What is LightBurn used for?

LightBurn is laser control and design software — it replaces the free program that ships with most engravers, letting you import or draw artwork, trace photos into engravable line art, set up material test grids, run a rotary attachment, and send the finished job to your laser's controller. It works with diode, CO2, and fiber machines, which is why it's become the default choice across brands like xTool, OMTech, Sculpfun, and Creality Falcon rather than any single manufacturer's own app.

No, but it has a 30-day fully-functional free trial. After that, LightBurn Core costs $120 one-time for GCode-based diode lasers, and LightBurn Pro costs $199 one-time for CO2 and fiber machines running DSP or galvo controllers, per LightBurn's official pricing page. Both are perpetual licenses that include a year of free software updates; after that, renewing updates costs $40/year whether you're on Core or Pro.

Do I need LightBurn Core or Pro?

Buy Core if your machine uses a GCode-based GRBL, Smoothieware, or Marlin controller — that covers nearly every diode laser, including xTool, Sculpfun, AtomStack, Creality Falcon, Ortur, and Longer models. Buy Pro if your machine uses a DSP controller (Ruida, Trocen, TopWisdom) or an EZCad2-based galvo, which is standard on CO2 tube lasers and fiber marking machines like the OMTech Polar or xTool F1 Ultra's fiber head, per LightBurn's own version-comparison guide. If you're not sure, check your controller board's brand before buying — Core cannot run a DSP or galvo machine.

Can I upgrade from LightBurn Core to Pro later?

Yes. LightBurn sells a $100 Core-to-Pro upgrade, so buying Core first for a diode machine and later adding a CO2 or fiber laser doesn't mean paying for Pro twice — you pay the $79 difference between a fresh Pro purchase and the Core license you already own, per LightBurn's pricing page.

Does LightBurn work with my specific laser brand?

Almost certainly, if it's a GRBL, Ruida, Trocen, or EZCad2-based machine — which covers the vast majority of consumer laser engravers sold today, including every brand covered on this site. The exceptions are a handful of fully closed-ecosystem machines, like early Glowforge models, that only run the manufacturer's own cloud software. Check your machine's controller type before buying if you're unsure.

What's the difference between LightBurn and the free software that comes with my laser?

Bundled apps like xTool Creative Space or LaserGRBL are free and fine for basic jobs, but they're typically locked to one brand, lack LightBurn's material test-grid tool, offset/kerf handling, and advanced photo-to-engraving image processing, and — outside LightBurn Pro — usually can't run a fiber or CO2 galvo machine at all. Most sellers and serious hobbyists switch to LightBurn once they're running more than a handful of jobs a week.

What Is LightBurn? Laser Engraving Software Guide (2026)

Quick Answer: LightBurn is the third-party software most laser engraver owners run instead of their machine’s bundled app — it handles design, photo-to-engraving conversion, material test grids, and rotary setup, then sends the job to the laser’s controller. LightBurn Core costs $120 one-time and covers GCode/GRBL-based diode lasers (xTool, Sculpfun, AtomStack, Creality Falcon); LightBurn Pro costs $199 one-time and adds support for DSP-controlled CO2 machines (Ruida, Trocen) and EZCad2-based fiber/galvo lasers, per LightBurn’s official pricing page. Both are perpetual licenses with a year of free updates included, then $40/year to keep updating — and there’s a 30-day free trial before you buy either.

If you’ve researched a laser engraver for more than five minutes, you’ve seen “runs on LightBurn” listed as a feature. It isn’t bundled hardware or a gimmick — it’s the one piece of software that works across nearly every brand, which is why it shows up in specs for machines that otherwise have nothing in common. This guide covers what it actually does, which license you need, and when the free software that ships with your machine is good enough instead.

What LightBurn actually does

LightBurn is a combined design-and-control app, not just a “send to laser” utility. In practice, three things separate it from a manufacturer’s bundled software:

Art mode and Cut mode in one window. You lay out text, shapes, and imported vector or raster artwork in Art mode, then flip to Cut mode to assign laser power, speed, and pass count per layer — engrave the fill, then cut the outline, in a single job.
Photo-to-engraving conversion. Built-in dithering algorithms (Jarvis, Stucki, Floyd-Steinberg, and others) convert grayscale photos into patterns of tiny dots a laser can actually burn, which is how portrait-engraving shops get photorealistic results on wood and slate.
Material test grids and rotary/camera support. A one-click grid generator burns a matrix of power/speed combinations on scrap material so you can dial in new material without guessing, and built-in rotary setup handles cylindrical items like tumblers and mugs — see our best laser engraver rotary attachment roundup if you don’t have one yet.

LightBurn Core vs Pro — which do you need?

The split is entirely about your laser’s controller board, not your skill level or budget.

	LightBurn Core	LightBurn Pro
Price	$120 one-time	$199 one-time
Controllers supported	GRBL, Smoothieware, Marlin, Grbl-LPC (GCode)	Everything in Core, plus Ruida, Trocen, TopWisdom (DSP) and EZCad2-based galvo
Typical machines	xTool D1 Pro, Sculpfun, AtomStack, Creality Falcon, Ortur, Longer	CO2 tube lasers (OMTech Polar, Glowforge-alternatives), fiber marking machines
Renewal (after year 1)	$40/year for updates	$40/year for updates
Core → Pro upgrade	—	$100

Per LightBurn’s own version-comparison page, Pro covers every GCode controller Core does — it’s a strict superset, not a different feature set. So the only real decision is whether your machine (or a machine you plan to add later) uses a DSP or galvo controller. Nearly every diode engraver on the market, including every brand roundup on this site, ships with a GRBL-family controller and only needs Core. If you’re still deciding between a diode and a CO2 machine in the first place, our diode vs CO2 laser comparison breaks down the tradeoff beyond just software.

xTool S1 (20W-40W diode) — Runs on LightBurn Core

Enclosed, Class-1 safe · GRBL controller · ~$1,699-$2,699

Ships GCode/GRBL-based, so a $120 LightBurn Core license is all the software you'll ever need to buy for it.
Fully enclosed — no separate goggles required to run it safely on a home desk or in a garage.
40W version handles basswood and dark acrylic in a single pass once you're past LightBurn's material test-grid stage.

Check price on Amazon →

Already own a machine and just need the licensing sorted before your next order? A free 30-day Amazon Prime trial covers two-day shipping on a rotary attachment or replacement lens while you’re mid-project, without padding a cart just to hit a free-shipping minimum.

Getting started with LightBurn

Confirm your controller type. Check your machine’s manual or product page for GRBL/Smoothieware/Marlin (Core) vs Ruida/Trocen/DSP or galvo (Pro). Buying the wrong tier is the single most common first-time mistake.
Run the 30-day free trial first. It’s fully functional, not a stripped-down demo, so you can confirm your machine connects and imports cleanly before paying.
Burn a material test grid before your first real job. This is the fastest way to stop guessing power and speed settings on new material — a five-minute grid on scrap saves far more than five minutes of ruined blanks.
Set up your camera and rotary once, not per job. If your machine has a camera or you add a rotary attachment later, LightBurn’s calibration is a one-time setup that then applies to every future project.

LightBurn vs the free software your laser shipped with

Every brand bundles something free — xTool Creative Space, LaserGRBL, or a manufacturer’s own app — and for a handful of basic engraves, that’s genuinely enough. Where LightBurn earns its price is volume and precision: material test grids that remove guesswork, offset/kerf handling for parts that need to fit together, multi-layer jobs that engrave and cut in one pass, and — critically — the ability to run more than one laser brand from a single app if you ever add a second machine. Sellers running an engraving business or anyone processing more than a handful of orders a week typically outgrow the bundled software within the first month.

The bottom line

Buy LightBurn Core ($120) if you own or plan to own a GRBL-based diode laser — that’s the large majority of machines covered on this site. Buy LightBurn Pro ($199) only if you’re running or adding a CO2 or fiber machine with a DSP or galvo controller; you can always upgrade Core to Pro for $100 later rather than guessing upfront. Either way, run the 30-day free trial before you pay anything, and burn a material test grid before your first real job — it’s the single habit that saves the most wasted material. For the machine itself, our best laser engraver pillar ranks every type side by side.