LightBurn for Beginners: Import, Layers and Your First Cut

The first time you hit Start in LightBurn and the head glides off to trace your design, your stomach does a little flip. Is it in the right place? Is it the right size? Will it cut through? A calm routine takes most of that nerves away, and this guide gives you one: import, check, assign layers, frame, test, cut.

LightBurn is the control program many hobby and small-business makers settle on. It is not a design tool first (though it has basic ones), it is the bridge between your file and your machine. It runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, and it is paid software with a free trial of 30 days, so you can try every feature before you spend anything. If you only need a free option, see free laser software.

What LightBurn does (and which lasers it drives)

LightBurn reads a vector file, lets you assign settings to each color, and talks to your laser. It supports most hobby and industrial controllers: GRBL-based diode lasers, Ruida, Trocen and TopWisdom CO2 controllers, Smoothieware, Marlin and others. It does not drive every brand. Glowforge machines use Glowforge's own web app, and some branded machines need their own software, so check LightBurn's device list for your exact model before buying.

Licensing is per controller family: the license you buy is tied to the kind of controller (GCode-based like GRBL, or DSP like Ruida), and it includes a period of updates. Check lightburnsoftware.com for current prices and tiers, because they change.

Step 1: Set up your device

Open Devices, add your laser (auto-find works for many USB lasers), and enter your bed size. This matters more than it seems: if the workspace is the wrong size, your design will frame in the wrong place and you may crash the head into the frame.

1. Choose the controller type (GRBL, Ruida and so on).
2. Enter the bed width and height in millimeters.
3. Set the origin to match your machine (usually front-left or rear-left).
4. Turn on the connection and watch the head respond to a small move.

Pro tip: Save a small test file of a 10 mm square and a 10 mm circle. Run it every time you change machine or lens, and you will notice problems before a good sheet is ruined.

Step 2: Import your SVG or DXF

Use File > Import (or drag the file into the workspace). LightBurn opens SVG, DXF, AI, PDF and a handful of others; the full list is in what file formats LightBurn supports.

DXF World files are made for this. Each SVG carries a red CUT hairline and a black ENGRAVE fill; each DXF carries layers named CUT and ENGRAVE. When you import them the colors or layers land in the layer list on the right. Try the reindeer ornament: it is 90 × 124 mm, and once it is in the workspace you can check those numbers in the size boxes at the top.

Common mistake: trusting the picture on screen instead of the size boxes. If your 90 mm ornament shows as 120 mm or 68 mm, the file was interpreted at the wrong resolution. Read why an SVG is the wrong size in LightBurn and fix it before you cut anything.

Step 3: Understand layers and modes

Every color in LightBurn is a layer with its own settings. That is the whole trick. Cutting and engraving want different power and speed, so they live on different colors.

Click a layer in the Cuts / Layers panel to open its settings. You will set Speed (in mm/s), Power (in percent), Passes and Mode. If you want the full story on how layers behave, read cut, engrave and score layers explained.

Order matters. LightBurn runs layers from the top of the list to the bottom, so put ENGRAVE above CUT. Engrave first, cut last, because once a piece is cut free it can shift on the bed and your engraving would land in the wrong spot.

Step 4: Starter settings for 3 mm plywood

These are starting points only. Every laser, lens, ply and air-assist setup behaves differently, so always run a test on a scrap before the real sheet. Our full table is in LightBurn settings for 3 mm plywood.

An engrave layer is normally set much faster and at lower power than cutting, then adjusted to taste on a scrap. Dark, crisp lines with no charring on the back of the board is your goal.

Step 5: Position, frame and start

Positioning is where beginners get nervous, so slow down here.

1. Place your sheet and square it against the corner, or against a jig made of scrap.
2. Choose how LightBurn finds your job. Absolute Coords puts the design where it sits on the screen; Current Position starts it where the head is now.
3. Press Frame. The head traces the outline of the job (with the laser off, or at very low power). Check it sits well inside the material.
4. Press Start.

Pro tip: If you run lots of small jobs, use Current Position with a jig that fixes the material in the same spot each time. You will cut 20 ornaments in the time it used to take you to cut 12.

Stay beside the machine for the entire job. Fire is rare when you watch and common when you walk away. Safety basics are in laser cutter safety.

Troubleshooting your first cut

Save a library of settings

When you find a speed and power that cut your plywood cleanly, save them. LightBurn has a Material Library: store the combination under a name like "3 mm birch ply, 10 W, air on", and next time you load it in two clicks. This habit alone saves hours over a month.

Next step

Download a small free file, such as the six-pointed snow star, import it, assign the layers as above, frame it and cut one on scrap. When it pops out clean you will have your own tested settings, and every cut after that starts from a place you trust.