What is a raster image?
A raster image (also called bitmap) is a grid of pixels, each with its own color. Photos from your phone, screenshots and most images on the web are raster. The quality is tied to the number of pixels: a 500 × 500 px logo looks fine on screen but turns into visible squares when printed on a banner.
Common raster formats: PNG, JPG/JPEG, WebP, GIF, BMP, TIFF, HEIC and PSD.
More background: raster graphics on Wikipedia.
What is a vector image?
A vector image stores shapes: points, lines, curves and fills defined by math. When you resize it, the software simply recalculates the shapes, so edges stay perfectly sharp at any size. Vectors are also easy to edit: each shape can be recolored, moved or reshaped.
Common vector formats: SVG, AI, EPS, PDF (when it contains vectors), DXF and CDR.
Raster vs vector: side-by-side comparison
| Raster | Vector | |
|---|---|---|
| Made of | Pixels | Shapes and curves |
| Scaling | Loses quality when enlarged | Infinite, always sharp |
| Best for | Photos, complex textures | Logos, icons, type, illustrations |
| Editing | Pixel by pixel | Shape by shape |
| File size | Grows with resolution | Grows with complexity |
| Cutting machines and lasers | Not cuttable | Cuttable paths |
| Typical tools | Photoshop, GIMP | Illustrator, Inkscape, Figma |
When to use raster and when to use vector
- Use vector for logos, icons, lettering, signage, merch, embroidery, screen printing, vinyl and laser cutting.
- Use raster for photographs, painterly artwork, complex textures and images shown at a fixed size on the web.
- Use both for brands: keep the vector as the master, export raster copies (PNG, WebP) for social media and websites.
How to convert raster to vector (and back)
Vector to raster is easy: any design app exports PNG or JPG at the size you choose.
Raster to vector requires vectorizing: detecting colors and shapes and redrawing them as curves. You can do it by hand, with auto-trace in Illustrator or Inkscape, or with AI. The vectorizer at the top of this page uses AI to fix the palette and separate the background before tracing, which produces cleaner files than pixel-based tracing. Learn more on our raster to vector converter page and in how to vectorize an image.
Resolution, DPI and print size: raster vs vector in practice
Printers usually want at least 300 pixels per inch at the final print size for raster images. That makes the math simple, and often painful:
| Print size | Raster pixels needed at 300 dpi | Vector |
|---|---|---|
| Business card logo, 1 in wide | 300 px | Any size works |
| T-shirt print, 10 in wide | 3000 px | Any size works |
| Banner, 6 ft wide | Around 21,600 px (or lower dpi for viewing distance) | Any size works |
| Storefront sign, 3 m wide | Tens of thousands of px | Any size works |
That is the core of the raster vs vector debate for logos: a vector has no resolution limit, so the same small file covers every size. A raster logo is only good up to the size its pixels allow.
Raster vs vector myths
- "Saving as PDF makes it a vector." Only if the content was vector to begin with. A PNG placed in a PDF is still a PNG.
- "A high-resolution PNG is as good as a vector." For screens and small prints, often. For large formats, cutting, engraving and color separation, no.
- "Vectors are always smaller." For logos, yes. For complex illustrations with thousands of shapes, a vector can be larger than a compressed JPG.
- "Any raster can become a perfect vector." Flat artwork, yes. Photos become stylized illustrations.