Online DST Analyzer
Upload an embroidery DST file and get an instant quality score out of 10 — with stitch-length stats, micro and long-stitch detection, jumps, trims, color changes, local density and hoop fit, plus rule-based fixes.
Upload a DST file to analyze
Drop a .dst file here, or choose one to get a quality report.
Your file is sent securely to our analyzer to compute the report. We don't store it.
Your file is used only to compute the report — we don't store it.
How it works
Check a DST file in 3 steps
Upload your DST file
Drag a .dst file into the analyzer or pick one — it's sent securely and analyzed in milliseconds.
Read your score
Get a quality score out of 10 with a breakdown of every deduction by category.
Apply the fixes
Work through the ranked, rule-based suggestions before sending the design to your machine.
Features
Everything the report tells you
Quality score out of 10
A transparent penalty-based score with a category-by-category breakdown so you can see exactly what cost points.
Stitch-length analysis
Min, max, mean, median and 95th-percentile stitch lengths, plus the share of micro, short and overlong stitches.
Micro-stitch detection
Flags tiny sub-0.5 mm stitches that cause thread breaks, lint build-up and needle or fabric damage.
Jumps & trims
Counts jumps and trims and highlights long jumps that should really be trims to avoid floating threads.
Local density map
Measures density per grid cell — not just the global average — to catch the dense regions that cause puckering and holes.
Size & hoop fit
Reads the exact design size in millimeters and tells you which standard hoops (100×100, 130×180, 200×300) it fits.
Actionable suggestions
Deterministic, embroidery-specific recommendations ranked by severity — the same file always gives the same advice.
Fast & private
Analysis is pure math and runs in milliseconds. Your file is used only to compute the report and isn't stored.
What it checks
The issues that ruin a stitch-out
Micro & short stitches
Sub-0.5 mm and sub-1 mm stitches that punch nearly the same hole repeatedly, causing thread breaks and needle damage.
Overlong stitches
Stitches over ~7 mm that sit loosely on the fabric and snag or pull.
Long jumps that should be trims
Jump moves long enough to leave floating threads that need hand-trimming.
Local density hot-spots
Areas where too much thread is packed into a small region, the usual cause of puckering and needle holes.
Excessive color changes
Each change adds production time, cost and a registration risk.
Size & hoop compatibility
Exact dimensions in millimeters and which standard hoops the design will fit.
What is a DST analyzer?
A DST file(Tajima DST) is the most common embroidery machine format. It stores the raw stitch coordinates, jumps, trims and color-change commands that drive a commercial machine — but nothing about the original artwork or the digitizer's intent.
Our DST analyzer reads that stitch stream and turns it into an objective quality report: stitch-length statistics, the share of problematic micro and overlong stitches, jump and trim counts, color changes, a local density map and the exact design size with hoop fit. It grades these into a score out of 10 and lists concrete, rule-based fixes.
Because DST only stores stitches, this is a stitch-file health check— not a judgement of the digitizer's craft. It can't read object-level choices like underlay or pull-compensation, so it never pretends to. Every number you see comes straight from the stitches in your file.
Why does this matter? A design can look perfect on screen and still sew badly. Micro stitches punch the same hole repeatedly and snap the thread; overlong stitches sit loose and snag; dense regions pack in too much thread and pucker or tear the fabric; and long unclipped jumps leave threads floating across the design. None of these are obvious from a preview, but each one can ruin a stitch-out — wasting thread, stabilizer, fabric and machine time. Catching them beforehand is the difference between a clean first run and a scrapped garment.
That is why the analyzer is built to be objective and deterministic. There is no AI guesswork and no subjective opinion — the same file always produces the same score and the same ranked suggestions. That makes it a practical screening step for professional digitizers checking their own work, embroidery shops vetting client files before a production run, and hobbyists who simply want to know whether a downloaded design is safe to stitch. Run the check, fix the highest-severity issues in your digitizing software, and re-analyze to confirm the score improved before you ever thread the machine.
Benefits
Why run your DST through the analyzer
An objective screening step that saves material and gives you confidence before every stitch-out.
Save thread and fabric
Catch the problems that cause thread breaks, puckering and needle holes on screen — before you waste material on a failed stitch-out.
Deliver files with confidence
Digitizers and shops can screen a design and hand clients a clear quality score instead of guessing whether a file will sew cleanly.
Instant, objective results
The report is pure math and returns in milliseconds — no AI guesswork, no queue and no subjective opinion, just the numbers from your file.
Deterministic and repeatable
The same file always produces the same score and the same ranked suggestions, so you can re-check after edits and see exactly what improved.
Works on any device
It runs in the browser on desktop, tablet or phone — nothing to install and no operating-system restrictions.
Private by design
Your file is used only to compute the report and is not stored, so you can safely check client and production designs.
Common problems
Troubleshooting & tips
How to read the report and fix the issues it flags most often.
My score is low but the design looks fine
The score reflects stitch-level health, not the visual look. A design can look good yet contain micro stitches, long jumps or dense regions that only show up as thread breaks and puckering on the machine. Work through the ranked suggestions to fix the underlying stitches.
The analyzer flags density but my source looks okay
A DST stores only stitches, so density is measured from the stitch stream, not your object settings. Treat density warnings as a prompt to verify underlay, pull-compensation and fill spacing in your original design software.
It reports lots of micro stitches
Micro stitches usually come from over-detailed digitizing or auto-traced artwork. Simplify tiny details, increase the minimum stitch length in your software, and re-export before running the check again.
Long jumps are flagged that should be trims
If your machine trims automatically, enable trims on long jumps in your digitizing software so threads don't float across the design. Re-analyze to confirm the long-jump count drops.
The design won't fit my hoop
The analyzer lists which standard hoops the design fits. If it exceeds yours, scale it down in your software, split it into multiple hoopings, or choose a larger hoop — then re-check the size.
DST analyzer questions
It parses your DST embroidery file, computes objective quality metrics (stitch lengths, jumps, trims, color changes, local density and design size), grades them into a score out of 10, and returns rule-based suggestions for improving the file before you stitch it.
The score uses a transparent penalty model: it starts at 10 and subtracts points for each issue category — too many micro stitches, overlong stitches, long jumps, dense regions or excessive color changes. The full breakdown is shown so you can see exactly what affected the score. It is deterministic, so the same file always gets the same score.
Yes. Uploading a DST file and getting the full quality report is free and does not require an account.
No — and any honest tool will say so. A DST file is a low-level stitch stream and does not store object-level intent like underlay, pull-compensation, or whether a column was a satin or a fill. The analyzer is a stitch-file health check, so density-related advice is phrased as a recommendation to verify in your source design.
Very short (micro) stitches make the needle punch almost the same hole over and over, which causes thread breaks, lint and needle or fabric damage. Long jumps leave threads floating across the design that must be trimmed by hand and can be caught by the needle. Catching both before stitching saves time and thread.
Local density is the number of stitches packed into a small area. A global average can look fine while one region is badly overstitched. The analyzer lays a grid over the design and reports the busiest cell and the share of dense cells, because it's the local hot-spots — not the average — that cause puckering and holes.
No. The file is sent to the analyzer only to compute the report and is not stored.
It is useful for anyone who works with embroidery files — professional digitizers screening their own work, embroidery shops checking client files before a production run, and hobbyists who want to know whether a downloaded design will stitch cleanly on their machine.
Because the score starts at 10 and deducts points per issue, a higher number means fewer stitch-level problems. A strong, production-ready file typically scores in the high range, while low scores point to micro stitches, overlong stitches, long jumps or dense regions worth fixing first. The category breakdown shows exactly where any points were lost.
Open the ranked suggestions and fix the highest-severity issues in your digitizing software first — reduce micro stitches, convert long jumps to trims, ease off dense regions and trim excessive color changes. Re-export the DST and run it through the analyzer again to confirm the score improved.
No. It only reads the DST to produce a report and a list of recommendations. The fixes are applied by you in your digitizing software — the analyzer never edits or re-saves your design.
This tool is built for DST files. If you have a PES design, you can convert it to DST with the EmbroidAI converter first, then run the analysis. A dedicated PES viewer is also available to preview the design in its real colors.
Every color change adds a stop, a thread change and a registration risk on the machine, which increases production time and cost. The analyzer flags an unusually high number of color changes so you can consolidate colors where it makes sense.
Want to do more than analyze?
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