Image to laser file

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PNG to SVG for laser cutting and engraving

Drop a PNG and get an SVG your laser reads the right way: black shapes engrave, a red outline cuts, the size is in millimetres.

Drop a photo here

PNG, JPG, WebP or GIF up to 10 MB. A logo, a drawing or a photo on a plain background traces best. The picture is traced and not kept.

Black shapes engrave, the red outline cuts, and the file says its size in millimetres.

Quick answer

How do I convert a PNG to SVG for a laser?

Trace the PNG into vector shapes, then give every colour a job: filled shapes engrave, a red hairline cuts. Save the SVG with its width and height in millimetres so the laser software imports it at the right size. A PNG with a plain background and clear edges traces cleanly; a busy photo does not.

How it works

  1. Drop the PNG

    A logo, a drawing or clip art on a plain background traces best. A photo of a busy scene does not.

  2. Pick a style

    Silhouette for one black shape, flat colour for a few tones, poster for more detail, line sketch for pencil art and scans.

  3. Set the width and the outline

    Type the width in millimetres, and turn on the cut outline when the design should be cut out of the sheet around its shape.

  4. Wipe, check, download

    Drag the slider to compare the trace with your picture, read the check, and download the SVG.

Questions makers ask

Why does my laser software not cut a PNG?

A PNG is a grid of pixels, and a laser can only cut along a line. LightBurn and xTool Studio can engrave a PNG as a picture, but to cut it they need vector outlines. Tracing turns the edges of the picture into those outlines.

What do the colours in the SVG mean?

Black filled shapes are the engrave layer and a red hairline is the cut layer, the usual convention in xTool Studio and LightBurn. Both put each colour on its own layer when they import the file, so one setting per colour covers the whole design.

Why is the SVG the right size when other converters give the wrong one?

The file states its width and height in millimetres with a matching viewBox. An SVG without physical units makes the laser software assume 72 or 96 DPI, and the design arrives smaller or bigger than you meant.

What does the cut outline do?

It draws a red cut line a small distance outside the design, following its shape rather than a rectangle, so the piece comes out of the sheet with the engraving on it: a keychain, a magnet, an ornament. Parts that sit far apart get an outline each, and the check then says the cut makes more than one piece.

Is my picture uploaded or kept?

The picture is sent to our server to be traced, after the browser has scaled it down to at most 1,024 pixels on the long side. It is traced in memory and not stored. The layers, the check and every download are made in your browser.

Is there a limit?

No account and no daily quota. The tracer allows 20 traces a minute from one address, which is enough to try every style on the same picture, and each picture can be up to 10 MB.

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