Convert Text to Outlines Online
This tool converts text to outlines using a font file you choose: a TTF, OTF or WOFF font goes in, and an SVG made only of vector paths comes out. The letters keep the exact shapes of the font, so they look the same in any browser or design app and need no font installed. It is meant for logo words, names, signs, and cut files for vinyl, laser and cutting machines. The font and your text are processed in your browser and are never uploaded.
How to convert text to outlines
- Select Choose a font file or drop it here and pick a TTF, OTF or WOFF file of up to 10 MB.
- Type or paste your text into the Text box. It takes up to 1,000 characters and several lines, and the Outline preview updates as you type.
- Check the preview. It sits on a checkerboard so the transparent background is visible; the checkerboard is not part of the file.
- Press Download SVG. The file is named after your font file, with an .svg ending.
To use a different font, press Change font next to the font name. Your text stays in place and is redrawn in the new font. The line under the preview, such as 20 paths and 9.3 kB, shows how many paths the SVG has and how big it is.
What the text to SVG path file contains
The downloaded SVG has <path> elements only. There is never a
<text> or <tspan> element, so nothing depends on a font being
available where the file is opened.
- One path per letter by default, which makes it easy to select, move or recolour single letters in Illustrator, Inkscape or Figma.
- Closed shapes: every contour is closed, so cutters and stroke effects see complete outlines.
- A tight viewBox that starts at 0 0 and is cropped to the artwork, with no extra margin.
- Black fill and numbers rounded to two decimals, which keeps the file small.
Kerning and ligatures built into the font are applied, so pairs such as "AV" or "fi" are spaced and joined the way the font intends.
Merge overlapping letters for script fonts and cutting machines
Script and handwriting fonts connect their letters by letting the strokes overlap. As separate paths those overlaps are still there, and a vinyl or laser cutter would cut straight through the joins. Open Formatting and tick Merge overlapping letters: the overlapping shapes are joined into one outline and the whole text is saved as a single compound path. For a single word in a script font the status line then reads 1 path. Cricut Design Space, Silhouette Studio and laser software read this kind of SVG; check the shapes in your own software before you cut.
Letter spacing and line height
Both settings are in the Formatting section, and the preview changes as you move them.
- Letter spacing runs from -100 to 100 in thousandths of an em and starts at 0. Negative values pull letters closer, positive values spread them apart.
- Line height runs from 0.80 to 2.50 em and starts at 1.20. It only matters when your text has more than one line.
Limits to know about
- WOFF2 and font collections are not supported. If you only have a WOFF2 file, use the TTF, OTF or WOFF version of the font. A TTC collection needs to be split into single font files.
- Missing characters are skipped. A note under the preview lists any character the font does not contain.
- Colour and emoji fonts give their base outlines only, in black, not their coloured layers.
- Right-to-left and complex scripts follow only what the font itself provides, so check the preview against your layout.
- Font licences still apply to the outlines, see the questions below.
This tool turns text into outlines; it does not edit the font or change the shape of a single letter. For individual letters, open the SVG in a vector editor.
Other text and vector tools
To turn a picture such as a logo or a signature into vector shapes, use Image to SVG, and to vectorize a scanned PDF page, try Vectorize PDF. To see which fonts a PDF, SVG or CSS file uses before you pick one here, open the File Font Finder. For styled text you can copy and paste without a font file, there is the Fancy Text Generator.
Text to outlines questions
Can I convert text to outlines online for free?
Yes. Choose your font file, type the text and press Download SVG. The SVG you get contains only vector paths, so it keeps the exact letter shapes without needing the font installed. The conversion runs in your browser and the font file and text are not uploaded.
How do I convert text to an SVG path?
Load a TTF, OTF or WOFF font, type your text and press Download SVG. Each letter is saved as a closed <path> element, with no <text> or <tspan> elements, so it renders the same in a browser, in Inkscape, in Illustrator or in Figma. Turn on Merge overlapping letters under Formatting if you want one single compound path instead.
Can I convert a font file to SVG?
You can turn text set in that font into SVG outlines, which is what most people want from a font to SVG converter. The result is artwork, such as a name or a logo word, not an installable SVG font. A full alphabet is only converted if you type all of it into the Text box.
Can I use the SVG in Illustrator, Inkscape or Figma?
Yes. The file is plain SVG with black-filled paths and a viewBox cropped to the artwork, so it opens in any vector editor and in a browser. Without Merge each letter is its own path, which makes it easy to select, recolour or move letters one by one.
Why are some characters missing from my outlines?
A font only draws the characters it contains. If your text has a character the font does not have, it is left out, not drawn as an empty box, and a note under the preview lists it, for example 1 character isn't in this font and was left out. Choose a font that covers those characters, or remove them from the text.
How do I merge overlapping letters in a script font?
Open Formatting and tick Merge overlapping letters. Script and handwriting fonts connect their letters with strokes that overlap, which shows up as extra lines in a cutting machine. Merge unites the overlaps into one outline and saves the whole text as a single compound path. It can take a moment on long text.
Can I use outlined text from any font commercially?
That depends on the font's licence, not on the tool. The outlines are the font's own artwork, so check what its licence allows before you use the SVG in something you sell.
Is this the same as tracing an image to SVG?
No. Tracing guesses shapes from the pixels of a picture. Here the exact curves come straight from the font file, so the edges are as clean as the font itself. To turn a picture such as a logo or a signature into vector shapes, use Image to SVG instead.
Recommended
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Cricut Permanent Vinyl Sampler (25 sheets)Cut your lettering from the SVG in a color that holds up on signs and decals.
-
Cricut Joy Xtra Cutting MachineFeed the outlined SVG straight to a small cutter and weed out your own letters.
-
ACMER S1 Desktop Laser EngraverEngrave or cut your outlined word in wood or acrylic with no font installed.
Helps keep the tools free. ✨
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