Octostitch vs Tajima DG

Octostitch is desktop embroidery digitising software for craft businesses and hobbyists, with tools to create designs and prepare them for embroidery machines. Stitches appear as you draw, and a sew-out playback lets you review the design. Stitch options include satin with automatic underlay, tatami and guided fills, appliqué, bean stitch, and cut lines. Guided auto-digitising lets you crop artwork, choose threads, remove the background with a brush, and assign stitches. The thread library covers Madeira, Isacord, Robison-Anton, Sulky, Gunold, and Brother. You can also make and share reusable fonts, decorative patterns, and tatami fills. Octostitch imports and exports PES, DST, JEF, VP3, EXP, XXX, HUS, and TAP formats, and runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. The free trial lets you explore the digitising workflow, but saving projects and exporting machine formats require a licence. The one-time price is £40. The purchase includes commercial use with no extra licence or per-design fees.

Tajima DG is paid embroidery digitizing software for creating designs for embroidery machines. It is listed for Windows and offered in Master Series, Creator, Composer, and Express grades, with editing functions varying by grade. Master Series provides extensive editing and automatic digitizing; Creator offers basic digitizing, templates, and free design creation; Composer targets name embroidery with more than 200 standard fonts; Express transfers data directly from a PC to an embroidery machine without USB. DG17 adds action symbols, cursor-position display, adjustable backdrop transparency, automatic 3D embroidery processing, and fabric-specific recipes. PulseCloud can store up to 100,000 design files, supports online editing through PulseCloud Designer, and allows mobile access. DG17 connects directly to Tajima, Barudan, Brother, SWF, and ZSK machines, and supports DrawFusion with CorelDRAW. It uses Tajima PXF and other popular embroidery formats. Pricing is on request.