Docling vs Rich
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
Python library that converts PDFs and office files into structured text for AI use.
Open source · MIT
A Python library for colorful, formatted text, tables and progress bars in the terminal.
Our verdict
Docling and Rich solve different problems, so they are not really alternatives. Docling is a Python library that reads PDFs and office files and converts them into structured text such as Markdown, mainly for AI and search pipelines. Rich is a Python library that makes terminal output readable, with colors, tables, progress bars and formatted tracebacks. Pick based on whether your job is extracting document content or improving what your script prints to the screen.
Pick Docling if you need to turn PDFs, Word, PowerPoint, Excel or similar files into clean text or Markdown for an AI or search project.
Pick Rich if you are writing Python command-line scripts and want clearer, more colorful output with tables or progress bars.
| Key difference | Docling | Rich |
|---|---|---|
| Main job | Converts documents like PDFs and office files into structured text. | Formats terminal output with color, tables, progress bars and Markdown. |
| Who it is for | Python developers building retrieval or RAG pipelines over documents. | Python developers writing command-line scripts and logging output. |
| Local processing | Can run locally, useful for sensitive or air-gapped documents. | Runs in your own terminal or notebook; no document handling involved. |
| Setup | Beginner-friendly, installed with a package manager, Python focused. | Beginner-friendly, installed with a package manager, requires Python 3.8+. |
| Limitations | Metadata extraction and chemistry features are listed as coming soon. | Classic Windows terminal is limited to 16 colors; needs Python code to do anything. |
Written with AI from both products' catalogue entries · updated 2026-10-29
Who each one is for
Choose Docling if you need…
- Python developers building retrieval or RAG pipelines over PDFs and office files
- Teams that need tables and reading order preserved when extracting document content
- Users who need local processing for sensitive or air-gapped documents
- People who want a command-line tool to convert a document to Markdown
Choose Rich if you need…
- Python developers who write command-line scripts and want clearer output
- People building logging or debugging output for long-running Python programs
- Developers who want to show tables or progress bars in a terminal without building the layout by hand
- Learners who want to see how formatted terminal output works in Python
Side-by-side
| Docling | Rich | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Library | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 70k | 57.7k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | Python | Python |
| Last code update | 5 days ago | 5 months ago |
What each one is
Docling
Docling parses many document formats, including PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, HTML and email, and turns them into a structured representation. It exports that content to formats such as Markdown, HTML and JSON. People use it to prepare documents for generative AI and retrieval pipelines, and it can run locally for sensitive data.
Rich
Rich is a Python library that makes terminal output easier to read. You call it from your own Python code to add color and style, and to render things like tables, progress bars, Markdown, syntax-highlighted code and tracebacks. The README says it works out of the box with a simple print-style interface.
Best for
Docling
- Python developers building retrieval or RAG pipelines over PDFs and office files
- Teams that need tables and reading order preserved when extracting document content
- Users who need local processing for sensitive or air-gapped documents
- People who want a command-line tool to convert a document to Markdown
Rich
- Python developers who write command-line scripts and want clearer output
- People building logging or debugging output for long-running Python programs
- Developers who want to show tables or progress bars in a terminal without building the layout by hand
- Learners who want to see how formatted terminal output works in Python
Strengths
Docling
- Supports a wide range of input formats in one library, per the README feature list
- Can run locally, which the README highlights for sensitive data and air-gapped setups
- Includes a CLI, a Python API, an MCP server and an API server option
Rich
- Simple, familiar interface: rich's print has the same signature as Python's built-in print
- Covers many output types (tables, progress bars, Markdown, tracebacks) in one library
- Works on Linux, macOS and Windows and in Jupyter notebooks with no extra setup, per the README
Not ideal for
Docling
- Users who need a no-code desktop app, since the README centers on pip install and CLI or Python use
- Projects that need metadata extraction such as title and authors, which the README lists as coming soon
- Chemistry-heavy work, since molecular structure understanding is also listed as coming soon
Rich
- Non-Python projects, since the library is written for Python (the README requires Python 3.8 or later)
- Users who only need a finished application rather than a library to build into their own code
- Environments limited to the classic Windows terminal, where the README says color is limited to 16 colors
Trade-offs
Docling
- Advanced features such as VLM pipelines and audio or video parsing may need extra setup or models; the README does not detail requirements for each
- Some features are newer, as shown in the What's new section, so behavior may change between releases
Rich
- Color and emoji depend on the terminal; the README says the classic Windows terminal is limited to 16 colors
- The README excerpt is truncated, so some advanced features are not described here
- It is a library for developers, so it does nothing useful on its own without Python code
Getting started
Frequently asked questions
Should I use Docling or Rich?
Docling and Rich solve different problems, so they are not really alternatives. Docling is a Python library that reads PDFs and office files and converts them into structured text such as Markdown, mainly for AI and search pipelines. Rich is a Python library that makes terminal output readable, with colors, tables, progress bars and formatted tracebacks. Pick based on whether your job is extracting document content or improving what your script prints to the screen. Pick Docling if you need to turn PDFs, Word, PowerPoint, Excel or similar files into clean text or Markdown for an AI or search project. Pick Rich if you are writing Python command-line scripts and want clearer, more colorful output with tables or progress bars.
What is the difference between Docling and Rich?
Docling: Python library that converts PDFs and office files into structured text for AI use. Rich: A Python library for colorful, formatted text, tables and progress bars in the terminal. Docling suits python developers building retrieval or rag pipelines over pdfs and office files, while Rich suits python developers who write command-line scripts and want clearer output.
Are Docling and Rich free?
Docling: Free and open source. Rich: Free and open source.
Is Docling or Rich more popular?
Docling has more GitHub stars (70k) than Rich (57.7k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Docling and Rich?
Other options people compare them with include MarkItDown, pdf-inspector, Showdown, remark, Turndown.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.