EveryCutFileThe short answer
You want your own SVG files to open at no extra cost: Cricut. Design Space is free, uploading your own images is free, and Cricut Access, the paid subscription, is for Cricut’s own library of images, fonts and projects.
You want software you own and can use offline: Silhouette. Studio’s upgrades are one-time purchases, not subscriptions, and once it is installed you can cut without an internet connection. To open SVG you need Designer Edition or above.
Small labels and cards: Cricut Joy 2 cuts 4.25 × 11.75 in on its long mat and can score folds; Silhouette Portrait 4 cuts 8.5 × 12 in on its mat with one tool at a time.
The 12-inch size most projects use: Cricut Explore 5 or Maker 5 on a 12 × 12 in or 12 × 24 in mat, or Silhouette CAMEO 5 Alpha, 12 × 24 in on its mat with two tools at once.
Softwood, chipboard and other thick material: Cricut Maker 5, the only Cricut with the knife blade, or Silhouette Curio 2, a flatbed with 20 mm of clearance that cuts up to 3 mm, depending on the material.
Side by side
From the makers’ own pages: Cricut’s machine comparison, apps page and upload instructions, and Silhouette’s machine pages and Studio editions.
| Cricut | Silhouette | |
|---|---|---|
| Software | Design Space, free | Silhouette Studio, free Basic Edition |
| Opening your own SVG | Free, on computers and phones; up to 5,000 paths | Designer Edition or above, a one-time upgrade |
| DXF | Windows and Mac only | Opens in every edition, Basic included |
| Paid extra | Cricut Access, a subscription for Cricut’s library | Edition upgrades, bought once |
| Smallest machine | Joy 2: 4.5 in wide | Portrait 4: 8.5 in wide |
| 12-inch machines | Explore 5, Maker 5 | CAMEO 5 Alpha |
| Widest | Venture: 24 in | CAMEO Pro MK-II: 23.2 × 24 in on its mat |
| Thick material | Maker 5 with the knife blade | Curio 2 flatbed, up to 3 mm |
The files on this site, on either brand
Every design here is an SVG at its real size in millimeters, with layers kept apart, and its page also makes a DXF and a PDF in your browser. On a Cricut, upload the SVG. On Silhouette, open the SVG with Designer Edition or above; with Basic Edition, open the DXF and type the width from the design page back in, because a DXF carries no size.
Fold lines come as their own layer: set them to Score in Design Space, or to a dashed cut or a score tool in Studio.
Choose the model
Once you know the brand, the machine follows from the widest piece you will cut and your materials.
From the maker’s documentation: Cricut: do I need a subscription to use Design Space?, Cricut: Design Space and Cricut Access, Cricut: image upload instructions, Cricut: compare Cricut cutting machines, Silhouette Studio editions, Silhouette Studio: editions and upgrades, Silhouette: machines and quick comparison, Silhouette: CAMEO 5 Alpha specifications.