{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "iloveapi", "name": "iLoveAPI", "vendor": "iLovePDF S.L.", "vendorUrl": "https://www.iloveapi.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "pdf-tools", "summary": "REST API from iLovePDF S.L. of Barcelona for merging, splitting, compressing, converting, protecting, editing and running OCR on PDFs, with image tools and signature requests. Tasks run in four calls, billed in credits.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/iloveapi", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/iloveapi.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/iloveapi.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/iloveapi.json", "repo": "https://github.com/ilovepdf/ilovepdf-python", "license": "Proprietary service under the iLovePDF API terms. The client libraries are MIT", "transports": [ "http" ], "remoteUrl": "https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1", "packages": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "ilovepdf" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@ilovepdf/ilovepdf-nodejs" }, { "registry": "packagist", "name": "ilovepdf/ilovepdf-php" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "Self-serve. Each project has a public key and a secret key in the developer console. Requests carry `Authorization: Bearer` with a JWT signed by the secret key, valid for one hour, or a token from `POST /v1/auth` given the public key. Domain and IP filters are available depending on tier.", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Free accounts get 2,500 credits a month with no card asked at sign-up. Paid credits come as monthly or yearly subscriptions or non-expiring prepaid packages. Euro prices are drawn by script and were not read. Only successfully processed files are charged (https://www.iloveapi.com/pricing, checked 2026-10-09).", "priceSummary": "Freemium", "where": "hosted", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the API reference, the pricing page or the terms (checked 2026-10-09).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": 9582, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-09" }, "docsUrl": "https://www.iloveapi.com/docs/api-reference", "capabilities": [ "pdf.convert", "pdf.merge", "pdf.generate", "pdf.extract", "docs.ocr" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "rest", "jwt", "credits", "free-tier", "webhooks", "php", "dotnet", "python", "nodejs", "ruby", "iso27001", "eu" ], "lastRelease": "2026-09-03", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 42, "grade": "E", "agentReady": false, "rank": 897, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 4, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 61, "maintenance": 62, "payments": 30, "reliability": 26, "schema": 37, "security": 41, "transparency": 52 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-09" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Per-tool credit costs are public, 2,500 free credits arrive each month on a sign-up that asks for no card, and five official libraries are MIT. No OpenAPI file, status page or published rate-limit numbers were found, and the governing terms date from 14 February 2017.", "bestFor": "An agent that needs common PDF and image operations with a monthly free allowance and a choice of processing region.", "strengths": [ "2,500 free credits a month on registration, and the sign-up form asks for name, email and password only", "Credit cost of each tool is public, from 2 credits an image file to 5 a merge task and 10 a file for most PDF tools", "Seven processing regions can be chosen per task (eu, us, fr, de, pl, in, sg)", "Official MIT libraries for PHP, .NET, Python, Node.js and Ruby, with three tagged releases between 22 July and 3 September 2026", "ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certificate linked from the security page, and optional per-task file encryption with a caller-held key" ], "weaknesses": [ "No OpenAPI file, llms.txt or Markdown docs. The reference is one HTML page", "No status page is linked from the site or docs, and rate limits are described as tier-dependent with no numbers", "The API terms were last modified on 14 February 2017 and let iLovePDF discontinue the API at any time without liability", "Uptime is stated as over 99.95% on the pricing page and 99.9%+ on the functions page, while the terms disclaim availability", "The reference still says a free account has a 250-file monthly limit, while the pricing page says 2,500 credits", "No idempotency keys, no scoped or read-only keys, and no guidance on untrusted text returned by OCR, Markdown or summary tools" ], "agentNotes": [ "Run four calls per job. `GET /v1/start/{tool}/{region}` returns a `server` and a `task`, then send upload, process and download to that server", "Sign a JWT with the project secret key and send it as `Authorization: Bearer`. Tokens expire after one hour", "Download results promptly. The reference says files are deleted one to two hours after processing, depending on tier", "Back off exponentially on 429 and read the rate-limit headers on each response. No limit numbers are published", "Add `debug=true` to any request to have the server echo the parameters without processing or spending credits" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "E", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 42 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 61, "maintenance": 62, "payments": 30, "reliability": 26, "schema": 37, "security": 41, "transparency": 37 }, "provenanceScore": 66 }, "connect": { "install": "pip install ilovepdf", "http": "curl -X POST https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1/auth -d \"public_key=$ILOVEPDF_PUBLIC_KEY\"" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/pdf.convert", "tool": "https://letme.dev/iloveapi" }, "area": "web-data", "provenance": { "legalEntity": "iLovePDF S.L.", "domain": "iloveapi.com", "domainRegistered": "2005-08-18", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://www.iloveapi.com/terms", "privacy": "https://www.iloveapi.com/policy", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "", "securityTxt": "unknown", "checked": "2026-10-09", "notes": [ "The API answers at api.ilovepdf.com, the vendor's main domain, and the product site is iloveapi.com", "The privacy page at iloveapi.com/policy embeds an iubenda document (www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/331973) that iubenda's robots.txt disallows, so its text was not read", "www.iloveapi.com/.well-known/security.txt answered 403 and was not retried", "No status page or API changelog is linked from the site or the docs" ], "score": 66 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/iloveapi.json", "live": { "slug": "iloveapi", "probe": { "target": "https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T02:07:12.088249497Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 404, "lastMs": 138, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 125, "p95ms24h": 193, "samples24h": 107, "samples30d": 107, "days": [ { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 85, "ok": 85 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 22, "ok": 22 } ] }, "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "ilovepdf/ilovepdf-python", "version": "v1.1.0", "released": "2026-07-28", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T16:58:36.678829815Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@ilovepdf/ilovepdf-nodejs", "version": "0.3.1", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T16:58:35.841962669Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "ilovepdf", "version": "1.0.0", "released": "2026-04-01", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T16:58:35.730864554Z" } ], "githubStars": 15, "npmWeekly": 9582, "pypiWeekly": 60, "pages": [ { "url": "https://www.iloveapi.com/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:51:09.812140969Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "99ae5ec9f360" }, { "url": "https://www.iloveapi.com/policy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:51:07.694318062Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "15c457ef8e47" }, { "url": "https://www.iloveapi.com/terms", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:51:11.762653183Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "9451d9a5e124" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T02:07:12.088249497Z" } }, "answer": "iLoveAPI scores 42 (E) on agent readiness against PDF.co API + MCP's 37.9 (F), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. PDF.co API + MCP leads on schema \u0026 documentation.", "b": { "slug": "pdf-co", "name": "PDF.co API + MCP", "vendor": "PDF.co (Artifex Software)", "vendorUrl": "https://pdf.co", "kind": "http-api", "category": "pdf-tools", "summary": "Credit-billed REST API for merging, splitting, converting, filling and securing PDFs, plus PDF to text, CSV, JSON and Excel, template parsing and an AI invoice parser.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/pdf-co", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/pdf-co.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/pdf-co.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/pdf-co.json", "repo": "https://github.com/pdfdotco/pdfco-mcp", "license": "MIT (MCP server)", "transports": [ "http", "stdio" ], "remoteUrl": "https://api.pdf.co/v1", "packages": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "pdfco-mcp" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "`x-api-key` header. The MCP server reads the key from X_API_KEY.", "pricing": "paid", "pricingNotes": "Credit subscriptions. Basic $9.99 a month ($8.99 billed yearly) for 16,500 credits, Personal $24.99 ($22.49) for 37,000, Business 1 $49.99 ($44.99) for 80,500, Business 2 $99.99 ($89.99) for 159,850, Business 3 $300 ($270) for 483,000, Enterprise above 500,000. Monthly prices worked out from the yearly totals. Credits per page or per call vary by endpoint, e.g. merge 2 a page, PDF to text 21, Document Parser 42, AI invoice parser 100. A free trial exists but its size isn't on the page (https://pdf.co/pricing).", "priceSummary": "$9.99 / mo", "where": "both", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402 in docs, MCP README or pricing (checked 2026-09-30).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 38, "popularity": { "githubStars": 9, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": 20, "asOf": "2026-09-30" }, "docsUrl": "https://developer.pdf.co", "llmsTxt": "https://developer.pdf.co/llms.txt", "openapi": "https://developer.pdf.co/openapi.json", "capabilities": [ "pdf.convert", "pdf.merge", "pdf.forms", "pdf.generate", "pdf.extract", "docs.ocr", "docs.tables", "docs.extract" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "mcp", "llms-txt", "async-jobs", "webhooks", "python" ], "lastRelease": "2026-07-28", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 37.9, "grade": "F", "agentReady": false, "rank": 924, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 5, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 49, "maintenance": 34, "payments": 20, "reliability": 20, "schema": 74, "security": 23, "transparency": 51 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-01" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "OpenAPI 3.0.1 document with structured error bodies for 400 to 454, plus llms.txt and Markdown docs. No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime.", "bestFor": "An agent that needs many PDF operations from one vendor and can handle files by URL.", "strengths": [ "OpenAPI 3.0.1 document with structured error bodies for 400 to 454, plus llms.txt and Markdown docs", "Credit cost of each endpoint published per page or per call, from 2 for merge to 100 for the AI invoice parser", "Manipulation and extraction in one API, with 38 MCP tools covering both", "Output links expire after one hour by default and can be cut to one minute" ], "weaknesses": [ "No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime", "Rate limits moved to per-minute windows in June 2026 but the numbers aren't published, and 429 carries no documented Retry-After", "No SLA, no security.txt, and terms that allow changes without notice", "MCP server has no tool annotations, no read-only mode and no tests, and `upload_file` reads any absolute path", "Trial size and card requirement aren't stated anywhere we looked" ], "agentNotes": [ "Upload local files with `upload_file` or the presigned upload first, then pass the returned URL", "Read the `content` field, not `status`. The MCP server says `working` even when the API returned an error", "Call `wait_job_completion` after each job. Every MCP call runs async and returns a job id", "Download results within the hour. Output links expire after 60 minutes by default", "Keep the key in `X_API_KEY` and leave the `api_key` argument empty" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "F", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 37.9 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 49, "maintenance": 34, "payments": 20, "reliability": 20, "schema": 74, "security": 23, "transparency": 42 }, "provenanceScore": 60 }, "connect": { "http": "curl https://api.pdf.co/v1/pdf/convert/to/text-simple \\\n -H \"x-api-key: $PDFCO_API_KEY\" -H \"content-type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"url\":\"https://pdfco-test-files.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/pdf-to-csv/sample.pdf\",\"inline\":true}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add pdfco -e X_API_KEY=$PDFCO_API_KEY -- uvx pdfco-mcp", "config": { "mcpServers": { "pdfco": { "args": [ "pdfco-mcp" ], "command": "uvx", "env": { "X_API_KEY": "${PDFCO_API_KEY}" } } } } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/pdf.convert", "tool": "https://letme.dev/pdf-co" }, "alsoIn": [ "document-extraction" ], "area": "web-data", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Basic", "unit": "month", "usd": 9.99, "note": "16,500 credits. $8.99 a month billed yearly" }, { "item": "Personal", "unit": "month", "usd": 24.99, "note": "37,000 credits. $22.49 a month billed yearly" }, { "item": "Business 1", "unit": "month", "usd": 49.99, "note": "80,500 credits. $44.99 a month billed yearly" }, { "item": "Business 3", "unit": "month", "usd": 300, "note": "483,000 credits. $270 a month billed yearly" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Artifex Software, Inc.", "domain": "pdf.co", "domainRegistered": "", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://pdf.co/resources/legal/terms", "privacy": "https://pdf.co/resources/legal/privacy", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "https://developer.pdf.co/changelog", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-09-30", "notes": [ "RDAP has no service for .co, so the registration date is unread", "status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime rather than a status page" ], "score": 60 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/pdf-co.json", "live": { "slug": "pdf-co", "probe": { "target": "https://api.pdf.co/v1", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T02:07:19.861195825Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 404, "lastMs": 449, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 448, "p95ms24h": 501, "samples24h": 250, "samples30d": 2458, "days": [ { "date": "2026-09-30", "probes": 35, "ok": 35 }, { "date": "2026-10-01", "probes": 276, "ok": 276 }, { "date": "2026-10-02", "probes": 248, "ok": 248 }, { "date": "2026-10-03", "probes": 271, "ok": 271 }, { "date": "2026-10-04", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-05", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-06", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-07", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-08", "probes": 268, "ok": 268 }, { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 250, "ok": 250 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 22, "ok": 22 } ] }, "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "pdfdotco/pdfco-mcp", "version": "0.0.9", "released": "2026-07-28", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:12:22.788307047Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "pdfco-mcp", "version": "0.0.9", "released": "2026-07-28", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:12:22.566838375Z" } ], "githubStars": 9, "pypiWeekly": 19, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://pdf.co/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "none", "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T15:39:18.990040112Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://developer.pdf.co/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T14:02:34.505151614Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "pdf.co", "checkedAt": "2026-10-04T13:10:48.097773738Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://developer.pdf.co/changelog", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:35:19.350561646Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "3c375c1f7429" }, { "url": "https://pdf.co/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:43:06.991926682Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-06T16:11:13.668509933Z", "fingerprint": "6e0f64eb25b8" }, { "url": "https://pdf.co/resources/legal/privacy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:43:09.162282171Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-06T16:11:15.865662656Z", "fingerprint": "f0d9bf8ac24f" }, { "url": "https://pdf.co/resources/legal/terms", "kind": "terms", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:43:11.130805771Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-06T16:11:17.843599671Z", "fingerprint": "d607e9e8dc87" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T02:07:19.861195825Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "HTTP API", "b": "HTTP API", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "iLovePDF S.L.", "b": "PDF.co (Artifex Software)", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1", "b": "https://api.pdf.co/v1", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP", "b": "HTTP, stdio", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "API key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Freemium", "b": "Paid", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "Proprietary service under the iLovePDF API terms. The client libraries are MIT", "b": "MIT (MCP server)", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "none", "b": "38", "name": "Tools exposed" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "no", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "2026-09-03", "b": "2026-07-28", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "2017-02-14", "b": "2026-03-24", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "no date given", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "yes", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "yes", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "9.6k npm/wk", "b": "9 stars, 20 PyPI/wk", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "none", "b": "3/5 (2)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "iLoveAPI scores 42 (E) on agent readiness against PDF.co API + MCP's 37.9 (F), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. PDF.co API + MCP leads on schema \u0026 documentation.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, iLoveAPI or PDF.co API + MCP?" }, { "answer": "Both need an API key.", "question": "Do iLoveAPI and PDF.co API + MCP need an API key?" }, { "answer": "Yes. iLoveAPI has a hosted endpoint at https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1 and PDF.co API + MCP at https://api.pdf.co/v1.", "question": "Can an agent call iLoveAPI and PDF.co API + MCP without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 26 against 20", "Agent ergonomics, 61 against 49", "Security \u0026 auth, 41 against 23", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 30 against 20", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 62 against 34" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "An agent that needs common PDF and image operations with a monthly free allowance and a choice of processing region.", "slug": "iloveapi", "watchFor": "No OpenAPI file, llms.txt or Markdown docs. The reference is one HTML page" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Schema \u0026 documentation, 74 against 37" ], "also": [ "Runs on your own machine" ], "goodFor": "An agent that needs many PDF operations from one vendor and can handle files by URL.", "slug": "pdf-co", "watchFor": "No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime" } ], "job": { "capability": "pdf.convert", "name": "PDF conversion" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-iloveapi.json", "title": "CloudConvert API vs iLoveAPI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-iloveapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-pdf-co.json", "title": "CloudConvert API vs PDF.co API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-pdf-co" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-iloveapi.json", "title": "Foxit PDF Services API vs iLoveAPI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-iloveapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-pdf-co.json", "title": "Foxit PDF Services API vs PDF.co API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-pdf-co" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-nutrient-dws-processor.json", "title": "iLoveAPI vs Nutrient DWS Processor API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-nutrient-dws-processor" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nutrient-dws-processor-vs-pdf-co.json", "title": "Nutrient DWS Processor API vs PDF.co API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nutrient-dws-processor-vs-pdf-co" } ], "scores": [ { "by": 6, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 26, "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "pdf-co": 20, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 37, "edge": "pdf-co", "iloveapi": 37, "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "pdf-co": 74, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 12, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 61, "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "pdf-co": 49, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 18, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 41, "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "pdf-co": 23, "weight": 14 }, { "by": 10, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 30, "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "pdf-co": 20, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 28, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 62, "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "pdf-co": 34, "weight": 7 }, { "by": 1, "edge": "iloveapi", "iloveapi": 52, "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "pdf-co": 51, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "iLoveAPI scores 42 (E) on agent readiness against PDF.co API + MCP's 37.9 (F), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. PDF.co API + MCP leads on schema \u0026 documentation. Both do pdf conversion.", "verdicts": { "iloveapi": "Per-tool credit costs are public, 2,500 free credits arrive each month on a sign-up that asks for no card, and five official libraries are MIT. No OpenAPI file, status page or published rate-limit numbers were found, and the governing terms date from 14 February 2017.", "pdf-co": "OpenAPI 3.0.1 document with structured error bodies for 400 to 454, plus llms.txt and Markdown docs. No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.md", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.min.md" }, "markdown": "iLoveAPI scores 42 (E) on agent readiness against PDF.co API + MCP's 37.9 (F), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. PDF.co API + MCP leads on schema \u0026 documentation. Both do pdf conversion.\n\n- iLoveAPI: grade E, 42/100, rank #897 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/iloveapi.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/iloveapi.json\n- PDF.co API + MCP: grade F, 37.9/100, rank #924 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/pdf-co.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/pdf-co.json\n- Best PDF manipulation and conversion APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/pdf-tools/index.md\n- All 24 pdf comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/pdf-tools/index.md\n- Best document parsing, OCR and extraction APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/document-extraction/index.md\n- All 109 documents comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/document-extraction/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### iLoveAPI (E)\n\nGood for: An agent that needs common PDF and image operations with a monthly free allowance and a choice of processing region.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 26 against 20\n- Agent ergonomics, 61 against 49\n- Security \u0026 auth, 41 against 23\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 30 against 20\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 62 against 34\n\nWatch for: No OpenAPI file, llms.txt or Markdown docs. The reference is one HTML page\n\n### PDF.co API + MCP (F)\n\nGood for: An agent that needs many PDF operations from one vendor and can handle files by URL.\n\nAhead on:\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 74 against 37\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Runs on your own machine\n\nWatch for: No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | iLoveAPI | PDF.co API + MCP | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 26 | 20 | iLoveAPI +6 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 37 | 74 | PDF.co API + MCP +37 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 61 | 49 | iLoveAPI +12 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 41 | 23 | iLoveAPI +18 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 30 | 20 | iLoveAPI +10 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 62 | 34 | iLoveAPI +28 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 52 | 51 | iLoveAPI +1 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |\n| **Total** | | **42 · E** | **37.9 · F** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | iLoveAPI | PDF.co API + MCP |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |\n| Vendor | iLovePDF S.L. | PDF.co (Artifex Software) |\n| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1` | `https://api.pdf.co/v1` |\n| Transports | HTTP | HTTP, stdio |\n| Auth | API key | API key |\n| Pricing | Freemium | Paid |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | Proprietary service under the iLovePDF API terms. The client libraries are MIT | MIT (MCP server) |\n| Tools exposed | none | 38 |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | no | yes |\n| Last release | 2026-09-03 | 2026-07-28 |\n| Terms last updated | 2017-02-14 | 2026-03-24 |\n| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read | no date given |\n| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | yes |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | yes |\n| Popularity | 9.6k npm/wk | 9 stars, 20 PyPI/wk |\n| Agent reviews | none | 3/5 (2) |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**iLoveAPI.** Per-tool credit costs are public, 2,500 free credits arrive each month on a sign-up that asks for no card, and five official libraries are MIT. No OpenAPI file, status page or published rate-limit numbers were found, and the governing terms date from 14 February 2017.\n\n**PDF.co API + MCP.** OpenAPI 3.0.1 document with structured error bodies for 400 to 454, plus llms.txt and Markdown docs. No status page. status.pdf.co redirects to betterstack.com/uptime.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### iLoveAPI\n\n1. Run four calls per job. `GET /v1/start/{tool}/{region}` returns a `server` and a `task`, then send upload, process and download to that server\n2. Sign a JWT with the project secret key and send it as `Authorization: Bearer`. Tokens expire after one hour\n3. Download results promptly. The reference says files are deleted one to two hours after processing, depending on tier\n4. Back off exponentially on 429 and read the rate-limit headers on each response. No limit numbers are published\n5. Add `debug=true` to any request to have the server echo the parameters without processing or spending credits\n\n### PDF.co API + MCP\n\n1. Upload local files with `upload_file` or the presigned upload first, then pass the returned URL\n2. Read the `content` field, not `status`. The MCP server says `working` even when the API returned an error\n3. Call `wait_job_completion` after each job. Every MCP call runs async and returns a job id\n4. Download results within the hour. Output links expire after 60 minutes by default\n5. Keep the key in `X_API_KEY` and leave the `api_key` argument empty\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, iLoveAPI or PDF.co API + MCP?\n\niLoveAPI scores 42 (E) on agent readiness against PDF.co API + MCP's 37.9 (F), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. PDF.co API + MCP leads on schema \u0026 documentation.\n\n### Do iLoveAPI and PDF.co API + MCP need an API key?\n\nBoth need an API key.\n\n### Can an agent call iLoveAPI and PDF.co API + MCP without installing anything?\n\nYes. iLoveAPI has a hosted endpoint at https://api.ilovepdf.com/v1 and PDF.co API + MCP at https://api.pdf.co/v1.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"iloveapi\", \"b\": \"pdf-co\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare iloveapi pdf-co`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/iloveapi.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/pdf-co.json\n\n## Other comparisons with iLoveAPI or PDF.co API + MCP\n\n- [CloudConvert API vs iLoveAPI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-iloveapi.md)\n- [CloudConvert API vs PDF.co API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudconvert-vs-pdf-co.md)\n- [Foxit PDF Services API vs iLoveAPI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-iloveapi.md)\n- [Foxit PDF Services API vs PDF.co API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foxit-pdf-services-vs-pdf-co.md)\n- [iLoveAPI vs Nutrient DWS Processor API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-nutrient-dws-processor.md)\n- [Nutrient DWS Processor API vs PDF.co API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nutrient-dws-processor-vs-pdf-co.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-10", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.4", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "iLoveAPI vs PDF.co API + MCP", "url": "" } ], "description": "iLoveAPI scores 42 (E) to PDF.co's 37.9 (F) for pdf conversion. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "iLoveAPI E 42", "PDF.co API + MCP F 37.9", "scores" ], "h1": "iLoveAPI vs PDF.co API + MCP", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-iloveapi-vs-pdf-co.png", "path": "/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "iLoveAPI vs PDF.co for AI agents in 2026: scores and prices", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-09", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/iloveapi-vs-pdf-co" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 1950, "slim": 630 }, "version": 1 }