Embroidery File Formats

Machine embroidery is an embroidery process whereby a sewing machine or embroidery machine is used to create patterns on textiles. It is used commercially in product branding, corporate advertising, and uniform adornment. It is also used in the fashion industry to decorate garments and apparel. Machine embroidery is used by hobbyists and crafters to decorate gifts, clothing, and home decor. Examples include designs on quilts, pillows, and wall hangings.

Below is a chart with the distribution of file formats made by customer request up to 2022.

The most commons embroidery machine formats are:

The Tajima .DST format is a universal embroidery machine format. Most of the embroidery machines can read it and perform the original file.
For those embroideries that can afford a embroidery software like Wilcom or Pulse, the best option is require a outline format or embroidery vector file like .EMB or .PXF, this way the embroider can make changes on file inhouse, like adjust density or size that can be necessary with different fabrics or even change a file sequence to embroidery a cap or left chest file.

Melco condensed (CND) – we not recommend you to ask designs with this extension because many resources (curve fill, compensation, special underlay, etc) that we use just disappear in Melco condensed (CND) format. We cannot tell you to not use the condensed (CND) format, that is up to you.

Anyway, you can request us any adjust that the file needs to embroidery better at no extra fee.

Below are all embroidery formats that we can provide today.