Endpoint reference

`POST /api/rotate`

Q: Does rotating twice cancel out?

Rotations add up. Call it with degrees=90 and then again with degrees=-90 and the pages are back where they started.

Q: Can I rotate only the scanned pages?

Yes. Send pages, for example pages=4-6. Pages you do not list are left alone.

Rotate every page of a PDF, or only chosen pages. The turn is added to each page's current rotation. Returns the rotated PDF as application/pdf, with the same pages in the same order.

Request

Method: POST. URL: https://pdfops.dev/api/rotate. Body: multipart/form-data.

Field	Type	Required	Description
`pdf`	File (PDF binary)	Yes	The PDF to work on, up to 4 MB and 2,000 pages. The whole request must stay under 4.5 MB, Vercel's platform request limit.
`degrees`	String	Yes	One of `90`, `180`, `270` or `-90`.
`pages`	String	No	Page list such as `1-3,5` (see Page lists). Default: all pages.
`password`	String	No	Opens a PDF that needs a user password. Not needed for owner-locked files with an empty user password.

The optional X-API-Key header works as on /api/merge: no header is anonymous, 100 requests per IP per month; a valid key uses your tier's quota; an invalid or revoked key returns 401 invalid_api_key. A successful (2xx) call counts 1 request. Check consumption with GET /api/usage.

Page lists

The pages value is a comma list of items: N (one page), A-B (an inclusive range) or A- (page A through the last page). Pages are 1-based. Spaces around items and around the dash are ignored. last and negative numbers are not supported. A page past the end of the PDF, a reversed range, an empty item or an empty value fails with invalid_pages.

Response

On success: 200 OK, Content-Type: application/pdf, body is the rotated PDF.

On any failure: 4xx or 500, Content-Type: application/json, body is { "error": "<code>", "details": "<explanation>" }.

Error codes

Error code	Status	Trigger
`invalid_multipart`	400	Request body could not be parsed as `multipart/form-data`.
`missing_pdf`	400	The request does not have exactly one `pdf` file field.
`pdf_too_large`	400	The `pdf` file is over 4 MB.
`invalid_pdf`	400	The PDF could not be parsed (corrupt, or not a PDF).
`encrypted_pdf`	400	The PDF needs a password we were not given. Owner-locked files with an empty user password (most government blanks) open on their own; for a real user password send it as the `password` form field.
`decompressed_too_large`	400	Object streams inside the PDF decompress to over 32 MB.
`too_many_pages`	400	The PDF has over 2,000 pages.
`invalid_degrees`	400	`degrees` is missing or not one of `90`, `180`, `270`, `-90`.
`invalid_pages`	400	`pages` is empty, malformed or out of range. `details` says which item failed. Pages listed more than once count once.
`save_failed`	500	PDF serialization failed. Retryable.
`request_too_large`	413	The whole request body is over 4.5 MB (Vercel's platform request limit). Rejected before anything is parsed.
`invalid_api_key`	401	An `X-API-Key` header was sent but the key is unknown or revoked. No fallback to the anonymous IP cap. Get a fresh key at /pricing.
`rate_limited` (anonymous)	429	No `X-API-Key` header and the per-IP limit (100/month) is exhausted. `Retry-After` gives seconds until next calendar month.
`rate_limited` (keyed)	429	Your key's tier quota (Free 250 / Indie 4,000 / Pro 25,000 per month) is exhausted. `Retry-After` gives seconds until next calendar month.

Example

curl -X POST https://pdfops.dev/api/rotate \
  -F "pdf=@scan.pdf" \
  -F "degrees=90" \
  -F "pages=2-3" \
  -o rotated.pdf \
  -H "X-API-Key: pdfops_live_..."  # optional, raises your quota to your tier

Keyless calls work: 100 requests per IP per month with no key.

Using this for real? A free API key raises the keyless 100 calls per IP to 250 requests a month, with no card.

Get a free API key

Code examples

Have an API key? Add an X-API-Key header to any request. It is optional, and it raises your quota from 100/IP/month to your tier's.

JavaScript (Node.js 22+) — built-in fetch + FormData

import { readFile, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises';

const fd = new FormData();
fd.append('pdf', new Blob([await readFile('scan.pdf')], { type: 'application/pdf' }), 'scan.pdf');
fd.append('degrees', '90');
fd.append('pages', '2-3');  // omit to rotate every page

const res = await fetch('https://pdfops.dev/api/rotate', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: { 'X-API-Key': process.env.PDFOPS_API_KEY }, // optional
  body: fd,
});
if (!res.ok) {
  const err = await res.json();
  throw new Error(`PDFops rotate failed: ${err.error}: ${err.details}`);
}
await writeFile('rotated.pdf', Buffer.from(await res.arrayBuffer()));

Behavioral notes

The turn is added to the page's existing rotation and the result is normalized to 0 to 359. A page already at 90 degrees, rotated by 270, ends at 0.
A page listed twice is rotated once.
The output is deterministic. Dates are set to the Unix epoch and the producer to pdfops.dev.
Limits: 4 MB per PDF, 2,000 pages, 4.5 MB per request (Vercel's platform limit).

FAQ

Does rotating twice cancel out?

Rotations add up. Call it with degrees=90 and then again with degrees=-90 and the pages are back where they started.

Can I rotate only the scanned pages?

Yes. Send pages, for example pages=4-6. Pages you do not list are left alone.

Get a free API key. Keyless calls get 100 requests per IP per month; a free key raises that to 250, with no card. Enter your email and the key arrives in your inbox.

Get a free API key

← All docs · PDFops home