fix: insert rowspan placeholders in column order

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ This can also be enabled programmatically with `warnings.simplefilter('default',
 * visual gap in rendering subsequent text after `{nb}` page alias when text shaping is enabled - _cf._ [issue #1090](https://github.com/py-pdf/fpdf2/issues/1090) - thanks to @prateek-dagar
 * `FPDF.write_html()` no longer raises `IndexError: pop from empty list` when a `<ul>` or `<ol>` element carries a `line-height` that is not a bare number (_e.g._ `line-height: normal` or `line-height: 1.5em`); such values are now ignored, and the default line height is used, consistently with `<p line-height="x">` - _cf._ [PR #1917](https://github.com/py-pdf/fpdf2/pull/1917)
 * `FPDF.write_html()` now renders list bullets with correct font styling instead of inheriting preceding heading (e.g. `<h1>`) styles - _cf._ [issue #1921](https://github.com/py-pdf/fpdf2/issues/1921)
+* table cells landing in the wrong column when a row was covered by several rowspans that did not start in column order - _cf._ [issue #1948](https://github.com/py-pdf/fpdf2/issues/1948)
 
 
 ## [2.8.8] - 2026-08-09

fpdf/table.py

@@ -793,7 +793,10 @@ def convert_spans(
                     cells.extend([None] * (cell.colspan - 1))
         # now we can correctly interpret active_rowspans
         remaining_rowspans: dict[int, int] = {}
-        for k, v in active_rowspans.items():
+        # ascending, so that an insert never shifts a placeholder that is
+        # already in place: the keys reach us in the order the rowspans
+        # started, which is not the column order
+        for k, v in sorted(active_rowspans.items()):
             cells.insert(k, None)
             if v > 1:
                 remaining_rowspans[k] = v - 1

test/table/test_table_rowspan.py

@@ -259,3 +259,34 @@ def test_table_with_rowspan_images(tmp_path):
         row.cell("Four\nlines\nof\ntext")
 
     assert_pdf_equal(pdf, HERE / "table_with_rowspan_images.pdf", tmp_path)
+
+
+def test_table_with_rowspan_out_of_order(tmp_path):
+    # A rowspan starting in a later column, followed by one starting in an
+    # earlier column, leaves the active rowspans in a different order than the
+    # columns they belong to - cf. issue #1948
+    pdf = FPDF()
+    pdf.set_font("Times", size=24)
+    pdf.add_page()
+    with pdf.table(text_align="CENTER", first_row_as_headings=False) as table:
+        row = table.row()
+        row.cell("A1")
+        row.cell("B1")
+        row.cell("C1", rowspan=3)
+        row.cell("D1")
+        row = table.row()
+        row.cell("A2", rowspan=2)
+        row.cell("B2")
+        row.cell("D2")
+        row = table.row()
+        row.cell("B3")
+        row.cell("D3")
+
+    # the last row keeps a placeholder under both rowspans, so D3 stays in the
+    # fourth column instead of sliding into the third one
+    assert [
+        cell.text if cell is not None else None for cell in table.rows[2].cells
+    ] == [None, "B3", None, "D3"]
+    assert_pdf_equal(
+        pdf, HERE / "table_with_rowspan_out_of_order.pdf", tmp_path, generate=False
+    )