DST vs PES vs JEF: which embroidery file format does your machine need?

Your machine brand decides the format. Brother, Baby Lock and Bernette machines read PES. Janome and Elna read JEF. Commercial multi-needle machines from Tajima, Barudan, Ricoma and SWF read DST. Bernina and Melco use EXP, Husqvarna Viking and Pfaff use VP3, and Singer uses XXX. All of these embroidery file formats store the same core data: needle positions, jumps and color changes. The differences are in the extras, such as how trims are written and, above all, whether the file remembers your thread colors.

The 8 embroidery machine file types at a glance

This table covers the formats you'll meet most often. The color column matters more than people expect. A file without thread colors sews perfectly well, but whoever runs the machine needs a separate list to know which thread goes where.

If you open a DST and the colors look random, nothing is broken. The software picked placeholder colors because the file only says "change thread here". On a multi-needle machine the operator assigns each color stop to a needle at the machine anyway, which is why DST works fine as the commercial standard without color support.

DST vs PES: the real differences

DST and PES are the two formats people ask about most, usually because a design arrived as one and their machine wants the other. Here's how they actually differ:

• Who reads it. DST is the shared language of commercial embroidery. Almost every multi-needle machine reads it, so shops and digitizers trade designs as DST. PES is Brother's format, also used by Baby Lock and Bernette.
• Thread colors. PES stores color information, so the machine screen shows the design in roughly the right colors. DST only stores color stops.
• Stitch length. DST records each move as a short step of at most 12.1 mm (about 0.48 in) in each direction, so longer moves are split into several jumps. In practice, 12.1 mm is treated as the longest stitch a DST can hold.
• Trims. DST has no separate trim command. Machines usually read a short run of empty jumps as a cue to trim, and how many it takes is a machine setting. If a DST leaves long threads between letters, check that setting before you blame the file.
• Stitch quality. No difference. The same stitches saved as DST or PES sew the same way. Quality comes from the digitizing, not the file extension.

Which embroidery format for Brother, Janome and other home machines?

For most home machines the answer is simple: use the brand's own format.

• Brother and Baby Lock: PES. Many Brother models also accept DST, but the screen shows placeholder colors. Very old models may want PEC.
• Janome and Elna: JEF.
• Bernina: EXP.
• Husqvarna Viking and Pfaff: VP3.
• Singer: XXX.
• Bernette: PES.

Some models read more than one format, so check your manual or the machine's spec sheet for the full list. Another quick check: look at the extension on any design files that came with your machine. Most machines load files from a USB stick, and many newer ones also take files from the maker's Wi-Fi app or software.

Converting between formats can't add detail

A format converter translates stitches. It doesn't redesign them. Convert a PES to a DST and the stitches stay where they were, but the thread colors are dropped and trims are written as the jump codes DST uses. Convert a DST to a PES and the colors in the new file are guesses, so check them against the thread list.

• A badly digitized file stays bad in every format. If the text was too small, the underlay was missing or the density was too high, converting carries every one of those problems across. Detail that wasn't digitized can't appear in a new format.
• An image isn't a format. Renaming logo.jpg to logo.dst doesn't work, and no converter turns a JPG into a stitch file without digitizing it first. Here's what embroidery digitizing involves.

Resizing is the other trap. When a machine or a basic editor scales a stitch file, it usually stretches the existing stitches instead of recalculating them. Make the design much bigger and you get gaps and long, loose stitches. Make it much smaller and the stitches pile up into a stiff, dense patch. A common rule of thumb is to stay within about 10 to 20 percent of the original size. Beyond that, go back to the artwork and stitch it again at the new size.

Hoop size limits on home machines

The format isn't the only limit. Every machine has a maximum sewing field, and most will refuse a design that's bigger or ask you to shrink it. Many entry-level home machines only take a 4×4 in hoop. These are the common standard sizes:

A left chest logo at 90 mm (3.5 in) wide usually fits a 4×4 in hoop. A 250 mm (9.8 in) jacket back needs an 8×12 in hoop with the design running along the 12 in side, or a commercial machine with a bigger frame. Decide the finished size before you digitize. Squeezing a jacket back design into a 4×4 in hoop by scaling the stitch file runs into every resizing problem above.

Getting the right file from SatinSmith

In SatinSmith you don't choose a format up front. Previews are free, and when you unlock a design, that one download covers all 8 formats. Pick your machine and you get the right file, or download all 8 as a .zip if you share files with other shops. The preview also shows which standard hoop the design fits and warns you if it's bigger than 8×12 in. Plan prices are on the pricing page.

Because DST, EXP and U01 don't carry thread colors, the Production sheet (available once you've unlocked a design) lists the stitch count, run time and thread colors for whoever runs the machine. If someone sends you a DST and you want to check it before sewing, open it in the free DST viewer. It plays the stitch-out in your browser, checks stitch length, density and hoop fit, and doesn't upload the file anywhere. Our guide to opening a DST file for free walks through it. Whatever the format, sew a test piece on scrap fabric before a big run.