Turn Any Photo or Image into a Cross Stitch Pattern

The Photo to Cross Stitch Pattern Converter

Photo2Stitch is an online cross stitch pattern maker that converts photos into stitchable patterns. Upload any picture and our converter maps each pixel to a real DMC thread color, reduces single-stitch “confetti”, and outputs an editable pattern with a complete bill of materials and a Pattern Keeper compatible PDF chart you can stitch from on your phone.

Use it as a picture to cross stitch converter, a cross stitch image converter, a needlepoint pattern generator, or to make a cross stitch pattern from a photo as a gift. Free preview, only pay when you are ready to stitch.

The preview is the pattern, not a mock-up. Compare up to three styles of the same photo (Classic, Clean and Illustrated) and keep the one you like. You can also remove the background first, so every color goes to your subject.

Sign up for free to save your patterns and build a personal library. Purchase a single pattern when you are ready, or subscribe for 20 patterns a month.

Image to Cross Stitch Pattern Converter: What Converts Well

Making a cross stitch from a photo starts with the photo itself. Any JPG, PNG or WebP works, whether it's a phone photo, a scanned print or a picture someone sent you. To convert an image to a cross stitch pattern that stitches well, start with good light and a subject that fills the frame. Faces need to be large in the picture, because a portrait on 14-count Aida gives an eye only a few stitches.

Crop tight before you convert, so the stitches go to the subject and not the room around it, and remove a busy background if the photo has one. Strong contrast between the subject and its surroundings gives cleaner edges; flat, dim or very dark photos lose detail first.

Fewer colors usually look better than more. Around 15 to 30 suits most portraits, and the free preview shows the result straight away, so you can go from picture to pattern, change a setting and compare before you pay anything.