Choose a converter around your next step
The right conversion depends on where your model goes after TinyJig. A slicer needs printable geometry and a checked physical size. A CAD assembly benefits from a solid exchange format. A browser viewer needs a portable scene asset that can load without a collection of external files. Start with your destination’s supported formats, then choose the source file that best preserves the original outline. The fifteen links above cover SVG, Illustrator AI, and DXF as inputs and STL, 3MF, OBJ, GLB, and STEP as outputs.
Each link opens the same modeling workspace with a different starting combination. You can upload any supported vector type on any converter page, and changing the output selector keeps the current artwork and settings in memory. You do not have to prepare a new upload just to compare a mesh export with a CAD export. Save each result you need before leaving or reloading the editor. The guides on individual format pages explain what travels with each file and what must be configured afterward.
Start with SVG for artwork and outlined lettering
SVG is convenient for logos, icons, signs, and illustrations that are already made from vector paths. Convert live text to outlines and expand masks or symbols that the importer cannot interpret directly. An embedded or linked bitmap is not automatically traced into a solid. Check whether the source declares physical dimensions; unitless SVG artwork uses the 96-pixel-per-inch convention, which may differ from the scale you intended.
For a raised nameplate, SVG to STL is a direct route into a slicer. SVG to 3MF adds explicit millimeter units to the package. For a rendered wordmark, OBJ lets you assign materials in a separate scene, while GLB packages a simple material palette for compatible viewers. SVG to STEP suits an outlined insert or spacer that needs to enter a CAD assembly, with the limitation that curved outlines remain segmented.
Use Illustrator AI without an intermediate drawing export
A PDF-compatible Illustrator document can be opened directly. Save with Create PDF Compatible File enabled, outline its text, and choose the artboard you want to use. TinyJig reads vector geometry from the PDF-compatible content rather than recreating every Illustrator feature. Effects, masks, backgrounds, and small overlapping details deserve a careful check in the imported preview.
Choose AI to STL or AI to 3MF for printable lettering and emblems. AI to OBJ is useful when artwork will be placed in a larger rendering scene. AI to GLB creates a self-contained asset for a web viewer. AI to STEP gives outlined branding a solid form for CAD positioning. Across these choices, the important preparation is the same: use clean paths and verify the artwork’s own dimensions rather than assuming the full artboard defines the part size.
Use DXF for a dimensioned planar profile
DXF is a practical source for profiles prepared in a CAD drawing tool. Use supported planar ASCII geometry with closed contours. Joined lines and arcs must meet at their endpoints; closed polylines, circles, and ellipses can also describe regions. Explode blocks and convert unsupported splines before upload. Remove labels and construction lines that should not become part of the model.
DXF to STEP is the natural choice for an extruded spacer or plate entering a CAD assembly. DXF to STL and DXF to 3MF move that profile into a print workflow. DXF to OBJ and DXF to GLB are useful for presentation geometry when the physical outline is already defined. The importer reads drawing units from the header; a unitless file uses millimeters with a warning. Always compare a known dimension before continuing.
Compare mesh exports with solid CAD exports
STL, 3MF, OBJ, and GLB describe mesh geometry. They differ in their packaging, unit conventions, and support for materials. TinyJig’s STL and OBJ use millimeter coordinates without enforced unit metadata. Its 3MF explicitly declares millimeters. Its GLB uses meters and Y-up orientation, with simple materials. None of these exports automatically adds printer-specific settings, manufacturing tolerances, or an editable sketch history.
STEP carries solid CAD geometry, but its curved vector boundaries are approximated by segments. Choose it because the receiving workflow needs solids, not because a different extension can improve the source drawing. A missing hole, incorrect scale, or unwanted region should be corrected in the workspace or source file before any export. Comparing multiple formats is useful only after the underlying shape is right.
Finish the geometry before choosing a download
Set the overall width, choose the default extrusion, and open region controls for local height changes. Add a backing plate when separate letters or islands should connect. Combine overlapping solids when they should form one object, remembering that combining does not bridge empty space. Inspect the top view for dimensions and orbit the 3D preview to examine holes and total height. Dimension fields accept fractions and mixed-unit expressions when ordinary decimal entry is inconvenient.
Use the help guide if an outline imports differently than expected. For a constant-thickness part with actual bends, move to the sheet-metal workspace rather than approximating a folded part with stacked extrusions. It adds bend placement, internal tabs, flanges, and supplier-related checks. Whichever workflow you choose, open the final download in its destination and review its dimensions and geometry before printing, rendering, or requesting fabrication.