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3DAI
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Convert STL to SVG: Outline or Slice

An SVG is a flat drawing, so getting one from a 3D model means choosing what to draw. Pick a view (top, front or side) and either the outline of the whole model as seen from that side, holes included, or a cross-section cut at a height you choose. The drawing comes out at real size in millimetres, ready for a laser cutter, a vinyl cutter, Inkscape or a CNC program.

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How to use it

  1. 1

    Add your STL

    Drop a .stl on the box or click to pick it. Set the unit the STL was made in, usually millimetres.

  2. 2

    Choose the view

    Top looks down onto the build plate, front looks along Y and side looks along X.

  3. 3

    Outline or section

    Outline gives the silhouette of the whole part. Section cuts it at the height you type and draws only that slice.

  4. 4

    Download the SVG

    Pick filled shapes or outlines only, check the preview, and save. The SVG width and height are set in mm.

What to know before you convert

  • An outline is the silhouette from one side: inner details such as pockets that do not go all the way through are not drawn.
  • A section is one slice at one height. Run it again at other heights for more slices.
  • Curves are drawn as many short straight segments, as they are in the STL. Very dense meshes give large SVG files.
  • Open or broken meshes can give incomplete sections; the page warns when a slice does not close.

Don't have a model?

Generate one from a sketch, image or text. Our AI generators give you a 3D model with an STL download for printing. They use credits; this converter does not.

Sketch to STL →Draw it, get a printable model.Image to STL →One photo of an object.Text to STL →Describe it in a sentence.

Frequently Asked Questions

Drop the STL, keep "Outline" and pick the view. The page projects every triangle onto that plane and unions them into one clean shape with its holes, then writes it as SVG paths at real size.
The outline is everything you would see from that side, like a shadow. A cross-section is where a flat cut at one height meets the model, so a cup gives a ring, not a disc.
Yes. The width and height of the SVG are written in millimetres and the drawing uses the model units, so Inkscape, LightBurn and most cutter software import it at 1:1. Check the size readout before you download.
Filled shapes are best for vinyl, engraving and previews. Outlines only (a thin stroke, no fill) is what most laser and CNC software expects for cut lines.
Yes, use the STL to DXF page; it uses the same tracing and writes DXF polylines for CAD and CNC tools.
No. The page reads the file and converts it inside your browser with the open-source three.js library. Nothing is sent to our servers, there is no account, and no credits are used. Closing the tab discards everything.