Check

Check your file before you use it

A file that looks fine on screen can still be broken underneath. Open paths that won't cut cleanly, invisible objects bloating the file, lines too thin for a laser to engrave, self-intersecting curves that cut unpredictably — none of this shows up until you're already at the machine, and by then you've usually lost material, time, or both.

This is the step most people skip, mostly because it's invisible: a broken file often looks completely normal in your design software, and the problem only surfaces once you send it somewhere that actually reads the underlying geometry — your cutter, your laser, or your plotter. A quick check closes that gap.

Who this matters most for: anyone about to cut or engrave a file they didn't build from scratch — a purchased SVG bundle, something downloaded from a marketplace, or a design that's passed through several programs on its way to you. Each conversion or edit is a chance for something small to break.

What you'll typically catch: open contours that should be closed loops, hidden or empty objects left over from editing, self-intersecting lines, and — for laser work specifically — linework too fine for your machine to reliably resolve. Each of these takes seconds to check and can save an entire evening of troubleshooting mid-project.

Start with whichever check matches your immediate concern below, or run the general SVG Checker first if you're not sure what to look for.