Guide · SVG preparation
Convert text to outlines before DXF export.
DXF does not carry the browser fonts and shaping rules needed to reproduce live SVG text. Outlines turn the visible glyphs into ordinary vector paths.
Why live text is blocked
An SVG <text> element is an instruction to find a font and lay out characters. The result can change when a font is missing, has a different version, or is shaped differently. A CNC or laser file needs fixed geometry, so svgtodxf.app refuses to guess.
Before converting
- Keep an editable copy of the original design. Outlined text is no longer editable as text.
- Select every text object, including text inside groups, symbols, or repeated components.
- Use the authoring app’s command to convert text to paths or outlines.
- Export a new plain SVG and open it again to confirm that the letters still look correct.
- Run the outlined SVG through the converter and inspect open contours and dimensions.
Common authoring apps
- Inkscape
- Select the text, then choose Path → Object to Path.
- Adobe Illustrator
- Select the text, then choose Type → Create Outlines.
- Affinity Designer
- Select the text, then choose Layer → Convert to Curves.
- Figma
- Select the text and use Flatten only after keeping an editable duplicate.
Check counters and holes
Letters such as A, B, D, O, P, and R contain inner contours. The converter preserves those contours as separate closed polylines; your CAD/CAM software decides how they become regions or toolpaths.