Getting started

From a 3D file to a printed pattern, in five steps.

1. Upload your model

   Drop in an OBJ, STL, GLTF/GLB, DXF, 3DS, LWO, FBX, or 3MF file. Uploading more than one file at once merges them into a single project — use the Place tool afterward to drag each part's gizmo into position relative to the others.

2. Let Unfolder propose a first cut

   As soon as the model loads, Unfolder picks a default set of fold and cut edges on its own, favoring cuts along the sharpest creases. You'll see the flattened pattern immediately — most models need at least a little manual correction from here.

3. Correct the cuts by clicking edges

   With the Select tool active, click any edge in the 3D view where two faces meet to toggle it between folded (kept together) and cut (a seam). A true outer boundary edge — where only one face touches it — can't be toggled; it's always a cut. If undoing a cut would just reopen a loop in an already-joined piece, Unfolder automatically cuts the next-sharpest edge along that loop instead, so the click always does something useful.

   Need two faces to always stay in the same piece, no matter what the algorithm would otherwise choose? Use Paint groups (see Tools & marking cuts) instead of fighting it edge by edge.

4. Check it folds up correctly

   Turn on Preview assembly to animate the flat pattern folding back into the original 3D shape, part by part, before you commit to printing anything.

5. Export

   Export straight to SVG or DXF, or send the pattern to Poster Maker for a tiled, print-ready PDF at true scale. See Exporting for the difference between the three.

Dropped a model in and the result looks nothing like you expected? Try turning on Fit cuts to page (in the Edit menu) — it actively splits pieces that are too large for your chosen page size, which is the most common reason a first pass looks over-fragmented or under-fragmented.