Free Cross Stitch Pattern Maker: What Free Includes

Most tools say "free" in big letters. The limit is lower down the page, if it is there at all. Then you spend an evening on a chart and hit a wall at save time.

So here is a checklist for any free cross stitch pattern maker, and a straight test of ours. We made the biggest chart the free tier allows and wrote down what came out.

We make Threadhood, so read this as one maker's notes. Facts about other tools come from their own pages, checked 3 November 2026.

What does "free" hide in a cross stitch pattern maker?

Five things are worth checking before you start.

1. Saving. Can you keep a chart, and how many? Some tools save in your browser only. Others save to an account.
2. Size. Is there a maximum chart width or number of stitches?
3. Colors. How many thread colors can one chart use?
4. Brand. Which thread brands, and how many colors in each?
5. Export. What can you take away: an image, a PDF, a file you can open elsewhere?

Ask a sixth question too: does it need an account, and where does your photo go?

Here is what we could confirm.

Table 1. What each tool says about its free use, as checked on 3 November 2026. "Not checked" means we did not confirm it. Sources are linked in the text.

The full six-tool comparison, with prices and thread brands, is in our best cross stitch pattern maker post. We will not repeat it here.

Is there a free cross stitch pattern maker that needs no sign up?

Yes, a few. Here is what each says, fairly.

Threadhood makes a chart in your browser. The photo stays on your device. You can make as many charts as you like and download each as an image, with the chart and key. An account is for saving: free accounts hold 3 charts.

FlossCross is a free online maker. It needs no registration, imports a photo or starts blank, and lists 498 DMC colors. It keeps your work on your own device:

"All patterns are stored only in your browser locally and are not transferred anywhere else."

FlossCross, flosscross.com

That is good for privacy. It also means a chart lives in that browser, so clearing your data could lose it. Download or export what you want to keep.

Pic2Pat takes a photo and gives back a free PDF chart that lists the floss and skeins. It also offers a kit. Its home page states no limits, so check what you get on Pic2Pat before a big job.

KXStitch is free and open source, built for KDE on Linux. The last release we found is 2.2.0 from June 2019. See KDE's page.

Stitch Fiddle has a free version with 15 charts, 50 unique colors per chart and a 300 x 300 grid, which is 90,000 stitches. Its pricing page says: "The free version stays free forever." Details are on its pricing page, and we cover it further in our Stitch Fiddle alternative post.

What did we make on the free tier?

We pushed our own limits to the top: a chocolate Labrador photo at 300 stitches wide and 80 colors, in DMC.

Table 2. The biggest Labrador chart the converter allows. Figures from the Threadhood converter, run on 3 November 2026.

A few notes on that chart.

The key lists every thread with its nearest Anchor match, as it does at any size. But it is a big job. Ninety-five skeins and 60,000 crosses is not a weekend project. We would start nearer 80 to 150 wide and 20 to 30 colors.

At 80 stitches wide and 20 colors, the same photo came to 4,240 stitches and 20 threads, with one skein for each thread. The cap is there if you need it, not a target.

One fair comparison. Our 300 x 200 grid fits inside Stitch Fiddle's free 300 x 300 grid, but 80 colors is over its free cap of 50 per chart. That is a difference in what each free tier allows, not a ranking.

What is free on Threadhood, and what costs money?

Free:

• Unlimited charts, up to 300 stitches wide and 80 colors
• DMC (489 colors) or Anchor (445 colors)
• The nearest other-brand match for every thread, with its ΔE
• Swapping any thread, or leaving it as bare fabric
• Download of the chart and key as an image
• 3 saved charts in a free account

Studio ($4.99 a month or $29 a year):

• Unlimited saved charts
• Stitch-by-stitch progress marking
• A thread stash with shopping lists
• The printable PDF kit

The PDF kit above is a Studio feature. So is everything on that second list. If all you want is one chart to stitch from, you can finish without paying. Our pricing page has the detail.

What we do not do yet: charts are full crosses only. There is no backstitch, no half stitches and no quarter stitches. If your design needs them, another tool will serve you better.

How to test any free cross stitch pattern maker

Before you trust a tool with a big project, do a ten-minute test.

1. Make a chart at the largest size you plan to stitch.
2. Raise the color count to what you expect to use.
3. Try to save it, and close the tab. Can you get it back?
4. Export it. Open the file on your phone.
5. Check the thread brand and numbers against a real skein.

It takes ten minutes and can save you an evening. If you want to run the test on ours, start a chart in Threadhood with any photo you took yourself.