Why is there a left padding in a cell using FPDF in php?

Question

I am printing a cell using the FPDF(http://www.fpdf.org/) class in php. The cell should be placed into the top left corner.

Everything works great, except that a left padding is added inside the cell.

Here is my code:

$pdf = new FPDF('L', 'mm', array(50.8,88.9));
$pdf->addPage('L', array(50.8,88.9));
$pdf->SetDisplayMode(100,'default');
$pdf->SetTextColor(0,0,0);
$pdf->SetMargins(0,0,0);    
$pdf->SetAutoPageBreak(0);
$pdf->SetFont('Arial','',8.5);

$pdf->SetXY(0, 0); //sets the position for the name
$pdf->Cell(0,2.98740833, "Your Name", '1', 2, 'L', false); //Name

Here's a screenshot of the PDF that is outputting with FPDF:

Screenshot of PDF output with FPDF

Why is there a left padding in a cell using FPDF in php and how can I remove the padding?

You really should checkout [TCPDF](http://www.tcpdf.org/). I don't believe FPDF is being maintained anymore. — Jared Farrish, Jun 26 '11 at 04:33
I took your advice and created the same page with TCPDF and I am now getting a top and left padding within the cell. I have posted the code and screenshots here: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/6483326/why-is-there-a-left-and-top-padding-in-a-cell-using-tcpdf-in-php — zeckdude, Jun 26 '11 at 10:12
My apologies, I wasn't saying it would necessarily fix the issue, just that TCPDF is a more modern and maintained package than FPDF. I used to use FPDF, but have found TCPDF to be more useful. — Jared Farrish, Jun 26 '11 at 14:19

score 16 · Answer 1 · answered Feb 20 '13 at 16:09

16

I know this is super old, but I had and fixed the same issue so maybe someone will find it useful.

There's a property in the FPDF class called $cMargin, which is used to calculate the x-offset of the text before it gets printed within the cell, but there doesn't appear to be a setter for it. It's a public property, so after you've instantiated your FPDF class, just call:

$pdf = new fpdf('P','mm','A4');
$pdf->cMargin = 0;

And your cells won't have that padding on the left any more.

answered Feb 20 '13 at 16:09

Jasper Tandy

335
2
8

In FPDF 1.8.1 This property is protected, so this answer will not work. – Anwar Jul 12 '17 at 14:22
@AnwarNairi so what we will have to do to get padding in cell? – Naitik Kundalia Jul 24 '18 at 04:48
For the Python pyfpdf equivalent you can set `pdf.c_margin = 0` – spro Feb 04 '21 at 06:16

score 8 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 09 '16 at 10:50

8

Small fix updateproof

<?php
require("fpdf.php");

class CustomFPDF extends FPDF{
    function SetCellMargin($margin){
        // Set cell margin
        $this->cMargin = $margin;
    }
}
?>

<?php
$pdf = new CustomFPDF();
$pdf->setCellMargin(0);
?>

answered Apr 09 '16 at 10:50

Vince

81
1
1

A small aside, the cell margin has no effect if the cell is set to Center alignment – kurdtpage Nov 15 '16 at 22:21
This is the only correct way to fix this issue with the latest version of FPDF, as cMargin is now a protected property. Thank you for the great fix @Vince! – schmoove Sep 21 '22 at 18:02

score 2 · Answer 3 · answered Sep 02 '12 at 23:42

2

I can't work out how to remove the padding.

As a workaround, it is useful to know that it seems to be 1mm, regardless of font size. The same padding is applied at the right edge with right aligned text.

answered Sep 02 '12 at 23:42

Jim

1,053
9
14

score 2 · Answer 4 · answered Feb 07 '13 at 21:03

2

i've ran into the same problem. Only the 1st line has this unwanted margin, so my workaround was this:

  $pdf->Ln(); //workaround for 1st line
  $pdf->Cell(..);

answered Feb 07 '13 at 21:03

steve

615
6
14

Solved my issue too, you can pass the height value to the `Ln(1)` – John Magnolia Nov 15 '13 at 11:06

score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Jan 16 '17 at 13:10

1

Use SetMargins before AddPage

example:

$pdf=new PDF();
$pdf->SetMargins(23, 44, 11.7);
$pdf->AliasNbPages();
$pdf->AddPage();

answered Jan 16 '17 at 13:10

Dhea

11
2

score 1 · Answer 6 · answered Jun 26 '11 at 02:42

1

Have you tried running SetMargins(0,0)?

SetMargins

SetMargins(float left, float top [, float right])

Description

Defines the left, top and right margins. By default, they equal 1 cm. Call this method to change them.

http://www.fpdf.org/en/doc/setmargins.htm

answered Jun 26 '11 at 02:42

Mahdi.Montgomery

2,024
4
17
21

Thank you for the tip, but I am actually using that function already. I had not listed it here because I didn't think it was important. I have now updated all the functions I am using so that you have a better idea. – zeckdude Jun 26 '11 at 04:32
1

This function is for setting the margin for the entire page, not each cell. – kurdtpage Nov 15 '16 at 22:19

Why is there a left padding in a cell using FPDF in php?

6 Answers6