PNG to STL Converter

PNG is the format most logos and icons are saved in, and it keeps hard edges without the blocky artefacts of JPG compression. That matters when every pixel becomes height: a clean PNG gives straight walls on letters and shapes. Transparent pixels are treated as white, so on the default setting (dark areas raised) the background becomes the flat base and your design stands up from it.

Use a single dark colour on a transparent or white background – a logo, a silhouette, a signature or text. Multicolour PNGs work too, but each colour becomes a different height depending on its brightness, which can look uneven. Convert the image to black and white first if you want one crisp level. A PNG of 500 to 2000 pixels wide is plenty; bigger files are scaled down before sampling.

For a sign or plaque try 80–150 mm wide, 2 mm base and 1.5–3 mm relief. For a keychain or badge, 40–50 mm wide with a 2 mm base and 1 mm relief prints quickly. For a rubber-stamp master, mirror the PNG in any image editor before converting, because the stamp prints reversed. Turn smoothing off when your PNG has thin lines, or they may lose height.

Some workflows convert a PNG to SVG and extrude it in CAD. That gives perfectly flat tops but needs extra software and works only for solid shapes. Converting straight from PNG to STL is faster and also captures gradients and shading, which an extrusion cannot. For simple one-colour logos both routes give a similar print.