How to Make Stickers with Cricut Print Then Cut

Cricut Print Then Cut stickers are made by printing full-color artwork on a home printer, then loading the printed sheet into a Cricut machine so it can scan the sensor marks and cut around each sticker.

Quick answer: upload a clean PNG or other printable artwork to Design Space, make it a Print Then Cut image, add a sticker border if needed, print from Design Space, place the sheet on the mat exactly as shown, then let the machine scan and cut.

Start with artwork from our PNG design collection, or read SVG vs. PNG for Cricut if you are deciding which file type to use.

What you need

• A Print Then Cut compatible Cricut machine
• Design Space on desktop or mobile
• An inkjet printer for most printable sticker materials
• Printable sticker paper, printable vinyl, or compatible waterproof sticker material
• A LightGrip mat and fine-point blade
• A PNG, JPG, SVG, or other uploaded image that you are allowed to use

Check Cricut's current compatibility list before starting. Print Then Cut requires a compatible Cricut machine; the original Cricut Joy is not capable of Print Then Cut.

Step-by-step: make Print Then Cut stickers

1. Open Design Space and start a new project.
2. Upload your PNG sticker artwork or add a design from your saved images.
3. Resize the sticker to the final physical size you want.
4. If using Create Sticker, select the design, choose Create Sticker, then choose Kiss Cut or Die Cut.
5. Add a border if you want a classic white sticker outline.
6. If using the classic workflow instead, select all sticker layers and use Flatten so the machine cuts the outside shape instead of every separate piece.
7. Select Make and review the mat preview.
8. Print from Design Space using the recommended printer settings.
9. Place the printed sheet on the mat in the same orientation shown in Design Space.
10. Select the matching material setting and cut.

Kiss cut vs. die cut

A kiss cut trims through the printable sticker layer while leaving the backing sheet intact. This is useful for sticker sheets. A die cut goes through the sticker material and liner so each sticker can be handed out individually.

Create Sticker also offers sticker-specific options such as a border and, for some workflows, a die cut edge. Choose the option based on how the customer will peel and use the sticker.

Should you turn bleed on or off?

Bleed adds a small printed edge around the artwork so a tiny cut shift does not leave a white hairline. Cricut enables bleed by default for Print Then Cut projects. If your sticker already has a clean border or you are using Create Sticker without a border, test both settings on plain paper before using sticker material.

Printer settings that matter

• Print from Design Space during the same project session.
• Do not scale, fit to page, shrink, or enlarge the print.
• Use high quality print settings when available.
• Load the printable side correctly.
• Let ink dry before placing the sheet on the mat.

Cricut warns that saving a Print Then Cut project as a PDF and printing outside the Design Space flow can create incorrectly sized sensor marks. For sticker sheets, that can mean the machine scans but cuts in the wrong place.

Common sticker mistakes

• Using Attach instead of Flatten for multi-layer printable designs
• Uploading a low-resolution preview image
• Printing with Fit to Page turned on
• Placing the sheet upside down or rotated on the mat
• Using glossy, dark, or reflective material with a machine that struggles to scan it
• Skipping calibration when cuts are consistently shifted

Frequently asked questions

Can I use PNG files for Cricut stickers?

Yes. PNG files work well for detailed printable stickers because they preserve raster artwork and can include transparency. Check the pixel dimensions before printing large stickers.

Do I need SVG files for Print Then Cut stickers?

No. SVG files are useful for scalable vector shapes, but a PNG can be the right choice for watercolor, detailed, shaded, or full-color sticker art.

Why is Cricut cutting every little element?

The design is probably still separated into multiple layers. Use Create Sticker or Flatten the layers into one printable image before making the project.

Next, learn how to prepare PNG sticker resolution and white borders, then use the Print Then Cut troubleshooting guide if the cut is shifted.