PDFShift alternative hosted in Saudi Arabia
Last updated: 26 September 2026
PDFShift is a popular HTML-to-PDF API built on Chromium. Sahifa implements the same v3 API (POST /v3/convert/pdf), so switching usually means changing the host name. This page compares the two, using what each service states on its own website (September 2026).
At a glance
| PDFShift | Sahifa | |
|---|---|---|
| Where documents are processed | OVH servers in France, per its privacy policy | Saudi Arabia (Oracle Cloud, Jeddah); documents never leave the Kingdom |
| Rendering engine | Chromium | Chromium, with Arabic fonts installed (Noto Naskh, Noto Sans and Noto Kufi Arabic, Amiri) |
| Document storage | Processed in memory; stored for 2 days only if you use filename, webhook or request logging | Not stored: rendered in memory and returned in the same response |
| Arabic and right-to-left | Not stated in the documentation | Built for it: Arabic documentation, right-to-left examples, fonts preinstalled |
| Contracts | States GDPR compliance | Signed DPA and a data residency letter for your auditor (Compliance plan) |
| Free tier | 50 credits a month | 100 renders a month (up to 10 a day), watermarked |
| Entry paid plan | Starter: $9 for 500 credits | Developer: SAR 59 (about $16) for 2,000 renders |
| API | POST https://api.pdfshift.io/v3/convert/pdf, header X-API-Key | POST https://api.sahifa.dev/v3/convert/pdf, the same body; Basic auth or X-API-Key |
When PDFShift is the better fit
If your documents may be processed in the EU and you mainly generate a small number of Latin-script PDFs, PDFShift's smaller plans and long track record are a good fit.
When Sahifa is the better fit
- Your documents contain personal or financial data of customers in Saudi Arabia, and your policy or regulator expects them to stay in the Kingdom.
- Your documents are in Arabic, or mix Arabic and English, and you want them to look right without tuning fonts yourself.
- You need a signed data processing agreement and a residency letter for an audit.
Moving from PDFShift
Change api.pdfshift.io to api.sahifa.dev and use your Sahifa key. The body parameters you use most (source, format, landscape, margin, header, footer, css, javascript, delay, wait_for) keep their meaning. The migration guide lists every parameter and the few differences.
Try it
Create a free Sandbox account and send the same HTML to both services. Questions: support@sahifa.dev.
Competitor information is taken from each vendor's own website in September 2026 and may have changed since; check their site for current details. PDFShift, DocRaptor and ScreenshotOne are trademarks of their respective owners; Sahifa is not affiliated with them.