Text to STL generator

To turn text into an STL, type it, choose a font and set the letter height and depth in millimetres. The generator outlines the letters, merges any that overlap into one solid and gives you a watertight STL or 3MF. Add a plate for a name tag or desk sign, a tab with a hole for a keychain, or engrave the text into the plate instead.

Letter height and depth that print well

Small text fails when its narrowest stroke is thinner than the nozzle can lay down. A 0.4 mm nozzle prints lines about 0.4 to 0.45 mm wide, so 0.8 mm gives each stroke two lines and a solid result. In a heavy sans like Archivo Black, the narrowest stroke is about a fifth of the capital height; in lighter fonts it can be a tenth or less. These starting points assume a bold font:

Thin fonts need the larger end of each range. The generator measures the finished outline at your size and warns you with the width it found, so you do not have to guess.

Choosing a font for printing

• Bold sans (Archivo Black): the safest choice at small sizes and the default here.
• Condensed (Anton, Bebas Neue): fits long names on a short plate. Bebas Neue has capitals only.
• Slab serif (Zilla Slab Bold): a classic sign look; its serifs need about 10 mm letters or more.
• Script (Pacifico): letters overlap where they join. They are merged into one shape before meshing, so there are no internal walls or overlapping shells for the slicer to trip on. Keep letter spacing at 0 so the joins stay connected.

Letter spacing opens up tight fonts and helps stencil-style signs; line spacing and alignment shape multi-line signs.

Two-colour signs

There are two ways to get coloured letters on a plate:

1. Filament change at the plate height. Print the single STL and add a colour change at the layer where the letters begin. With a 2.4 mm plate and 0.2 mm layers, that is the first layer above 2.4 mm. The filament swap height guide explains how to place it in Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer.
2. Separate parts. Download the 3MF: the plate and the text are separate objects with their own colours, ready for an AMS or tool changer. Pick the colours with the swatches before you download.

For a flush finish, turn on Engrave into the base. The text is sunk into the plate, and the 3MF adds the letters as inlay parts that fill the engraving.

Keychains and name tags

Turn on Keychain tab to add a ring tab on the left, top or right of the plate. Set the hole diameter in millimetres for your ring or cord, and shift the tab along its side if a letter is in the way. Mirror flips the whole model for stamps and for text you read from behind glass.

Other ways to make 3D text

• Tinkercad: drop the Text shape into your design and type in the Inspector, where you can also pick a font.
• Bambu Studio: click the Text Shape tool in the toolbar; the Bambu Lab wiki lists thickness, embedded depth and part or cut options.
• OrcaSlicer: the Emboss text tool, shortcut T, creates 3D text that is embossed or engraved on a surface, or used as a modifier.
• PrusaSlicer: select a model and press T, or right-click and choose Add part, Text. For text on its own, right-click the platter and choose Add shape, Text.
• Autodesk Fusion: on the Sketch tab, Create, Text, then extrude the sketch. Fusion's help suggests a font that is not single line if you plan to emboss it.

This generator is the quickest route when you want an STL file at an exact size, a plate or keychain tab, or a font file of your own. To letter a logo or icon as well, convert it with the SVG to STL converter, and check any download in the STL viewer.