LightBurn Guide: Set Up and Run Your First Job

To run a first job in LightBurn you connect your laser as a device, bring in a design, assign each color a cut mode with a speed and power, test on scrap, frame the placement, then start. LightBurn is layout and control in one program, so the same file designs the job and sends it to the machine.

This guide walks the first-run workflow for the Core edition most hobby diode owners buy. We are describing LightBurn’s own controls and documented behavior as of October 2026, not a hands-on test, and we point to our comparison for which program your machine needs.

Is LightBurn the right software for your laser?

LightBurn is the right choice if your laser’s controller is on its supported list, which covers most hobby machines. The edition you need depends on the controller: Core for GCode diode lasers, Pro for CO2 DSP and fiber galvo machines.

Core costs $99 and Pro costs $199, both perpetual licenses with a year of updates and a 30-day unrestricted trial. If you own a GRBL diode laser and want to spend nothing, LaserGRBL is free on Windows. Our laser engraving software comparison maps every controller type to the program and edition it needs before you buy a license.

How do you connect your laser in LightBurn?

Add the machine once as a device, and LightBurn remembers it. On first launch, use Devices, then let LightBurn find the laser over USB or add it manually by controller type.

1. Plug in the laser and power it on before opening LightBurn.
2. Open Devices and click Find My Laser, or Create Manually and pick your controller (GRBL for most diodes).
3. Set the work area to your machine’s bed size in millimeters.
4. Confirm the origin corner matches your machine so the preview is not mirrored.

If the laser does not appear, it is usually a driver or cable issue, or the machine is already connected in another program. Close other laser software first, since only one program can hold the port.

How do layers and cut modes work in LightBurn?

Each color in your design is a layer, and each layer gets a mode plus a speed and power. That is how one file can engrave a filled logo and cut an outline in the same run.

Put cut shapes on one color and engrave areas on another, then set each layer in the Cuts/Layers panel. Lower speed or higher power makes a darker, deeper result; our laser settings calculator gives a starting speed and power by material and machine.

How do you find the right settings for a material?

Run LightBurn’s Material Test. It burns a grid across a scrap piece, varying speed on one axis and power on the other, so you can read off the combination that looks right and save it.

This beats guessing, because the same wood at the same settings differs between machines and even between boards. Burn the grid, pick the cell that engraves clean or cuts through without scorching, and enter those numbers. Save winning settings to the Material Library so you do not retest the same stock. For wood specifically, cut depth and passes by power are covered in our laser engraver for wood guide.

What are the steps to run your first job safely?

Import, place, set layers, frame, then start, with eye protection on and the machine attended. Framing is the step that saves material: it traces the job outline so you see where it will burn before any light hits the work.

1. Import an SVG, DXF, PNG or JPG, or draw in LightBurn, and size it to the material.
2. Assign layers: cut lines on one color, fills on another, each with tested speed and power.
3. Set focus and place the material; set the origin.
4. Frame the job to check it sits on the material and nothing is off the bed.
5. Start, stay with the machine, and keep ventilation and fire precautions running.

Ready-made files import straight into these steps; our laser cut files guide lists where to find them. Never leave a running laser unattended, as our safety guide stresses.

How do you design or import artwork in LightBurn?

LightBurn is a vector editor as well as a controller, so you can draw shapes and text in it or import files made elsewhere. It opens SVG, AI, PDF and DXF as vectors, and PNG, JPG and BMP as images for raster engraving.

For clean cutting, vectors win: an SVG cuts along true outlines, while a photo has to be traced first. LightBurn includes a Trace Image tool that turns a bitmap into vectors for cutting, and basic text, node editing and boolean tools for simple designs. Many makers design in a dedicated vector program and use LightBurn only for layers and control; others do everything in it. Either way, size the art to the material and set the origin before assigning layers. Downloadable designs slot straight in, as our laser cut files guide covers.

What is the Material Library and how do you use it?

The Material Library stores tested speed and power settings by material and thickness, so you stop re-tuning the same stock. After a Material Test gives you a good result, save those numbers to the library under the material name and thickness.

Next time you cut 3 mm basswood, you apply the saved entry instead of guessing, and it fills in speed, power, passes and mode. The library is tied to your machine, because the same settings do not transfer between a 5 W and a 20 W laser, so build your own rather than trusting a stranger’s numbers. This is where LightBurn saves the most time over a free tool: a growing, machine-specific library that makes repeat jobs one click. For wood specifically, our laser engraver for wood guide gives starting points to test from.

What first-run mistakes should you avoid?

The common ones are an untuned material, a mirrored origin, forgetting to focus, and leaving the machine. Each wastes a sheet or worse, and each has a one-step fix.

• Too light or burning through: you skipped the Material Test; run it on scrap first.
• Design mirrored or off-bed: the origin corner is set wrong; fix it in Device Settings and Frame before every job.
• Blurry engrave: focus is off; set focus to the material surface.
• Fire or heavy char: unattended, over-powered, or no air assist on a cut.

Get these right once and the rest of LightBurn is repetition. If your machine is not LightBurn-compatible, our software comparison covers the free and bundled alternatives.

Who does not need LightBurn?

Owners of Glowforge and some xTool machines that run only their maker’s own app do not need LightBurn, and GRBL diode owners on a tight budget can start with free LaserGRBL. LightBurn earns its price when you want one capable program across several machines, a real material library and fine layer control. Match the program to your controller first with our laser engraving software comparison, then decide whether the Core license is worth it for your work.