Do you know how to select free vinyl decal design software? Have you ever asked yourself that question? If you have purchased or downloaded a vinyl cutter in the past, then you are already familiar with the term software. This is software that has been designed to help users in designing and editing vinyl stickers, decals, etc. No matter what type of decal you are designing and no matter what size that decal is, the design process and software used to create the design can vary. The software used to create your decal will also depend upon the size, quantity and material of which it will be created. This article is designed to help you out by reviewing some of the finest decal design software available on the market today.
Have you ever downloaded free vinyl decal design software? It is surprisingly hard to find, right? Unfortunately, free software is often a game of good intentions and broken promises. Instead of sifting through all the nastiness yourself, why not check out this list of tools that will get the job done for you?
Cricut Explore Air 2
This elegant vinyl cutting machine is going to take you on a true adventure. With countless possibilities built-in, it covers everything you need in a vinyl cutter with software & it’s remarkably affordable. Consider using it for your next DIY project.
Cricut Explore Air 2 is powerful — it can cut over 100 different materials. Some of those include vinyl, cardstock, adhesive foils, HTV & iron-on vinyl, posters, and more. With such a broad range of materials, you can make stickers, car decals, laptop decals, t-shirt designs, custom apparel, and home decor — the possibilities are endless.
The Cricut Explore Air 2 is a powerful machine that can cut through a variety of materials and still be easy to use. It’s one of the best cutting machines on the market, and it’s perfect for both beginners and experienced crafters alike.
The Explore Air 2 has a large cutting area, which means you can create big cuts quickly and easily with this machine. You can also use it to cut through materials such as vinyl, fabric, paper, cardstock and more. The Explore Air 2 has an auto-leveling system that makes it easy to get your cuts just right every time!
There are two ways to connect your Cricut Explore Air 2: WiFi or USB cord. If you’re looking for a wireless connection, just connect via WiFi and send any design you want from your computer directly over to the machine for cutting! You don’t have to worry about cables getting in the way or having trouble connecting with this machine! If you prefer using a USB cord instead, there is one included with each purchase so that you never have to worry about running out of cables when working on projects!
The Cricut Explore Air 2 comes with software called Design Space that allows users to create custom designs from scratch or choose from thousands of pre-
While pre-made vinyl cutting software is not always the best, Cricut’s Design Space is good enough to start with. It will help you design your first projects while you decide on different vinyl cutting software, and if you like it enough to keep it, you can subscribe to Cricut Access to unlock more features.
With Design Space, you’ll be able to upload, create, and design your own vinyl projects for free. It can even be used on mobile as well as desktop computers, laptops, and tablets. The paid version also opens up the library which contains over 100,000 images & fonts for you to choose from.
This machine comes with a free 2-week trial of Cricut’s trademark software. It also includes a full set of tools. It’s the perfect start to a crafter’s journey through cutting vinyl.
Inkscape
Inkscape is the most popular free vinyl-cutting software among crafters all over.
Inkscape is a free and open-source vector graphics editor. It can be used to create or edit vector graphics such as illustrations, diagrams, line art, charts, logos, and complex paintings. Inkscape uses the W3C standard Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file format as its native format, and it can also export illustrations in PNG, PDF, and PostScript format.
Inkscape supports many advanced SVG features (markers, clones, alpha blending, etc.) and great care is taken in designing a streamlined interface. It is very easy to edit nodes, perform complex path operations, trace bitmaps, and much more.
Inkscape’s primary goal is to create a viable alternative to proprietary illustration applications.
The free software offers you a suite of flexible drawing tools and a powerful text tool to enable you to work on just any craft from start to finish. Moreover, it presents you with the broad file format and compatibility, as well as the Bezier & Spiro curves, to extend your boundaries on the types of projects you can work on with it. It’s available for OS X, Windows, and Linux, and it’s great for creating logos, illustrations, charts, diagrams, and other kinds of images.
Just like the paid software, Inkscape also supports SVG (Scalable Vector graphics). This simply means that it’ll work with your specific vinyl cutter even if it comes programmed to work with its native software only.Also Read: T-Shirts: How Do I Retain The Graphics on My Tees?
One area where this cutting software outdoes most of the paid software is its super-user friendly user interface. Whether you’re an absolute beginner or pro designer, you’ll easily figure things out when using this software.
Other than the vinyl cutter, you can also use Inkscape with a good heat press machine to help you design and edit graphics to be applied on t-shirts.
Easy Cut Studio
This premium software will provide you with an impressive range of sign design features and cut programs. Its vinyl cutter can work with versatile fonts, layouts and more components present in your device. In order to check out its basic functions, you can download the free trial version which will last up to 30 days.
Easy Cut Studio is a vinyl cutting software that allows you to create and cut custom vinyl decals and stickers, whether you’re a novice or an expert. It’s easy to use, and you can do everything from creating your design on the computer to cutting your own stickers at home.
The software has templates for creating all kinds of different shapes, including round stickers, rectangular stickers, square decals, circle decals, oval decals, heart-shaped decals and more! You can also import photos into the program to make personalized designs—the possibilities are endless!
Easy Cut Studio is compatible with Windows 10 64-bit systems only.
Inception
Easy Cut Studio is one of the prominent vinyl cutting software out there. It was launched in order to help graphic designers with more cutting-edge resources for crafting signs. It claims to be the most advanced software for cutting vinyl and making signs!
With ECS, you can experience its functions and instructions in eight languages – English, Spanish, French, German, Simplified Chinese, Italian, Dutch and Portuguese.
Features
You can create interesting signs and logos with Easy Cut Studio since it offers over 250 pre-made unique shapes in the built-in library.
It also allows modifying them by editing vector images and customizing the text included there. Keeping with their name, this software does make cutting the sign easier for you than almost any other competitor.
Other notable features here include node editing, image vectorization, welding, rhinestone templates, contour cut and working with multiple layers.
Compatible Formats
With Easy Cut Studio, you will be able to do image tracing and vectorizing with many formats.
Make the most of its powerful tracing tool by using it on either scanned images or imported files. These files can have the extensions of JPG, PNG, BMP, GIF, PDF, PSD, TIFF, TGA and more.
CorelDRAW
CorelDRAW is not exactly free to use. But it is popular with many users because it is easy to use and the price tag will surely please you. CorelDRAW is compatible with Windows and Mac.
Designed by the Corel Corporation, the software enables you to edit all designs with ease and features many user-friendly tools.
CorelDRAW is a vector design application. This means that it can be easily used for various vinyl cuttings. The software is packed with a professional image set, some design templates, and even some helpful training videos.
CorelDRAW is suitable for beginners and professionals as well. It is undoubtedly one of the most affordable and effective vinyls cutting software out there.
CorelDRAW is a graphics program that allows you to create high-quality images for print, web, and video. With CorelDRAW, you can create professional-looking diagrams and illustrations using vector graphics, text, shapes, and images. You can also use the software to create logos, business cards and labels, posters, invitations and more.
The latest version of CorelDRAW is packed full of new features like enhanced graphic effects; new drawing tools; support for SVG import/export; improved text editing tools; enhanced drawing tools; enhanced photo editing capabilities; support for the latest Microsoft Office file formats (DOCX/DOCM etc); improved compatibility with other Adobe software (such as Photoshop).
Key features of CorelDRAW vinyl cutting software
- Free & vector graphics editor.
- Best tools for vector illustration, layout, photo editing, typography.
- Compatible with cricut, pixmax, uscutter
- Available for Windows or Mac
Plans: Free/Paid
Download Software: https://www.coreldraw.com/
SignGo
SignGo is a paid software but comes with a free trial of 30 days. You can use this software for a month without spending a cent. If you have a few cutting projects, you can go for this as 30 days is enough.
SignGo can be easily used for various cutting works like t-shirt designs, paint stencils, promo items, stickers, vinyl lettering, and more.
SignGo premium includes cool features like welding, shadows, distortions, node editor, text editor, among others. However, you may not be able to use all the premium features in the free trial. In addition to this, SignGo software supports more than 500 cutters, and your machine will probably be compatible with this.
Key features of SignGo vinyl cutting software
- Free & Cutting Software
- Vinyl Lettering
- Node Editing, Welding
- Advanced Cutting Features, Direct Scanning, Image Tracing
- Available for Windows
Plans: Free/Paid SignGo is free to use for 30 days.
Download Software: http://signgo.com/downloads
Sure Cuts A Lot
Sure Cuts A Lot (SCAL) is one of the simplest vinyl cutting software ever made. It comes with an incredibly intuitive, user-friendly interface, which makes it the perfect option for absolute beginners.
Sure-Cuts-A-Lot
Though this is a paid software, it offers you a FREE trial, which lasts for up to 15 days.
During the free trial period, you’ll enjoy using this app to cut pretty much any font or shape you can think of. You can choose to draw your own design from scratch, use pre-made designs, or cut your OpenType and TrueType fonts. Download Link
The software also has the ability to import designs from other programs. And thanks to its auto-tracing feature, it does a great job converting any shape into a cut image.
SAi Flexi
Sai fkexi is all in one design, print and cut software. Provides features such as spot color mapping, true-shape nesting and banner finishing.
The SAi Flexi print and cut software is the perfect solution for anyone looking to make their own graphics or labels. Whether it’s for personal use, a small business, or even a large corporation, the SAi Flexi print and cut software is easy to use and quick to learn. It’s also designed with you in mind so that you can get started right away!
The SAi Flexi print and cut software allows you to design your own graphics, logos, labels, badges, signs and much more. You can easily customize them by adding text boxes or changing color schemes. You can also add shapes like circles or squares which means there are endless possibilities when it comes to designing your own graphics.
Once you have finished creating your design you can then export it as PDF files so that you can print them on whatever type of paper suits your needs best. The SAi Flexi print and cut software also has an option where you can upload your own images from social media sites like Facebook or Instagram which means there are endless possibilities when it comes to designing your own graphics!
Plans: Paid
Download Software: https://www.thinksai.com/
USCutter
USCutter is the leading supplier of low-cost, high-quality sign-making and consumer apparel equipment, Vinyl cutters, heat presses, printers, sign vinyl, heat transfer vinyl, banners, important tools, and accessories. It is the best place to get important machinery related to vinyl cutting software.
Website: https://uscutter.com/
Conclusion:
Ever wondered how companies make their own custom vinyl decals and stickers? Many do it all in-house, but some may outsource to a company (like us!) who can provide vinyl decals and cutout stickers at a great price. To make these products, you will need something known as vinyl cutter software which you have undoubtedly come across by now. It’s exactly what the name says: software for cutters or plotters (also known as vinyl cutters).