AI to SVG Converter

Turn an .ai file into SVG files you can put on a web page, open in any vector editor or send to a cutting machine. Most .ai files carry a PDF copy of the artwork, one page per artboard, and the tool converts that copy: shapes come out as vector paths, text stays real text you can select, with the file’s own fonts embedded or swapped for common fonts, and placed photos stay pictures. Each artboard becomes its own SVG at its true size, in points, millimetres or pixels. For every artboard the tool counts the paths, text runs and pictures, so you can see the result really is vector, and it checks the SVG against a drawing of the original: when an effect could not be carried over, it tells you by how much they differ. If the .ai file was saved without its PDF copy, or is an old PostScript-only file, you get a plain explanation and nothing fake. Download one SVG or all of them as a ZIP. Your file is never uploaded.

100% private — everything runs in your browser. Everything runs in your browser; your .ai files are never uploaded.

How to convert an AI file to SVG

1. Drop your .ai file on the box, or click Try a sample.
2. Choose how text is kept and the size unit; every artboard converts straight away.
3. Check each artboard in the preview, with its counts and the fidelity check underneath.
4. Download this artboard as SVG, or all of them as a ZIP.

What you can use it for

• Put a logo from an .ai file on a website as a sharp, small SVG
• Open .ai artwork in a free vector editor
• Prepare .ai artwork for a cutting machine or laser cutter
• Split an icon sheet with many artboards into one SVG per artboard
• Change the colours of .ai artwork in an SVG editor
• Check whether an .ai file holds real vectors or only a placed picture

What each part of the artwork becomes

In the .ai artwork	In the SVG	Editable as vector?
Shapes, lines, outlines, outlined text	path elements with fill and stroke	Yes
Live text	text and tspan elements, fonts embedded or common fonts	Yes, as text
Linear and radial gradients, clipping masks	gradient and clipPath elements	Yes
Placed photos and raster effects	image elements with the picture embedded	No, stays a picture
Blend modes, soft masks, mesh gradients	may be lost or simplified (the fidelity check warns)	Check the preview

Layers are not kept as separate groups you can name: the SVG is the artwork as it looks, not the layer structure.

Which .ai files open here

Kind of .ai file	How to tell	What happens here
Saved with “Create PDF Compatible File” on (the usual setting)	Opens in a PDF viewer and shows the artwork	Every artboard is converted
Saved with that option off	A PDF viewer shows only a notice that it was saved without PDF content	Clear message, nothing made: save it again with the option on
Old PostScript-only .ai	Starts with %!PS-Adobe instead of %PDF	Clear message, nothing made: save it as a newer .ai or a PDF
A PDF renamed .ai, or a real PDF	Starts with %PDF	Converted like any .ai with PDF compatibility

An .ai file saved with the option off still starts like a PDF, but its only page is a notice that reads: “This is an Adobe® Illustrator® File that was saved without PDF Content. To Place or open this file in other applications, it should be re-saved from Adobe Illustrator with the ‘Create PDF Compatible File’ option turned on.” The tool reads that notice and tells you, instead of turning the notice into a picture.

Size and text options

Option	Choices	Use it for
Text	The file’s own fonts embedded / common fonts	Exact look / smaller files and easier editing
SVG size	Points (true size) / millimetres / pixels, 1 pt = 1 px	Print and cutting / web pages
Artboards	All, or a range such as 1-3, 5	Only the boards you need

A point is 1/72 inch, so millimetres are points × 25.4 ÷ 72. A 500 × 500 pt artboard becomes 176.389 × 176.389 mm.

Tips for clean SVGs

• Keep “Create PDF Compatible File” ticked when saving .ai files you will share.
• For a cutting machine, choose common fonts and convert text to paths in your editor before cutting.
• If the fidelity check warns on an artboard with heavy effects, flatten those effects in the original app, or use a PNG for that artboard.
• Very detailed artwork with thousands of shapes may take a few seconds per artboard.

Next steps: shrink the SVG with the SVG Optimizer, change its colours with the SVG Color Changer, edit it in the SVG Editor or look inside it with the SVG Viewer. Need a picture instead? SVG to PNG turns the result into a PNG; to trace a PNG or JPG into shapes, use PNG to SVG.

Not affiliated with Adobe.

Sources

Sources: a real .ai file saved without PDF content (Texas State University laser template), whose page carries the notice quoted above; pdf.js on GitHub (Apache-2.0 licence); W3C Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 2; ISO 32000-2, the PDF 2.0 standard; PKWARE APPNOTE.TXT, the ZIP file format specification.

Frequently asked questions

Is this AI to SVG converter free?

Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit beyond 200 artboards at a time. The conversion runs in your browser, so your .ai file never leaves your device.

Is the SVG really vector?

Yes. Shapes and outlines become SVG paths and text stays text; only photos placed in the artwork stay pictures. Under the preview the tool counts the paths, text runs and pictures on each artboard, so you can check.

What is the fidelity check?

After converting, the tool draws the SVG and the original artwork side by side at a small size and compares them pixel by pixel. Under 3% difference means the SVG matches; above that it warns you, because an effect such as a blend mode or a soft mask may not have carried over.

Are gradients and effects kept?

Simple linear and radial gradients, clipping masks and see-through colours come across. Some effects, such as blend modes, soft masks and mesh gradients, may be lost or changed; the fidelity check tells you when that happens, and AI to PNG gives an exact picture instead.

Can I select and edit the text?

Yes. Text stays as SVG text with the file’s own fonts embedded, or choose common fonts for a smaller file that is easier to edit. If you need outlines, for example for a cutting machine, convert the text to paths in your vector editor.

What happens with several artboards?

SVG has no pages, so every artboard becomes its own file, named with its number. Download one, or all of them as a ZIP.

Why does it say my .ai file was saved without PDF content?

Illustrator can save an .ai file without the PDF copy of the artwork that other programs read; the option is called Create PDF Compatible File. Such a file holds only the Illustrator editing data, which no browser tool can read. Open it in Illustrator, choose Save As, tick Create PDF Compatible File and add the new file.

Can it open very old .ai files?

Not the old PostScript-only kind, which start with %!PS-Adobe instead of %PDF. Drawing them needs a PostScript interpreter, which this tool does not have, so it says so and makes nothing. Save the file as a newer .ai with PDF compatibility, or as a PDF, and try again.

Is this for pictures made with AI?

No. AI here is the .ai file extension of vector artwork from Illustrator and similar apps. Pictures from AI image generators are usually already PNG, JPG or WebP files.

Is my .ai file uploaded?

No. The file is read by pdf.js and converted by pdf.js’s SVG back end and our own code, all in your browser.