CDR to SVG Converter
Move a CorelDRAW design into the open vector world without losing its curves. The SVG you download opens in every browser, in Inkscape, Figma and Illustrator, and in the cutting-machine apps that never learned to read CDR.
CAD Converter
or drop DWG, DXF, DWF … files here ·
Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes
Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.
Model space is the full drawing. All layouts exports each paper-space sheet as its own page, as set up in AutoCAD.
Fit to page scales the drawing to fill the sheet. Actual size keeps drawing units 1:1 (1 mm in the drawing = 1 mm on paper) and may span a larger page.
Same as source uses the size set in each layout. A1 and A0 are the usual plotter sheets for architectural drawings.
Auto turns the page to match the drawing's longer side.
Monochrome prints every line black, like plotting with a monochrome.ctb style — best for printed plans on white paper.
White suits printing. Black looks like the AutoCAD drawing area; transparent works for placing the drawing in other documents (not available in JPG).
300 DPI is print quality; 150 is enough for screens. At A1 and 600 DPI an image is 14,000 px wide, so higher values make very large files.
Only used when the input is a photo or scan (JPG, PNG). Outline draws the edges of shapes, good for logos and laser cutting; centreline draws single lines through strokes, good for scanned line drawings and plotters.
Pixels darker than this become lines. Raise it if faint lines are missing, lower it if background noise turns into shapes.
Higher values give fewer, smoother curves; lower values follow the pixels more closely but create more points.
How to use this tool
- 1
Upload the CDR files
Drop up to 20 CorelDRAW files, 95 MB each; CDT templates and CMX files work too. Convert fonts to curves in CorelDRAW first if you can.
- 2
Keep the defaults or adjust
Background is Transparent and Colors is Original colors. Under Advanced settings, Monochrome turns every shape black, which some engraving and cutting software prefers.
- 3
Convert to SVG
Press Convert to SVG and download. Open the file in a browser first: if it looks right there, it will look right almost anywhere.
How do I turn a CorelDRAW file into an SVG?
Upload the .cdr, leave Convert to on SVG and press Convert to SVG. Curves stay curves, fills keep their colors and the page size is carried over, so the result can be scaled and edited anywhere.
CorelDRAW CDR vs SVG: closed format, open format
CDR is Corel's private format. Corel has never published a full specification, so other programs read it through reverse-engineered importers such as libcdr, maintained by the Document Liberation Project and used by Inkscape and LibreOffice Draw. Those importers open many files well, but none of them can write CDR, and a file from a brand-new CorelDRAW release can trip them up.
SVG sits at the opposite end. It is a W3C Recommendation, first published in 2001, written as plain XML you can open in a text editor. Browsers render it natively, and design, cutting and laser programs import it. Converting CDR to SVG trades CorelDRAW's special features for that universal reach.
Keeping the real size from CorelDRAW in the SVG
96SVG user units per inch when a size has no unit
CorelDRAW works in real units: a 100 mm decal is 100 mm on the page. An SVG can say the same thing by putting units on its width and height, or it can leave them bare, in which case each unit is a CSS pixel of 1/96 inch. Software that guesses differently imports the art at the wrong size: an SVG treated as 72 units per inch comes in a third larger than intended.
For a cutting job, measure one known dimension after import. If it is off by a factor of 1.33 or 0.75, the importer is using a different unit assumption; fix the scale there instead of redrawing. When a laser or CNC program reads DXF better than SVG, take the drawing through SVG to DXF afterward.
CDR
CorelDRAW drawing
CDR is the native file format of CorelDRAW, a vector graphics editor first released by Corel in 1989. It stores vector shapes, text, layers and multi-page layouts and is widely used in sign making, vinyl cutting, packaging and print shops. The format is proprietary and changes between CorelDRAW versions, so other programs import it only partially. Most viewers, browsers and design apps outside the Corel ecosystem cannot open CDR files.
- Compression
- –
- Transparency
- Yes
- Animation
- No
- Introduced
- 1989 · Corel
SVG
Scalable Vector Graphics
SVG is an XML-based vector format standardised by the W3C in 2001. Instead of pixels it describes shapes, paths and text, so it stays sharp at any size and is usually tiny for logos and icons. It supports transparency, CSS styling, scripting and animation, and every browser renders it natively. SVG is unsuitable for photographs, and complex illustrations can become slow to render. Illustrator, Inkscape, Figma and browsers can open and edit it.
- Compression
- –
- Transparency
- Yes
- Animation
- Yes
- Introduced
- 2001 · W3C
CDR to SVG frees CorelDRAW artwork for the web, Inkscape, Figma and cutting-machine software, none of which save CDR, while keeping the shapes as editable vectors instead of pixels.
What happens to CorelDRAW effects in an SVG
Curves, outlines and solid fills
Carried over exactly as paths with stroke and fill. This is the part of a design that matters for cutting and engraving.
Linear and radial gradients
SVG has gradients of its own, so simple fountain fills usually map across. Conical and square fountain fills have no direct SVG equivalent and may be approximated.
PowerClip containers
Clipped contents become an SVG clip path in most cases, so the visible result matches. Editing the clipped object later is done in the SVG editor instead.
Text
Text either stays text in a named font or arrives as outlines. Converting to curves (Ctrl+Q) before upload guarantees identical lettering on machines without your fonts.
Lenses, mesh fills and bitmap effects
These have no SVG counterpart and are the most likely to be simplified or rendered as embedded images. Check them before sending the file on.
CDR to SVG questions
Can I convert CDR to SVG without CorelDRAW?
Yes, that is what this page does; nothing is installed. Inkscape can also open many CDR files and save them as SVG, using the libcdr import library, though files from the newest CorelDRAW releases are where it most often struggles.
Will the SVG open in Cricut Design Space or Silhouette Studio?
Cricut Design Space uploads SVG directly, and Silhouette Studio imports it from the Designer Edition up. Each closed shape becomes something the blade can cut, so delete background rectangles before you send the job.
Why is my SVG the wrong size when I import it?
Programs disagree about what one SVG unit is. Browsers and Inkscape use 96 units per inch, while some older tools assumed 72 or 90. The SVG from this page states its width and height in real units, so check that the importing app honors them rather than rescaling.
Is CDR or SVG better for sending artwork to a printer?
Neither is ideal for offset print; most printers want a PDF, which CDR to PDF produces. SVG is the better choice for web use, cutting machines and anyone editing in a program other than CorelDRAW.
Can I bring the SVG back into CorelDRAW later?
Yes. CorelDRAW imports SVG through File → Import, and shapes come back as editable curves. CorelDRAW-only extras such as live effects will have been flattened along the way, so keep the original CDR as your master.
