Save HTML Documents in Python

After creating, loading, or editing an HTMLDocument, call save() to write its current DOM state to a file. Aspose.HTML for Python via .NET can save HTML, create MHTML or Markdown output, and save standalone SVG documents.

To save HTML in Python, create or load an HTMLDocument, modify it if needed, and call document.save(path). Use HTMLSaveOptions to control linked resources, or pass HTMLSaveFormat.MHTML or HTMLSaveFormat.MARKDOWN to select another HTML-based output format.

Saving and conversion solve different tasks:

• Document saving writes HTML-based content with HTMLDocument.save() and classes from the aspose.html.saving module.
• Document conversion creates a visual output such as PDF, XPS, DOCX, or an image. For these outputs, use the HTML Converter and the appropriate format-specific save options.

API	Use it to
HTMLDocument.save()	Save the current HTML document by using a supported path, format, options, or resource handler overload.
HTMLSaveOptions	Configure HTML output and access linked-resource handling settings.
ResourceHandlingOptions	Control how resources and linked pages are processed during saving.
HTMLSaveFormat	Select MHTML or Markdown output with a format-based save() overload.
SVGDocument	Create, edit, and save a standalone SVG document.

Save HTML to a File

The simplest workflow creates an HTML document, adds content to its DOM, and saves the result as a local .html file.

The following example:

1. Creates the output directory and the save-html-document.html destination path.
2. Initializes an empty HTMLDocument.
3. Creates a Hello, World! text node and appends it to the document body.
4. Calls save() to write the document to the HTML file.

# Save HTML to a file using Python

import os
import aspose.html as ah

# Prepare an output path for saving the document
output_dir = "output"
if not os.path.exists(output_dir):
    os.makedirs(output_dir)

document_path = os.path.join(output_dir, "save-html-document.html")

# Initialize an empty HTML document
with ah.HTMLDocument() as document:
    # Create a text node and add it to the document
    text = document.create_text_node("Hello, World!")
    document.body.append_child(text)

    # Save HTML to a file
    document.save(document_path)

The HTMLDocument() constructor creates the document structure in memory. Changes remain in memory until save() writes the current DOM to the destination. To load and modify an existing file before saving it, see Edit HTML Documents in Python.

Save HTML with Linked Resources

For examples of saving CSS and images to a selected folder, embedding resources in one HTML file, and processing directly linked pages, see Save HTML with Resources in Python.

Save HTML as MHTML or Markdown

The HTMLSaveFormat enumeration selects MHTML or Markdown when calling a compatible save() overload.

Save HTML to MHTML

MHTML is a web archive format that combines the current HTML document and handled resources in one file. A linked HTML page is not included merely because it appears in an <a href> element; linked-page processing is controlled by max_handling_depth and URL restrictions.

The following example:

1. Creates document.html and a page named linked-file.html.
2. Loads document.html into an HTMLDocument.
3. Calls save() with HTMLSaveFormat.MHTML.
4. Creates output/save-html-to-mhtml.mht containing the current document and resources handled under the active save settings.

# Save HTML as MHTML using Python

import os
import aspose.html as ah
import aspose.html.saving as sav

# Define the output directory and document path
output_dir = 'output'
document_path = os.path.join(output_dir, 'save-html-to-mhtml.mht')

# Ensure the output directory exists
os.makedirs(output_dir, exist_ok=True)

# Prepare a simple HTML file with a linked document
with open('document.html', 'w') as file:
    file.write("<p>Hello, World!</p>"
               "<a href='linked-file.html'>linked file</a>")

# Prepare a simple linked HTML file
with open('linked-file.html', 'w') as file:
    file.write("<p>Hello, linked file!</p>")

# Load the "document.html" into memory
with ah.HTMLDocument('document.html') as document:
    # Save the document to MHTML format
    document.save(document_path, sav.HTMLSaveFormat.MHTML)

With the default page depth of 0, the example does not package the target of the linked-file.html hyperlink as another archived page. Use MHTMLSaveOptions when linked-page depth or resource handling requires additional configuration.

Save HTML to Markdown

Markdown is a plain-text markup format suited to editable documentation and content workflows.

The following example:

1. Loads data/document.html into an HTMLDocument.
2. Selects output/html-to-markdown.md as the destination.
3. Calls save() with HTMLSaveFormat.MARKDOWN.
4. Writes the document content in Markdown format.

# Save HTML as Markdown using Python

import os
import aspose.html as ah
import aspose.html.saving as sav

# Prepare a path to a source and output HTML file
data_dir = "data"
output_dir = "output"
if not os.path.exists(output_dir):
    os.makedirs(output_dir)

input_path = os.path.join(data_dir, "document.html")
output_path = os.path.join(output_dir, "html-to-markdown.md")

# Load the HTML document from a file
document = ah.HTMLDocument(input_path)

# Save the document to Markdown format
document.save(output_path, sav.HTMLSaveFormat.MARKDOWN)

For converter-based workflows and additional Markdown settings, see Convert HTML to Markdown in Python.

Save an SVG Document

SVG can be embedded in HTML or processed as a standalone XML-based vector document. Use SVGDocument for a standalone SVG DOM. HTML and SVG use the node concepts defined by the WHATWG DOM Standard, while the SVG 2 specification defines SVG elements and rendering behavior.

The following example:

1. Defines SVG markup containing a group of paths.
2. Creates an SVGDocument from the markup and a base URI.
3. Creates the output directory.
4. Saves the vector document as output/save-html-to-svg.svg.

# Create and save SVG document using Python

import os
import aspose.html.dom.svg as ahsvg

# Define the output directory and document path
output_dir = 'output'
document_path = os.path.join(output_dir, 'save-html-to-svg.svg')

# Ensure the output directory exists
os.makedirs(output_dir, exist_ok=True)

# Prepare SVG code
svg_code = """
<svg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' height='400' width='300'>
    <path stroke="#a06e84" stroke-width="3" fill="#74aeaf" d="  
	M 150,50 L 150, 300
	M 120,100 L 150,50 L 180, 100
    M 110,150 L 150,90 L 190, 150
	M 90,220 L 150,130 L 210, 220
	M 70,300 L 150,190 L 230, 300
    M 110,310 L 150,240 L 190, 310
	" />
</svg>
"""

# Initialize an SVG instance from the content string
document = ahsvg.SVGDocument(svg_code, '.')

# Save SVG
document.save(document_path)

This workflow creates and saves SVG source content; it does not convert an HTML page to SVG. For additional SVG workflows, see the Aspose.SVG for Python via .NET documentation.

Common HTML Saving Issues

Issue	Cause and recommended action
Images, CSS, scripts, or fonts are missing	Check the base URL, resource paths, handling behavior, and URL restrictions configured through HTMLSaveOptions.
A linked HTML page is not processed	The default max_handling_depth is 0. Use 1 for directly referenced pages or another suitable depth, subject to URL restrictions.
A PDF, DOCX, XPS, or image was expected from save()	HTMLDocument.save() handles HTML-based formats. Use the HTML conversion or rendering APIs for visual output formats.
MHTML or Markdown output was not created	Pass HTMLSaveFormat.MHTML or HTMLSaveFormat.MARKDOWN to the compatible save() overload.
SVG changes are absent from the output	Apply the changes to an SVGDocument and call its save() method afterward.

FAQ

How do I save an HTML document in Python?

Create or load an HTMLDocument, modify its DOM if needed, and call document.save(path) to write the current document state to an HTML file.

Does saving HTML include images and CSS?

The save API can process linked resources. Use HTMLSaveOptions.resource_handling_options to control the handling behavior and which resource URLs may be processed.

How do I save HTML and resources as a single file?

To create a self-contained .html file, set HTMLSaveOptions.resource_handling_options.default to ResourceHandling.EMBED and configure JavaScript separately when required. To create a MIME web archive, call document.save(path, HTMLSaveFormat.MHTML). See Save HTML with Resources in Python for a complete embedding example.

What is the difference between saving and converting HTML?

Saving writes the document to an HTML-based format such as HTML, MHTML, or Markdown. Conversion produces another representation such as PDF, DOCX, XPS, or an image.

Other Platforms

• Save HTML Documents in C# – save HTML, MHTML, Markdown, SVG, and related resources with Aspose.HTML for .NET.
• Save HTML Documents in Java – save HTML-based documents and configure linked-resource handling with Aspose.HTML for Java.

Related Articles

• Save HTML with Resources in Python – save linked CSS and images to a selected folder or embed them directly in HTML.
• Working with HTML Documents in Python – choose a document creation, editing, or saving workflow.
• Create and Load HTML Documents in Python – create HTML or load it from a file, URL, string, or stream.
• Edit HTML Documents in Python – modify DOM nodes, attributes, text, and CSS before saving.
• HTML Converter in Python – convert HTML to PDF, DOCX, XPS, images, MHTML, or Markdown.
• MHTML Converter in Python – convert MHTML input to supported output formats.
• Aspose.HTML for Python via .NET Examples – browse complete examples and supporting data files.