Comparison

python-docx vs Pandoc

python-docx and Pandoc both land on Depends.

python-docx

python-docx.readthedocs.io

Depends

Confidence: Medium

Buy if you're a Python developer automating Word documents . it's free, mature, and does the job.

Read the full report

Pandoc

Depends

Confidence: High

Buy it if your team is comfortable in a terminal and juggles many document formats.

Read the full report

python-docx versus Pandoc
Compare	python-docx	Pandoc
Verdict	Depends	Depends
Best for	Python developers generating reports or invoices	Docs-heavy teams
Who it's not for	Non-technical users editing Word docs . just use Word	Non-technical users wanting a GUI
Privacy	One old, fixed CVE (XXE, pre-0.8.6); current 1.2.0 scanned clean.^³	One actively exploited SSRF CVE (2025) and an arbitrary file-write advisory; run --sandbox and stay on the latest version.¹⁵
Support quality	Community project, no vendor support	Community-only; no vendor SLA
Public sentiment	A small but positive review base: 4.0/5 across 12 G2 reviews, with developers valuing direct, code-level control of Word documents.^⁶	Reddit and Hacker News users call Pandoc the gold standard for format conversion while noting CLI friction and occasional edge-case glitches.
Biggest gotcha	CVE-2016-5851 XXE vulnerability in versions before 0.8.6 . pin a recent release^³	CVE-2025-51591 SSRF actively exploited to steal AWS credentials . patch immediately

Pick python-docx when

Python developers generating reports or invoices
Apps needing programmatic .docx editing
Bulk document generation from templates
CI pipelines producing Word files

When python-docx is not a fit

Non-technical users editing Word docs . just use Word
No-code/low-code teams wanting a GUI
Anyone needing vendor support or an SLA
Legacy .doc files . it only handles Word 2007+ .docx

Pick Pandoc when

Docs-heavy teams
Academic and LaTeX writers
Developers automating conversions
Publishing pipelines

When Pandoc is not a fit

Non-technical users wanting a GUI
One-off casual file conversions
Teams needing vendor support or SLAs
Untrusted-input pipelines without sandboxing

Sources

python-docx 1.2.0 documentationpython-docx.readthedocs.io
official
python-docx on PyPIpypi.org
official
python-openxml/python-docx on GitHubgithub.com
official
python-docx Snyk security pagesecurity.snyk.io
security
python-docx PyPI malware/vulnerability scansecure.software
security
python-docx G2 reviewsg2.com
review
Is python-docx AI? safe-docx comparisonusejunior.com
review
Pandoc - index (official)pandoc.org
official
Getting started with pandocpandoc.org
official
What are your thoughts on Pandoc? - Reddit r/LaTeXreddit.com
review
Pandoc - Hacker Newsnews.ycombinator.com
review
markitdown vs pandoc discussiongithub.com
review
Comparing to Pandoc - MyST Markdownmystmd.org
review
Pandoc vs Unmarkdownunmarkdown.com
review
CVE-2025-51591 - NVDnvd.nist.gov
security
GHSA-xj5q-fv23-575g advisorygithub.com
security