The short answer
- A website, an app, Figma, or Cricut → SVG.
- A printer, or someone who may not have design software → PDF.
- A print shop or an older workflow that asks for it by name → EPS.
- CAD, a laser cutter, a CNC router, or a plotter → DXF.
All four hold the same traced shapes; what differs is who can read them and what else they carry — groups, units, gradients.
SVG: the web’s vector format
SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) is an open standard built into every web browser. It’s the natural choice for logos and icons on websites, what Figma, Inkscape, and most modern tools import best, and the format Cricut Design Space works with. Because it’s text, an SVG can be opened in a code editor, styled with CSS, and animated — more in what is an SVG file?
The SVG options when you export:
- Version: SVG 1.1 is the default and the safe choice. 1.0 is for very old software; Tiny 1.2 targets mobile and embedded renderers. The drawing is valid under all three.
- Fixed size: writes a width and height onto the file. Without it an SVG carries only its proportions (a viewBox) and scales to whatever holds it — right for the web. With it, tools that need a physical size know what it is. Setting an output size writes them too.
- Adobe compatible: writes elliptical arcs as Bézier curves, which Adobe’s importers need. Turn it on if the SVG is going into Illustrator.
- Group by (under Advanced): SVG keeps groups, so the Easy editing preset’s color groups arrive intact.
PDF: the one everyone can open
PDF is the most universal vector container. Anyone can open it, printers accept it, and Illustrator, Affinity Designer, Inkscape, and CorelDRAW can all edit the shapes inside. To send a logo to a print shop, a sign maker, or a colleague who just needs to see it, PDF is the safe choice.
The PDF carries the same path data as the SVG. One difference: PDF has no groups, so the grouping setting only changes the order in which shapes are drawn.
EPS: the print-shop veteran
EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) is the print industry’s long-standing exchange format. Modern workflows have mostly moved to PDF, but many printers, promotional-product suppliers, and embroidery digitizers still ask for EPS by name, and some older software imports nothing else.
Like the PDF, the EPS carries the same paths as the SVG, without groups. If someone asks for EPS, send EPS; otherwise PDF is usually the better choice.
DXF: for CAD, lasers, and CNC
DXF (Drawing Exchange Format) comes from AutoCAD and is read by practically every CAD, CAM, and laser program — Fusion, SolidWorks, LightBurn, Inkscape, and the software that drives CNC routers and plasma cutters.
- Real units. A DXF declares its unit, and you choose it: mm, cm, in, or pt. Set the output size under Advanced and a design made 120 mm wide opens 120 mm wide.
- Layers. Groups become DXF layers, so grouping by color gives one layer per color — handy for assigning different laser operations.
- Lines and arcs. Curves are flattened to lines and arcs, which every DXF reader understands.
- No gradients. DXF has none, so a trace with the Gradients draw style falls back to each region’s average color.
For cutting, pair DXF with the Cutting & engraving preset — see making cut files.
And PNG, from a vector?
PNG isn’t a vector format, but exporting one from a trace is surprisingly useful. The PNG is rendered from the vector, so edges are clean and colors flat: a blurry, noisy logo comes back crisp. Under Output size, choose Scale and render it at 2×, 4×, or 8× for a sharp, high-resolution raster without the blur of ordinary upscaling.
At a glance
| SVG | EPS | DXF | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Web, apps, Cricut | Sharing and print | Legacy print workflows | CAD, lasers, CNC |
| Opens in a browser | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Groups | Yes | No | No | As layers |
| Gradients | Yes | Yes | Yes | Flat fallback |
| Real-world units | Optional | Page size | Page size | mm, cm, in, pt |
When someone asks for “a vector file”
“Can you send the logo as a vector?” usually means “something that isn’t pixels, that I can scale and print”. A PDF satisfies nearly everyone. Add an SVG if it’s going on a website, and an EPS if the request came from a printer. If they name a program — Illustrator, CorelDRAW — PDF and EPS open in both.
Only have a PNG or JPG? Converting it properly takes a trace, not a rename — start one here.