Guides · Files

Laser engraving and cutting files: what works and where to get them

A laser file tells the machine what to cut, what to score and what to engrave, at an exact size. This guide covers the formats laser software reads, what makes a file cut cleanly, the difference between a fixed template and a generated file, and what you are allowed to do with files you didn’t make.

Vector files and image files

Laser files come in two kinds, and most projects use both:

• Vector files (SVG, DXF, PDF, AI) are made of lines and shapes. The laser follows the lines to cut or score, and fills closed shapes to engrave. They stay sharp at any size, so they are what you need for anything that is cut out.
• Image files (PNG, JPG, BMP) are grids of pixels. The laser engraves them line by line, which is how photos are engraved. They can’t be cut, and they look blurry if they don’t have enough pixels for the size you engrave.
• G-code is a list of machine moves. GRBL-based diode lasers can run it directly, without design software in between.

The file formats guide compares every format in detail, with separate guides for SVG, DXF and G-code.

Which files your software opens

SVG is the safest single choice: every common laser program reads it. See LightBurn files for colour-to-layer setup, and the laser settings pages for each brand’s software.

What makes a file cut cleanly

• Real units. The file should be drawn in millimetres or inches at the finished size, so a 100 mm part imports at 100 mm.
• Closed shapes for cuts. A gap in an outline means the part never drops out.
• No double lines. Two lines on top of each other cut twice, scorching the edge and wasting time.
• Text turned into outlines. Otherwise the font may be swapped on a computer that doesn’t have it.
• One colour per operation. Cut, score and engrave on separate colours so each gets its own power and speed.
• Enough pixels for photos. Pixels needed = width in inches × engraving DPI, so a 4 in wide photo at 300 DPI needs 1,200 pixels across.

Got a file from somewhere else? The File Doctor in the SVG nesting tool finds open shapes, double lines and wrong sizes and fixes them.

Fixed templates versus generated files

A downloaded template is drawn once, for one size and one material thickness. That is fine for flat engravings like a coaster design, but anything that slots together depends on thickness: a box drawn for 3.0 mm plywood won’t fit together properly in a sheet that really measures 2.8 or 3.2 mm, and plywood sold as 3 mm often does.

A generator draws the file fresh from your numbers: the size you need, your measured material thickness and your laser’s kerf. That is why the box generator, stand generator and inlay generator produce joints that fit first time, and why personalised pieces like street maps and name signs can’t be bought as a ready-made template at all.

Test files every laser owner should have

• A power and speed test card for each new material: the test card generator.
• A kerf test for anything that fits together: the kerf calculator.
• A colour marking grid for stainless steel on a fiber laser: the colour marking test.

Using files you didn’t make

Free and paid laser files usually come with a licence, and they differ a lot. Common terms are personal use only, or permission to sell physical products made from the file but never to share or resell the file itself. Read the licence before you sell anything made from a downloaded design, and never re-upload or resell someone else’s file.

Designs in the Laser Generator Studio design library are cleared for products you sell; the files themselves can’t be shared or resold. The terms have the details. For your own artwork, logos and drawings, image to SVG turns them into clean cut lines.

Where to start

Browse every generator on the laser tools page, or start from something to make on the laser engraving ideas page.