Looking to start a home business with your Cricut machine or other home vinyl cutter? Not so fast! While there are lots of free SVG files out there – what you really need are free SVG files for commercial use!
Using just any image you find lying around you could be in some legal hot water quickly. And, while you may think that big-name brands don’t care about the little guys, that’s not true. Especially for big-name companies like Harley-Davidson and Disney who are very protective of their personal brands.
While most of them won’t care about personal use Cricut images, they are diligent about stopping sellers.
Where to Get Free SVG Files For Commercial Use
Romney Ridge Farms & Crafts
we’re adding new FREE SVG designs for your to download every week here at Romney Ridge Farms & Crafts! You can press them yourself, or even upload them to Print On Demand sites. (Click on a sample design below to go to the download page.)
Click here to view our entire FREE download SVG Design Library
Creative Fabrica
Creative Fabrica has thousands of free (and dirt cheap) designs which all come with commercial use rights. You can use them for POD products or to make stuff to sell on Etsy. But, you can’t resell the designs as your own. Most other commercial use is okay though.
Click here to see Creative Fabrica’s free SVG downloads
The Design Hippo
Design Hippo releases tons of great free SVG cut files for people to use, and they also offer licenses for small business! You are allowed, as per their license terms, to make and sell up to 200 items using the designs.
The designs can be used on “end products” – such as making t-shirts, but you can’t sell or redistribute the designs. If you grow beyond the license terms, you can contact them for extended licensing as your business grows!
Craft Bundles
Craft bundles offers a large library of free SVG cut files for different occassions. They also offer them under a free for commercial use license. However, not all of their designs have the same license, and you should read their terms and conditions before you use anything.
If you are selling products on Etsy, this should be okay. However, they do have some fine print about not being able to use them on print on demand sites (like Printful or Teespring) without a different license, one which you will most likely have to pay for. So be sure to read the rules first.
Cutting For Business
Cutting for business offers pages and pages of SVG cut files, and from what I can tell, ALL of them are available for commercial use! However, I could not find where they specified the terms of the license, just that they offer a blanket “you can use these for commercial purposes” statement.
So, while this likely means that you can use them for print on demand and things like that, you might want to ask them if you’ve got a use case in mind which is beyond just making stuff on Etsy to sell.
Design Bundles
Design Bundles is another site that offers tons and tons of free download SVG cut files for every occassion. Their filters make it easy to search, and all of the designs have a commercial use license whether you decide to use the free or paid ones.
You’re allowed to use them to make physical products, and you can even use them to make and sell digital designs with fonts and what not. However, you can NOT just sell the base digital files. You have to make something with it, and you can read the license page for more info on that.
Crunchy Pickle
Crunchy Pickle has a lot of really nice free SVG files and other file types. Under their license you are allowed to make and sell up to 500 items using their designs. You are NOT allowed to upload them to POD sites, and you can not share or redistribute digital files you gotten from them for free or purchased. You are also not allowed to use their designs to make and sell new digital designs using their images. Physical products ONLY.
Poofy Cheeks
Poofy Cheeks has lots of cute free SVG files for t-shirts, mugs, and more, and they are free for small businesses! They also do not seem to have an item limit on the designs like some of the other sites, but you are still not allowed to upload them to POD sites. You must make and sell physical items yourself, and can’t redistribute the digital files.
So Fontsy
So Fontsy has a large collection of SVGs, but their rules for commercial use are a bit more particular. You ARE allowed to sell t-shirts you’ve made yourself on places like Etsy, but you are not allowed to change the design! That means if you download an elephant design, you can sell it on a shirt, but you can’t add a name or any other customization as this is “changing the design” and not allowed.
They also do not allow the sale of any digital files, don’t allow print on demand, and limit you to 500 sold products. To sell more products or use Print on Demand, you’ll need to purchase a license.
Hello SVG
Hello SVG has a lot of nice designs which can be downloaded and used for commercial purposes. Their only stated rule is that you can’t sell more than 500 items, and that the license is intended for small business.
However, be careful what you try to sell! Some of their designs include trademarks like Disney character SVGs, Nightmare before Christmas SVGs, or song lyrics, and you could be in hot water for selling them from the intellectual property owner.
Just because the creator gives you the design it is does NOT mean the IP owner will allow you to sell it.
Fun Lurn SVG
Funlurn has a variety of nice SVG files available and they all come with commercial use licenses. The license allows you to sell up to 200 products you’ve made on sites like Etsy without a license. However, you are not allowed to upload the designs to POD sites, and you can’t sell digital files you make with them.
Let’s get crafting!
