Whether you’re a hobbyist or a professional designer, having the right tools for the job is essential. If you’re looking to create graphics and designs for apparel, signage, walls, and other surfaces, you may be wondering if a Cricut or a vinyl cutter is the best choice. Both tools offer great features and capabilities but they have some key differences that you should be aware of before making your decision.
Cricut
Cricuts are designed for cutting paper, cardstock, vinyl, fabric, and other thin materials. They use an electronic cutting blade and come with software that allows you to create detailed designs from your computer.
You can also purchase ready-made designs from Cricut’s library of images. Cricuts are great for scrapbooking and creative projects like making greeting cards or custom apparel.
Vinyl Cutter
A vinyl cutter is designed for cutting adhesive-backed vinyl material such as sign vinyl and heat transfer material. Vinyl cutters come with software that allows you to draw shapes or import designs from other sources like Illustrator and Corel Draw. Vinyl cutters are ideal for creating custom signs and graphics on banners, windows, vehicles, and other surfaces.
Differences Between Cricut & Vinyl Cutter
The main difference between a Cricut and a vinyl cutter is what type of materials they can cut. While both can cut paper and cardstock, only a vinyl cutter can cut adhesive-backed materials like sign vinyl. Cricuts can also be used to write text on surfaces whereas vinyl cutters cannot do this without the use of additional equipment.
Conclusion
Ultimately it depends on what kind of project you’re working on as to which tool is best suited for it. If you’re creating graphics for apparel or customizing cards then go with a Cricut as it’s designed specifically for those kinds of tasks. If you’re looking to make custom signage then go with a vinyl cutter as it will provide better results when cutting adhesive-backed materials.