Tables

A Table is a grid of cells built row by row. Tables break across pages automatically, and because a TableCell is a full content container, cells can hold anything a document can hold.

Basic table

Create the table with AddTable, add rows with AddTableRow, and add cells with AddTableCell. SetDefaultColumnWidth and SetDefaultRowHeight provide the grid defaults.

Borders are set at two levels. Table.SetBorder draws only the outer frame around the whole table. It doesn't draw the lines between the cells. To get a full grid, call TableCell.SetBorder on each cell as well. Both calls take a thickness in points plus an RGB color, and apply it to all four edges.

C#

Table table = doc.AddTable();
table.SetDefaultColumnWidth(90);
table.SetDefaultRowHeight(18);
table.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);

for (int r = 0; r < 3; ++r)
{
    TableRow row = table.AddTableRow();
    for (int c = 0; c < 3; ++c)
    {
        TableCell cell = row.AddTableCell();
        cell.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);   // draws the internal grid lines
        cell.AddParagraph("R" + r + " C" + c);
    }
}

C++

Table table = doc.AddTable();
table.SetDefaultColumnWidth(90);
table.SetDefaultRowHeight(18);
table.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);

for (int r = 0; r < 3; ++r)
{
    TableRow row = table.AddTableRow();
    for (int c = 0; c < 3; ++c)
    {
        TableCell cell = row.AddTableCell();
        cell.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);   // draws the internal grid lines
        cell.AddParagraph("R" + IntToString(r) + " C" + IntToString(c));
    }
}

Go

table := doc.AddTable()
table.SetDefaultColumnWidth(90)
table.SetDefaultRowHeight(18)
table.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)

for r := 0; r < 3; r++ {
    row := table.AddTableRow()
    for c := 0; c < 3; c++ {
        cell := row.AddTableCell()
        cell.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120) // draws the internal grid lines
        cell.AddParagraph(fmt.Sprintf("R%d C%d", r, c))
    }
}

Java

Table table = doc.addTable();
table.setDefaultColumnWidth(90);
table.setDefaultRowHeight(18);
table.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);

for (int r = 0; r < 3; ++r) {
    TableRow row = table.addTableRow();
    for (int c = 0; c < 3; ++c) {
        TableCell cell = row.addTableCell();
        cell.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);   // draws the internal grid lines
        cell.addParagraph("R" + r + " C" + c);
    }
}

JavaScript

const table = await doc.addTable();
table.setDefaultColumnWidth(90);
table.setDefaultRowHeight(18);
table.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);

for (let r = 0; r < 3; r++) {
    const row = await table.addTableRow();
    for (let c = 0; c < 3; c++) {
        const cell = await row.addTableCell();
        cell.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);   // draws the internal grid lines
        await cell.addParagraphWithText('R' + r + ' C' + c);
    }
}

Obj-C

PTTable* table = [doc AddTable];
[table SetDefaultColumnWidth:90];
[table SetDefaultRowHeight:18];
[table SetBorder:0.75 red:120 green:120 blue:120];

for (int r = 0; r < 3; ++r)
{
    PTTableRow* row = [table AddTableRow];
    for (int c = 0; c < 3; ++c)
    {
        PTTableCell* cell = [row AddTableCell];
        // Draws the internal grid lines.
        [cell SetBorder:0.75 red:120 green:120 blue:120];
        [cell AddParagraphWithText:[NSString stringWithFormat:@"R%d C%d", r, c]];
    }
}

PHP

$table = $doc->AddTable();
$table->SetDefaultColumnWidth(90);
$table->SetDefaultRowHeight(18);
$table->SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);

for ($r = 0; $r < 3; ++$r) {
    $row = $table->AddTableRow();
    for ($c = 0; $c < 3; ++$c) {
        $cell = $row->AddTableCell();
        $cell->SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);   // draws the internal grid lines
        $cell->AddParagraph("R".$r." C".$c);
    }
}

Python

table = doc.AddTable()
table.SetDefaultColumnWidth(90)
table.SetDefaultRowHeight(18)
table.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)

for r in range(3):
    row = table.AddTableRow()
    for c in range(3):
        cell = row.AddTableCell()
        cell.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)   # draws the internal grid lines
        cell.AddParagraph("R%d C%d" % (r, c))

Ruby

table = doc.AddTable()
table.SetDefaultColumnWidth(90)
table.SetDefaultRowHeight(18)
table.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)

(0..2).each do |r|
  row = table.AddTableRow()
  (0..2).each do |c|
    cell = row.AddTableCell()
    cell.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)   # draws the internal grid lines
    cell.AddParagraph("R#{r} C#{c}")
  end
end

The number of columns is determined by the number of cells you add to each row; rows can differ.

Style cells

Cells carry their own background color, border, alignment, and size. A typical pattern is a colored header row plus alternating row shading.

C#

TableRow header = table.AddTableRow();
foreach (string text in headers)
{
    TableCell cell = header.AddTableCell();
    cell.SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102);
    cell.SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102);
    cell.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell.CellAlignmentVertical.e_center);

    Paragraph para = cell.AddParagraph(text);
    para.SetStartIndent(3);

    TextStyledElement style = para.GetTextStyledElement();
    style.SetBold(true);
    style.SetTextColor(255, 255, 255);
}

C++

TableRow header = table.AddTableRow();
for (int c = 0; c < 3; ++c)
{
    TableCell cell = header.AddTableCell();
    cell.SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102);
    cell.SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102);
    cell.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::e_alignment_center);

    Paragraph para = cell.AddParagraph(headers[c]);
    para.SetStartIndent(3);

    TextStyledElement style = para.GetTextStyledElement();
    style.SetBold(true);
    style.SetTextColor(255, 255, 255);
}

Go

header := table.AddTableRow()
for _, text := range headers {
    cell := header.AddTableCell()
    cell.SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102)
    cell.SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102)
    cell.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCellE_alignment_center)

    para := cell.AddParagraph(text)
    para.SetStartIndent(3)

    style := para.GetTextStyledElement()
    style.SetBold(true)
    style.SetTextColor(255, 255, 255)
}

Java

TableRow header = table.addTableRow();
for (String text : headers) {
    TableCell cell = header.addTableCell();
    cell.setBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102);
    cell.setBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102);
    cell.setVerticalAlignment(TableCell.CellAlignmentVerticalVals.e_alignment_center);

    Paragraph para = cell.addParagraph(text);
    para.setStartIndent(3);

    TextStyledElement style = para.getTextStyledElement();
    style.setBold(true);
    style.setTextColor(255, 255, 255);
}

JavaScript

const header = await table.addTableRow();
for (let c = 0; c < 3; c++) {
    const cell = await header.addTableCell();
    cell.setBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102);
    cell.setBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102);
    cell.setVerticalAlignment(PDFNet.TableCell.AlignmentVertical.e_alignment_center);

    const para = await cell.addParagraphWithText(headers[c]);
    para.setStartIndent(3);

    const style = await para.getTextStyledElement();
    style.setBold(true);
    style.setTextColor(255, 255, 255);
}

Obj-C

PTTableRow* header = [table AddTableRow];
for (NSString* text in headers)
{
    PTTableCell* cell = [header AddTableCell];
    [cell SetBackgroundColor:0 green:51 blue:102];
    [cell SetBorder:0.75 red:0 green:51 blue:102];
    [cell SetVerticalAlignment:e_ptcell_alignment_center];

    PTParagraph* para = [cell AddParagraphWithText:text];
    [para SetStartIndent:3];

    PTTextStyledElement* style = [para GetTextStyledElement];
    [style SetBold:YES];
    [style SetTextColor:255 green:255 blue:255];
}

PHP

$header = $table->AddTableRow();
foreach ($headers as $text) {
    $cell = $header->AddTableCell();
    $cell->SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102);
    $cell->SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102);
    $cell->SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::e_alignment_center);

    $para = $cell->AddParagraph($text);
    $para->SetStartIndent(3);

    $style = $para->GetTextStyledElement();
    $style->SetBold(true);
    $style->SetTextColor(255, 255, 255);
}

Python

header = table.AddTableRow()
for text in headers:
    cell = header.AddTableCell()
    cell.SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102)
    cell.SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102)
    cell.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell.e_alignment_center)

    para = cell.AddParagraph(text)
    para.SetStartIndent(3)

    style = para.GetTextStyledElement()
    style.SetBold(True)
    style.SetTextColor(255, 255, 255)

Ruby

header = table.AddTableRow()
headers.each do |text|
  cell = header.AddTableCell()
  cell.SetBackgroundColor(0, 51, 102)
  cell.SetBorder(0.75, 0, 51, 102)
  cell.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::E_alignment_center)

  para = cell.AddParagraph(text)
  para.SetStartIndent(3)

  style = para.GetTextStyledElement()
  style.SetBold(true)
  style.SetTextColor(255, 255, 255)
end

Horizontal placement of text has two levels. Paragraph justification places the text within the cell's content area, while the cell's horizontal alignment positions the content block within the cell. A small start indent keeps text off the cell border.

Alignment values

Enum	Values
Vertical cell alignment	e_alignment_top, e_alignment_center, e_alignment_bottom
Horizontal cell alignment	e_alignment_left, e_alignment_middle, e_alignment_right

Merge cells

MergeCellsRight absorbs the next cells in the row, and MergeCellsDown absorbs the next cells in the column. Cells are addressed with GetTableCell, which takes the column first and then the row.

C#

table.GetTableCell(0, 0).MergeCellsRight(1);   // span two columns
table.GetTableCell(2, 1).MergeCellsDown(1);    // span two rows

C++

table.GetTableCell(0, 0).MergeCellsRight(1);   // span two columns
table.GetTableCell(2, 1).MergeCellsDown(1);    // span two rows

Go

table.GetTableCell(0, 0).MergeCellsRight(1)   // span two columns
table.GetTableCell(2, 1).MergeCellsDown(1)    // span two rows

Java

table.getTableCell(0, 0).mergeCellsRight(1);   // span two columns
table.getTableCell(2, 1).mergeCellsDown(1);    // span two rows

JavaScript

(await table.getTableCell(0, 0)).mergeCellsRight(1);   // span two columns
(await table.getTableCell(2, 1)).mergeCellsDown(1);    // span two rows

Obj-C

[[table GetTableCell:0 row:0] MergeCellsRight:1];   // span two columns
[[table GetTableCell:2 row:1] MergeCellsDown:1];    // span two rows

PHP

$table->GetTableCell(0, 0)->MergeCellsRight(1);   // span two columns
$table->GetTableCell(2, 1)->MergeCellsDown(1);    // span two rows

Python

table.GetTableCell(0, 0).MergeCellsRight(1)   # span two columns
table.GetTableCell(2, 1).MergeCellsDown(1)    # span two rows

Ruby

table.GetTableCell(0, 0).MergeCellsRight(1)   # span two columns
table.GetTableCell(2, 1).MergeCellsDown(1)    # span two rows

Merging is how invoice-style totals blocks are built: add a full-width row, then merge away the leading empty cells so the label sits next to the amount. After merging, a row reports fewer columns.

Nest content in cells

TableCell is a content container, so paragraphs, lists, and tables are all available inside a cell.

C#

TableRow row = table.AddTableRow();

TableCell left = row.AddTableCell();
left.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
left.AddParagraph("Checklist:");

List list = left.AddList();
list.SetNumberFormat(List.NumberFormat.e_decimal, ".", true);
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Draft");
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Review");

TableCell right = row.AddTableCell();
right.SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248);
right.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
right.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell.CellAlignmentVertical.e_center);
right.AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.");

C++

TableRow row = table.AddTableRow();

TableCell left = row.AddTableCell();
left.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
left.AddParagraph("Checklist:");

List list = left.AddList();
list.SetNumberFormat(List::e_decimal, ".", true);
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Draft");
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Review");

TableCell right = row.AddTableCell();
right.SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248);
right.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
right.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::e_alignment_center);
right.AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.");

Go

row := table.AddTableRow()

left := row.AddTableCell()
left.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
left.AddParagraph("Checklist:")

list := left.AddList()
list.SetNumberFormat(ListE_decimal, ".", true)
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Draft")
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Review")

right := row.AddTableCell()
right.SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248)
right.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
right.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCellE_alignment_center)
right.AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.")

Java

TableRow row = table.addTableRow();

TableCell left = row.addTableCell();
left.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
left.addParagraph("Checklist:");

List list = left.addList();
list.setNumberFormat(List.ListItemNumberFormat.e_decimal, ".", true);
list.addItem().addParagraph("Draft");
list.addItem().addParagraph("Review");

TableCell right = row.addTableCell();
right.setBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248);
right.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
right.setVerticalAlignment(TableCell.CellAlignmentVerticalVals.e_alignment_center);
right.addParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.");

JavaScript

const row = await table.addTableRow();

const left = await row.addTableCell();
left.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
await left.addParagraphWithText('Checklist:');

const list = await left.addList();
list.setNumberFormat(PDFNet.List.NumberFormat.e_decimal, '.', true);
await (await list.addItem()).addParagraphWithText('Draft');
await (await list.addItem()).addParagraphWithText('Review');

const right = await row.addTableCell();
right.setBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248);
right.setBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
right.setVerticalAlignment(PDFNet.TableCell.AlignmentVertical.e_alignment_center);
await right.addParagraphWithText('Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.');

Obj-C

PTTableRow* row = [table AddTableRow];

PTTableCell* left = [row AddTableCell];
[left SetBorder:0.75 red:120 green:120 blue:120];
[left AddParagraphWithText:@"Checklist:"];

PTList* list = [left AddList];
[list SetNumberFormatWithSuffix:e_ptlist_format_decimal suffix:@"." cascade:YES];
[[list AddItem] AddParagraphWithText:@"Draft"];
[[list AddItem] AddParagraphWithText:@"Review"];

PTTableCell* right = [row AddTableCell];
[right SetBackgroundColor:240 green:244 blue:248];
[right SetBorder:0.75 red:120 green:120 blue:120];
[right SetVerticalAlignment:e_ptcell_alignment_center];
[right AddParagraphWithText:@"Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned."];

PHP

$row = $table->AddTableRow();

$left = $row->AddTableCell();
$left->SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
$left->AddParagraph("Checklist:");

$list = $left->AddList();
$list->SetNumberFormat(ListContainer::e_decimal, ".", true);
$list->AddItem()->AddParagraph("Draft");
$list->AddItem()->AddParagraph("Review");

$right = $row->AddTableCell();
$right->SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248);
$right->SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120);
$right->SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::e_alignment_center);
$right->AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.");

Python

row = table.AddTableRow()

left = row.AddTableCell()
left.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
left.AddParagraph("Checklist:")

list = left.AddList()
list.SetNumberFormat(List.e_decimal, ".", True)
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Draft")
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Review")

right = row.AddTableCell()
right.SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248)
right.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
right.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell.e_alignment_center)
right.AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.")

Ruby

row = table.AddTableRow()

left = row.AddTableCell()
left.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
left.AddParagraph("Checklist:")

list = left.AddList()
list.SetNumberFormat(List::E_decimal, ".", true)
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Draft")
list.AddItem().AddParagraph("Review")

right = row.AddTableCell()
right.SetBackgroundColor(240, 244, 248)
right.SetBorder(0.75, 120, 120, 120)
right.SetVerticalAlignment(TableCell::E_alignment_center)
right.AddParagraph("Cells can be shaded and vertically aligned.")

Sizing values

Level	Members
Table	SetDefaultColumnWidth, SetDefaultRowHeight
Row	SetRowHeight
Cell	SetWidth, SetHeight

More specific settings win: a cell width overrides the table default, and a row height overrides the table default. Row height behaves as a minimum. A row grows when its content needs more space.

Border values

Level	Member	Draws
Table	SetBorder	The outer frame of the table only
Cell	SetBorder	All four edges of that one cell

Because the table-level border covers only the outside, the internal grid lines come from the cells. Applying a border to every cell also draws the outer edges, so a cell-level border alone is enough for a uniform grid. Adjacent cell borders share a line, so neighboring cells with different border colors give the shared edge to whichever cell is drawn last.

Further Reading

• Paragraphs and text for tab stops, a lighter alternative for simple column layouts.
• Traversing the content tree for restyling table cells after they have been generated.