VectorTrace vs Illustrator Image Trace

Image Trace is the tool most designers reach for first, because it is already open. The differences are what it costs to have open and where the tracing runs.

Image Trace panel, as described in Adobe documentationAdobe Illustrator Image Trace 방문
제품
Adobe Illustrator Image Trace
확인일
2026-08-26
규칙
출처와 날짜 명시
가격
무료 미리보기
01

나란히 비교

행 5개 · 각각 출처와 날짜 명시
나란히 비교vectortraceAdobe Illustrator Image Trace
What you need installedA browser. The engine is a WebAssembly module the page loads on first interaction.Adobe Illustrator, on a supported desktop operating system, per Adobe system requirements.출처 · 확인일 2026-08-26
Where the tracing runsThe image is traced by WebAssembly in a Web Worker in your own tab. It is never uploaded, so there is nothing to store, delete or leak.On your own machine, inside Illustrator. Also local — this is not a privacy difference.출처 · 확인일 2026-08-26
Pricing modelPreviews are free and unlimited. Downloads need Pro at €9.00 per month or €69.00 per year, tax inclusive.An Adobe subscription. See Adobe pricing — we do not restate a price that is not ours to quote.출처 · 확인일 2026-08-26
AutomatableYes — POST /api/v1/vectorize, with an OpenAPI 3.1 document generated from the same schemas the server validates against.Through Illustrator scripting or Actions on a machine with Illustrator installed and licensed.출처 · 확인일 2026-08-26
Cutter-oriented outputCutout tracing and a DXF exporter aimed at plotters, lasers and CNC.Image Trace produces artwork in Illustrator; a cutter format is an export step afterwards, sometimes via a plug-in.출처 · 확인일 2026-08-26
02

알아두면 좋은 점

Image Trace lives inside Illustrator, which means it is right there when you already own Illustrator, and it is a subscription away when you do not. It has presets, live previews and an Expand step, and it hands the result straight into the editor you were going to use anyway.

VectorTrace is a web page. It has no install, no account for previews, and it runs the tracing locally in the browser rather than on your desktop or on a server. The output is ordinary SVG, so the next step can still be Illustrator.

The honest summary: if Illustrator is open and the trace is good enough, use Image Trace. The cases where a separate tool earns its place are a machine without a licence, a colleague who does not have one, an automated pipeline behind an HTTP API, or output aimed at a cutter rather than at a page.

03

아직 측정하지 않은 것

미확인 질문 2개
  1. Which gives you fewer nodes at the same fidelity for the artwork you actually trace? Expand an Image Trace result and compare the anchor count with ours.
  2. Does your workflow need a licence on every machine that traces, or on one? That answer usually decides this comparison on its own.
04

벤치마크

수치와 날짜, 버전이 없는 주장은 하지 않습니다.
smoke (30 fixtures) · 2026-09-05 · 0.3.34

마케팅이 아니라 측정입니다. 코퍼스, 방법론, 그리고 실행이 만들어낸 모든 수치를 빠짐없이 게시합니다.

방법론/benchmarks
boundary error, p95
0.09 px
region-count error
0.000
node-count ratio
1.00×
05

vectortrace를 선택하는 이유

주장 3개 · 고정된 순서
06

질문

질문 3개
01Should I stop using Image Trace?
No. If Illustrator is already open and the trace is good enough, that is the fastest path and we would use it too. The reason to use something else is a machine without a licence, an automated pipeline, or output aimed at a cutter.
02Can I edit VectorTrace output in Illustrator?
Yes. The SVG is one path per colour region with a plain fill, so Illustrator opens it as editable artwork with no import step or expand step.
03Is Image Trace uploading my file?
No — Image Trace runs locally in Illustrator. On this comparison the privacy row is a tie, and we say so rather than implying otherwise.
07

관련

링크 5개