Why will my SVG only engrave and not cut?
Updated Nov 11, 2026
Short answer: The SVG contains a picture (bitmap) instead of, or as well as, vector lines. Pictures can only be engraved. Remove or trace the picture.
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What do you cut with?
Drop your SVG or DXF file here
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Marks: open ends cut twice dots and tiny bits text and pictures
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Changing these checks the file again.
Why it happens
Lasers cut along lines (vectors). A picture (a bitmap such as a PNG or JPG) is a grid of dots with no lines to follow, so it can only be engraved. An SVG file can carry a picture inside it, and then laser software says things like "bitmap files can only be engraved", even though the file name ends in .svg.
How to fix it
- Drop the SVG into the checker above. Pictures inside it are outlined in blue.
- If the file also has cut lines, press "Fix everything I can" to take the picture out of the cut file, then download it.
- If the picture is the whole design, it needs tracing into lines first. In Inkscape that is Path › Trace Bitmap; in Illustrator, Image Trace. Then check the traced file here: tracing often leaves tiny pieces and doubled lines.
Real example: before and after
What the checker found
- 1 picture (bitmap) is inside the file
- Size: 76.0 mm (2.99 in) wide × 84.0 mm (3.31 in) tall
What was fixed
- Took 1 picture out of the cut file.
Download: before (SVG) · after (SVG)
Questions
My file is an SVG. Why does it say bitmap?
An SVG is a container. It can hold vector lines, pictures, or both. If a PNG or JPG was placed inside, that part is a bitmap, and bitmaps can only be engraved.
What happens to the picture when I press Fix?
It is taken out of the file, so only the cut lines are left. If you want to engrave the picture too, engrave it from the original file as a separate job, or trace it into vector lines.
How did a picture get in there?
Common ways: the design was a PNG saved "as SVG" without tracing, an image was pasted in as a guide and never deleted, or the SVG came from a site or app that wraps pictures in SVG files.