Tracing groups the colours and turns each area into a filled shape. It does not recover an original vector design: logos and flat artwork trace cleanly, photos give large, blotchy SVGs.
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What is a PNG to SVG converter?
A PNG to SVG converter traces a raster image into filled vector shapes. It does not recover an original vector design: the shapes are rebuilt from the pixels, so edges are an approximation. Logos, icons, line art and other flat artwork with few colors trace well. Photos do not; they turn into large, blotchy SVGs that can be many megabytes, sometimes tens of megabytes, far bigger than the PNG you started with.
The difference between the two formats explains why this is worth doing at all. A PNG stores a fixed grid of pixels, so enlarging it makes the edges blocky. An SVG stores outlines described as paths and filled with color, which a browser or design app redraws cleanly at any size. A traced SVG can go into a web page, be recolored in a vector editor, or be read by a cutting machine or laser engraver that works from outlines.
Tracing happens in two steps. First the image is reduced to a small palette, the number you pick under Colors. Then the tracer walks the edge of every area of the same color and fits straight lines and curves to it, producing one filled path per area. Each path also gets a 1 pixel outline in its own color, which closes the hairline gaps that would otherwise show between neighboring shapes.
Two settings shape the result. Colors is 2, 8 (the default) or 16. Detail is Low, Medium (the default) or High: Low blurs the image slightly first, fits looser curves and drops shapes smaller than a speck, giving simpler and smaller files, while High follows the pixels closely and keeps tiny shapes. Changing either setting traces every added file again, and each row shows the new SVG size next to the PNG size, so you can compare settings before downloading.
Tracing runs client-side in a background Web Worker using imagetracerjs, which is downloaded only when you add the first file, so the page stays responsive and no image is uploaded. Images longer than 1200 pixels on either side are scaled down before tracing so the job finishes in seconds, and the SVG is still set to open at the original width and height. A trace that takes longer than two minutes is stopped with a message suggesting fewer colors or lower detail. PNGs up to 100 megapixels are accepted, transparent areas become see-through shapes, and the tool is free, no signup, with a daily cap on conversions.
How to convert PNG to SVG
Add your PNG files
Drop PNG images onto the box, or click to upload. Several files at once is fine, and each one is traced as soon as it is added. Logos, icons and flat graphics give the cleanest results.
Set Colors and Detail
Pick 2 colors for black and white artwork, 8 for most logos and 16 for shaded graphics. Start at Medium detail. Changing either setting traces every file again with the new values.
Check the trace
Each row shows the traced SVG as a thumbnail, its status and a size line with the size before and after and how much smaller or larger the SVG is. Click the thumbnail to open the SVG large and switch between Before and After. If edges look lumpy or the file is too big, change a setting and look again.
Download the SVG files
Press the download icon on a row to save that SVG, or Download All in the list header to save a batch as converted-svg.zip.
Why convert PNG to SVG?
Tracing is worth it when the image is simple and you need it to scale or to be read as outlines. For anything photographic, keep the PNG.
A logo that only exists as a PNG
The original vector file is often lost, and all that is left is a PNG pulled from a website or an email signature. Tracing gives you an SVG that scales for a banner or a print job without blocky edges. Check curves and small text closely, since they are rebuilt from pixels rather than copied from the designer's file.
Cutting machines, engravers and embroidery software
Vinyl cutters, laser engravers and many craft tools follow paths, not pixels. A 2 color trace of a silhouette, a stencil or a monogram turns each dark area into a closed shape the machine can cut around.
Icons and illustrations for the web
A flat icon traced to SVG stays sharp on high-density screens and can be recolored with CSS. If you later need a pixel version at a set size, render the SVG back to PNG.
PNG vs traced SVG: which to use
| PNG | Traced SVG | |
|---|---|---|
| What it stores | A grid of pixels. | Filled shapes traced from those pixels. Not the original vector design. |
| Scaling | Blocky or blurry when enlarged. | Redraws cleanly at any size. |
| Colors | Millions, with smooth gradients. | 2, 8 or 16 flat colors. Gradients become bands. |
| Transparency | Full alpha channel. | Transparent areas traced as see-through shapes. |
| Logos and icons | Fine at the size it was saved. | Good fit: clean edges, easy to recolor. |
| Photos | Good fit, and usually the smaller file. | Poor fit: large, blotchy SVGs, sometimes tens of megabytes. |
| Editing | Pixel editors. | Vector editors, cutting and engraving software, code. |
How Colors and Detail change the trace
Every setting is a trade between how faithful the SVG looks and how many shapes it contains. More shapes means a bigger file and more cleanup in a vector editor.
Colors: 2, 8 or 16
The image is reduced to this many colors before tracing. Two colors suits black and white logos, stencils, signatures and line art. Eight handles most flat logos with a few brand colors and some anti-aliased edges. Sixteen keeps more shading, at the price of many more small shapes along every soft edge.
Detail: Low, Medium or High
Low detail blurs the image slightly, fits curves loosely and throws away tiny shapes, which gives smooth outlines and small files. Medium fits curves within about a pixel. High follows the pixels closely and keeps small shapes, so it preserves thin strokes but also picks up noise.
Why photos go wrong
A photo has soft gradients and texture everywhere, so even at 16 colors it splits into thousands of irregular patches. Each patch becomes a path with its own coordinates, and the SVG can end up many times the size of the PNG while looking like a posterized copy. That is a limit of tracing, not a setting you can fix.
Privacy and security
- The PNG is decoded and traced inside this browser tab, in a background worker. The image is never uploaded.
- The imagetracerjs library is loaded from this site only when you add the first file.
- The SVG is built from traced paths only, with no scripts, links or embedded copy of the original PNG.
- The daily usage check sends the tool name, a device identifier and your sign-in token if you have one. No image data is included.
- After a batch, the page logs the file count, total bytes and the output format, never file names or pixels.
Key Features
2, 8 or 16 colors
From black and white artwork to shaded flat graphics
Low, Medium and High detail
Smooth, compact outlines or close tracing of small shapes
Gap-free shapes
A thin matching outline on every shape hides seams between colors
SVG preview and file size
See the traced result and its weight before downloading, updated each time you change a setting
Frequently Asked Questions
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