North American sizes / Legal
US Legal page size for PDF generation
Legal is 8.5 by 14 inches: Letter width with three extra inches of height, used for contracts and court documents.
The dimensions
One measurement in four units. Millimetres and inches are what a printer works in; points are what the PDF itself stores; pixels are only useful for checking a screen mock-up against the real thing.
- Millimetres: 215.9 x 355.6 mm
- Inches: 8.5 x 14 in
- Points: 612 x 1008 pt
- CSS pixels: 816 x 1344 px at 96 dpi
Where the size comes from
Legal is Letter with the sheet run longer. The width matching Letter is the point: a Legal document shares margins, column widths and letterhead with the Letter stationery it sits next to in the same file, and only the run of the page differs. It survives because a longer page means fewer page breaks in a document where a break in the wrong place has consequences.
What gets printed at this size
- contracts, leases and deeds where clauses should not split
- court filings in jurisdictions that specify it
- long-form tables that would otherwise break awkwardly on Letter
Margins that survive a real printer
1 inch left and right to match Letter stationery, 1 inch top, and 1.25 inches at the bottom to leave room for a signature block or an initialling line. Numbered-line pleading paper, where it is used, has its own strict rules and is set by the court rather than by you.
The CSS
Legal is one of the six named formats the render API accepts, so it can be set in the request options or in the document's own CSS. Setting it in CSS keeps the size with the template, which is usually what you want.
@page {
size: Legal portrait;
margin: 1in 1in 1.25in 1in;
}
/* The whole reason for Legal is fewer breaks in the wrong place. Say so
explicitly rather than hoping the extra height is enough. */
.clause {
break-inside: avoid;
}
.signature-block {
break-inside: avoid;
}The render request
With a named format the size travels in the options and the CSS is optional.
{
"html": "<!doctype html>...",
"options": {
"format": "Legal",
"margin": { "top": "18mm", "bottom": "18mm", "left": "16mm", "right": "16mm" }
}
}The mistake people make
Assuming a Legal document prints on any office printer. Many multifunction devices only hold Letter in the main tray and Legal in a bypass, so a document that renders perfectly arrives cropped or scaled to fit because the driver silently substituted the paper that was loaded.
Frequently asked
What is Legal in pixels?
816 x 1344 px at 96 dpi, at the 96 pixels to the inch that CSS assumes. That number is useful for comparing a screen mock-up against the page, and useless for laying out the document: use 215.9 x 355.6 mm instead, because a page laid out in pixels shifts whenever the render scale changes.
Can I pass Legal as a format?
Yes. "Legal" is one of the six format values the API accepts, alongside A4, A3, A5, Letter, Legal and Tabloid.
Does landscape need a different page size?
No. Landscape is the same rectangle turned, so it is set as an orientation rather than as swapped dimensions. Writing the width and height the other way round produces the same page and makes the intent harder to read later.
Other page sizes
Sizes that come up in the same conversation, and one from each of the other families.
US Letter page size for PDF generation
Letter is 8.5 by 11 inches and it is the default page in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Chile and the Philippines.
Tabloid page size for PDF generation
Tabloid is 11 by 17 inches, which is two Letter sheets side by side, and it is the North American equivalent of A3.
Half Letter page size for PDF generation
Half Letter is 5.5 by 8.5 inches, the North American answer to A5, made by cutting a Letter sheet across its long side.
Executive page size for PDF generation
Executive is 7.25 by 10.5 inches, a narrower and slightly shorter Letter used for company stationery and internal memos.
A4 page size for PDF generation
A4 is the default page for business documents everywhere except North America, and the default this API uses when no format is given.
4x6 shipping label PDF size
The 4 by 6 inch label is the standard thermal shipping label accepted by every major carrier, and the most common non-paper page size an API renders.
80mm thermal receipt PDF size
The 80mm roll is the standard point-of-sale receipt: 80 millimetres of paper, a printable width of about 72mm, and a length that depends on the order.
Every page size, with dimensions
The full list, grouped by what the size is for.
Paste the CSS below into the playground and see the page box it produces.