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.
- Product
- Adobe Illustrator Image Trace
- Gecontroleerd
- 2026-08-26
- Regel
- Bron en datum vermeld
- Prijs
- Gratis preview
Naast elkaar
| Naast elkaar | vectortrace | Adobe Illustrator Image Trace |
|---|---|---|
| What you need installed | A 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.Bron · gecontroleerd op 2026-08-26 |
| Where the tracing runs | The 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.Bron · gecontroleerd op 2026-08-26 |
| Pricing model | Previews 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.Bron · gecontroleerd op 2026-08-26 |
| Automatable | Yes — 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.Bron · gecontroleerd op 2026-08-26 |
| Cutter-oriented output | Cutout 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.Bron · gecontroleerd op 2026-08-26 |
Goed om te weten
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.
Wat we niet hebben gemeten
- 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.
- Does your workflow need a licence on every machine that traces, or on one? That answer usually decides this comparison on its own.
Benchmark
Gemeten, niet verkocht. De corpus, de methode en elk cijfer dat de run opleverde worden volledig gepubliceerd.
Methodologie → /benchmarks- boundary error, p95
- 0.09 px
- region-count error
- 0.000
- node-count ratio
- 1.00×
Waarom vectortrace
- Bon 1 / 3
In de browser en privé
De engine is WebAssembly die draait in een worker op je eigen apparaat. Je afbeelding wordt nooit geüpload — er is dus niets te lekken, niets te verwijderen en niets om op vertrouwen aan te nemen.
- Bon 2 / 3
Bewerkbare paden, geen omhulsel
De engine groepeert de afbeelding in kleurgebieden, neemt de grens ertussen en past er curven op. Het resultaat is echte geometrie — één vulling per gebied, elk ankerpunt door jou te verplaatsen — geproduceerd in het tabblad en nooit op een server.
- Bon 3 / 3
Formaten die print en productie gebruiken
SVG en PDF voor werktekeningen; EPS en DXF voor snijplotters, graveermachines en borduursoftware. Echte bestanden, te openen in Illustrator, Inkscape en LibreCAD — geen SVG met een JPEG erin verstopt.
Vragen
- 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.