Excalidraw export: SVG, PNG or PDF — which one?

Excalidraw gives you three main export formats — SVG, PNG, and PDF — plus the option to embed scene JSON inside SVG for round-tripping. Each serves a distinct purpose, and choosing wrong can bloat file size, break fonts, or lose editability. Here is how to pick the right one for slides, Notion, chat embeds, or handouts.

SVG for slides, web, and Notion

SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) is your go-to for any digital destination where you might later need to edit the diagram. A typical Excalidraw drawing exported as SVG weighs 15–40 KB, compared to 200–800 KB for a high-resolution PNG of the same drawing. SVG scales infinitely without pixelation, making it ideal for slides projected on large screens or embedded in responsive web pages.

Notion accepts SVG natively. Drag an SVG file into a Notion page and it renders crisp at any zoom level. The same applies to Google Slides and most modern web frameworks. However, SVG does not embed fonts by default. If you use a custom font in Excalidraw, the SVG will fall back to a system font when opened elsewhere. To preserve the exact look, convert text to paths inside Excalidraw before exporting — but this increases file size by about 30% and prevents later text editing.

Round-tripping with embedded scene JSON

Excalidraw offers a unique trick: you can embed the full scene JSON inside the SVG file. The resulting SVG looks identical to a normal SVG, but when you drag it back into Excalidraw, it restores every element, layer, and property. This is invaluable for collaborative workflows. The JSON payload adds roughly 2–5 KB to the file. To enable it, check “Embed scene data” in the export dialog. Without this, re-importing an SVG only gives you a flattened image.

PNG for chat embeds and quick sharing

PNG is the safest choice for platforms that strip SVG support — Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, and most email clients. A PNG export at 2x resolution (the default in Excalidraw) produces a sharp image at 192 DPI, suitable for Retina displays. File size typically ranges from 150 KB for a simple flowchart to 600 KB for a dense whiteboard with dozens of elements.

Trade-off: PNG is a raster format. Zoom in past 200% and edges blur. Text becomes unreadable if you need to crop and enlarge later. For chat embeds where the image is viewed at full size, PNG is fine. For anything that might be resized or reused in a document, prefer SVG.

PDF for handouts and printing

PDF exports preserve vector quality and are the standard for printed handouts, conference materials, or formal reports. Excalidraw generates a single-page PDF that matches the canvas dimensions. A typical PDF is 30–60 KB for a vector drawing — smaller than PNG and sharper than any raster.

One catch: PDF does not support transparency in the same way as SVG. If your drawing uses transparent backgrounds (common for overlays on slides), the PDF will render those as white. To keep transparency, export as SVG instead and convert to PDF using a tool like Inkscape or your browser’s print dialog.

Transparent backgrounds: when they matter

Transparent backgrounds are essential when you overlay a diagram on a coloured slide, website section, or video. SVG and PNG both support transparency; PDF does not. In Excalidraw, uncheck “Background” before exporting to get a transparent canvas. This reduces file size by about 10% because no background rectangle is stored.

Example: a system architecture diagram with a transparent background placed on a dark slide in Keynote. With SVG, the diagram floats seamlessly. With PNG, you get the same effect but at a larger file size. With PDF, the white background box ruins the illusion.

File size and fidelity: quick comparison

• SVG (no embed): ~20 KB, infinite zoom, no font embedding, editable in vector tools.
• SVG (with scene JSON): ~25 KB, same fidelity, fully editable in Excalidraw.
• PNG (2x, 192 DPI): ~300 KB, sharp on screens, blurred when zoomed beyond 200%.
• PDF: ~40 KB, vector quality, no transparency, best for print.

For a diagram with 30 elements and a few text labels, these numbers hold. Add images or hand-drawn lines and the PNG size can triple; SVG and PDF stay nearly constant because they store paths, not pixels.

Next time you export from Excalidraw, match the format to the destination. SVG for anything that might be edited again. PNG for chat and email. PDF for paper. And always embed scene JSON if you share an SVG with collaborators. Try it now with a test drawing and see the difference in file size and editability.