpServers": { "terrapdf": { … } }
}

On Windows, the Microsoft Store version of Claude Desktop keeps this file in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\Claude_…\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\. Edit Config always opens the right one.

VS Code with GitHub Copilot

1. Open your project folder in VS Code.

2. Create a file named mcp.json in a folder named .vscode:

   JSON

   {
     "servers": {
       "terrapdf": {
         "type": "stdio",
         "command": "dnx",
         "args": ["TerraPDF.Mcp", "--yes"],
         "env": { "TERRAPDF_OUTPUT_DIR": "C:\\Users\\Priya\\Documents\\PDFs" }
       }
     }
   }
   

3. Save it and click the Start link that appears above "terrapdf".

4. Open Copilot Chat, switch to Agent mode, and check under the tools icon that the TerraPDF tools are enabled.

Cursor

1. Open Cursor Settings, then MCP, then Add new MCP server.
2. Paste the same content as for Claude Desktop, with your folder path, and save.
3. Check that terrapdf shows as enabled.

Claude Code

Run this once in a terminal, with your folder path:

claude mcp add terrapdf -e TERRAPDF_OUTPUT_DIR=C:/Users/Priya/Documents/PDFs -- dnx TerraPDF.Mcp --yes

Then start claude and type /mcp to check that terrapdf is connected.

Step 4: Ask for a PDF

Type a normal request and mention "PDF", for example:

• Create a PDF invoice from Northwind Traders to Contoso Ltd: 12 hours of consulting at $150/hour and a $1,200 support plan, 10% tax, with a total.
• Make a one-page PDF sales report. Revenue by region: North America $430k, EMEA $455k, APAC $240k. Add a bar chart and a two-sentence summary.
• Create a PDF certificate of completion for Priya Sharma, Advanced Excel course, dated today.

Approve the tool when the app asks for permission. The reply tells you where the file was saved. To change something, just ask in the same chat, for example "make the title blue and add our address at the top".

Optional: use your logo and images

TerraPDF can read images and fonts from one folder you choose. Add a second setting next to the first:

"env": {
  "TERRAPDF_OUTPUT_DIR": "C:\\Users\\Priya\\Documents\\PDFs",
  "TERRAPDF_ASSET_DIR": "C:\\Users\\Priya\\Documents\\Logos"
}

Then ask, for example, "Put logo.png at the top of the invoice." TerraPDF only reads files inside that folder, and only PNG and JPEG images and TrueType (.ttf) fonts. Without this setting, it uses the folder the app started it in.

Bonus: help writing TerraPDF code

TerraPDF.Mcp also includes a get_terrapdf_csharp_guide tool. Ask your coding assistant to "write C# code with TerraPDF that generates an invoice PDF" and it can look up the verified TerraPDF API first, so the code compiles.

Troubleshooting TerraPDF.Mcp

Build your own PDF agent with TerraPDF.Agents

TerraPDF.Agents is a .NET library for developers building their own app or service in which an AI creates PDFs, such as a support bot that emails invoices or a reporting service. You write a short C# program; the AI and TerraPDF do the rest. The example uses OpenAI; any provider that works with Microsoft.Extensions.AI works the same way.

What you need

• The .NET SDK, version 8 or newer (free).
• An API key from an AI provider. This example uses OpenAI, which charges per use; a typical document costs a fraction of a cent.

Step 1: Install .NET

Install the .NET SDK from dotnet.microsoft.com/download, then check it in a terminal with dotnet --version.

Step 2: Store your API key safely

Create an API key in your provider's dashboard, then store it as an environment variable, so it never appears in your code.

• Windows:

  Terminal

  setx OPENAI_API_KEY "sk-paste-your-key-here"
  

  Then close the terminal and open a new one; the setting only applies to new windows.

• macOS or Linux:

  Terminal

  export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-paste-your-key-here"
  

Keep the key private, like a password.

Step 3: Create the project

Run these commands one at a time:

dotnet new console -n MyPdfAgent
cd MyPdfAgent
dotnet add package TerraPDF.Agents
dotnet add package Microsoft.Agents.AI
dotnet add package Microsoft.Extensions.AI.OpenAI

They create an empty program, then add TerraPDF's PDF tools, Microsoft's agent framework (which connects an AI model to tools), and the OpenAI connector.

Step 4: Write the program

Replace everything in Program.cs with:

using Microsoft.Agents.AI;
using Microsoft.Extensions.AI;
using OpenAI;
using TerraPDF.Agents.Tools;

// 1. Your AI provider key, read from the environment variable set in Step 2.
string apiKey = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("OPENAI_API_KEY")
    ?? throw new InvalidOperationException("Set the OPENAI_API_KEY environment variable first.");

// 2. The AI model that does the thinking.
IChatClient chatClient = new OpenAIClient(apiKey)
    .GetChatClient("gpt-4o-mini")
    .AsIChatClient();

// 3. The TerraPDF tools. PDFs are saved into a folder called "pdfs".
var pdfTools = new TerraPdfTools(new TerraPdfToolOptions { OutputDirectory = "pdfs" });

// 4. The agent: the AI model plus the PDF tools.
AIAgent agent = chatClient.AsAIAgent(
    instructions: "You create well-formatted PDF documents. Always use the create_pdf tool, " +
                  "then tell the user where the file was saved.",
    tools: [.. pdfTools.AsAIFunctions()]);

// 5. Ask for a document in plain language.
Console.Write("What PDF would you like? > ");
string request = Console.ReadLine() ?? "";

Console.WriteLine(await agent.RunAsync(request));

What each part does:

1. Reads your key from the environment variable.
2. Chooses the AI model. You can use any model name your account offers.
3. Sets up TerraPDF and the folder where PDFs are saved.
4. Creates the agent: the model, the PDF tools, and a short job description.
5. Asks what you want, passes it to the agent, and prints the reply.

Step 5: Run it

dotnet run

When you see What PDF would you like? >, type a request such as "Create an invoice from Northwind Traders to Contoso Ltd for 12 hours of consulting at $150 per hour, with 10% tax and a total." The agent replies with the saved file's location, inside the pdfs folder.

Other agent frameworks

The same tools plug into other .NET AI frameworks with one line:

// Semantic Kernel (the model sees terrapdf_create_pdf and terrapdf_get_pdf_document_format)
kernel.Plugins.AddFromFunctions("terrapdf", pdfTools.AsAIFunctions().Select(f => f.AsKernelFunction()));

// Any Microsoft.Extensions.AI IChatClient with function invocation
var options = new ChatOptions { Tools = [.. pdfTools.AsAIFunctions()] };

TerraPdfToolOptions also controls the image folder (AssetDirectory), custom storage such as cloud uploads (SaveAsync), and size limits. See TerraPDF for AI Agents for the options and the security model.

Troubleshooting TerraPDF.Agents

Next steps

• TerraPDF for AI Agents: the technical reference, with the full API contract, the TerraPDF skill for coding assistants, and more client configurations.
• Samples: complete example documents with their C# source.
• Getting Started: write PDF code with TerraPDF directly.