Best Free Lithophane Generators (2026): Photo to STL

A lithophane is a thin 3D print that shows a photo when you put a light behind it. In daylight it looks like a white plastic sheet with a vague texture. Hold it against a window or light it from behind and the photo appears, with soft shading that looks almost like an old black-and-white print.

Making one needs no CAD at all. You upload a photo, choose a shape, and the generator turns brightness into thickness: dark areas get thicker plastic, light areas thinner.

Quick answer

• Best overall: ItsLitho. Many shapes, an image editor, a backlit preview, and free STL downloads.
• Best for color lithophanes: Make My Lithophane (MakerLab). Free with a MakerWorld account, mono and CMYK color modes, with frames.
• Simplest: 3dp.rocks. The classic free converter for flat, curved, dome and heart shapes.
• Best for lamps and globes: Lithophane Maker.

Every lithophane tool we list is on the lithophane generators page.

How to make a lithophane from a photo

1. Pick a sharp photo with good contrast. Faces in soft, even light work best. Crop tight around the subject; very dark photos turn into thick, dull slabs.
2. Upload it to a free generator and choose a shape. ItsLitho and 3dp.rocks both work in the browser. Choose a flat panel, a curved panel or, in ItsLitho, a lamp shade, and check the backlit preview if the tool has one.
3. Set the thickness. About 0.8 mm at the thinnest point and 3 mm at the thickest works for most photos. Download the STL.
4. Slice and print. Use 100 percent infill and 0.12 mm layers or finer, stand the lithophane upright if your printer is stable, and print in plain white PLA.
5. Put a warm LED behind it. A warm-white LED behind the print brings out the photo. A window works for a first look.

ItsLitho

ItsLitho is the best free choice if you want control without learning CAD. It offers many shapes, from flat panels to curved and framed designs, and includes an image editor so you can crop and adjust contrast before converting. The backlit preview shows what the print will look like with a light behind it, which saves a lot of test prints. Designing and downloading STL files is free; a few advanced settings are marked premium.

MakerLab Make My Lithophane

If you print on a Bambu Lab machine, Make My Lithophane is the easiest way into color. It has a mono mode for classic white lithophanes and a CMYK mode that stacks cyan, magenta, yellow and white layers into a full-color image. It exports a 3MF with the colors assigned and adds frames if you like. It is free with a MakerWorld account.

If you would rather not sign up, the PTP Create Color Lithophane Creator makes a CMYK color panel for free with no account. It comes from the maker behind Pattern to Print. You choose one of five CMYK filament sets it is calibrated for, preview the estimated colors and download the file with printing instructions. The default 108 x 144 mm size fits Bambu Lab’s lithophane holder. It makes flat panels only, and filaments outside those five sets give less predictable color.

PixelSculpt is a free, no-account option that works from your own filaments instead of a fixed set. You list them from base to top, each with a color, a height and a transmission distance (TD), and the backlit preview shows how light will pass through that stack. It has presets for Bambu, Prusament, eSun and Polymaker filaments, and it gives either an AMS setup or a manual swap schedule with exact layer numbers. The export is one STL, so the colors come from the layer changes you set in your slicer. It is a beta that makes flat panels only, and its license allows selling the files and the prints.

Bambu Lab’s Lightbox Maker goes one step further and builds a layered, multicolor LED light box from your images and text.

3dp.rocks

3dp.rocks is the quickest way to a simple lithophane. It has been around for years and still does the basics well: upload a photo, choose flat, curved, dome or heart, set the thickness, download the STL. No account, no fuss.

If you would rather your photo never leaves your computer, Lithophane Studio is just as simple and runs entirely in the page, with no backend, account or limit, and it can be installed to work offline. It makes flat, curved and cylinder lamp lithophanes, shows a backlit view next to the 3D model, and exports STL, OBJ or the light map as a PNG. Files are large, about 12 MB for a 100 mm panel.

Kenerate Lithophane Maker also keeps the photo on your device and needs no account, and it gives you more file formats: STL, 3MF, OBJ or GLB. It makes rectangular panels, flat or curved up to 180 degrees, with an optional frame and an invert switch, and shows a backlit preview next to the 3D view. Pick the 3MF: in our check the default 100 mm panel came out as a 38 MB STL but a 5.8 MB 3MF. Its terms let you use what you make commercially.

For a flat panel only, two more free tools need no account. PrintMakerAI Lithophane Generator has five clear settings and adds a solid reinforcing border, but it runs on a server with a limit of 5 generations an hour. Image Online Image to STL has a lithophane mode next to its relief and logo modes and builds the file in your browser. It is simpler than a dedicated lithophane maker.

If you want the frame as well, the free Creality Cloud Lithophane Maker has almost nothing to set. It makes one flat 6 x 4 inch (152 x 102 mm) size with fixed thickness, and adds a matching two-piece frame, snap strip and stand as separate STL files. You need a free Creality account, and saved lithophanes are public unless you switch them to private.

Lamps, globes and night lights

For a lithophane that holds a light, use Lithophane Maker. It specializes in lamps, night lights, globes and color lithophanes, and the web tools are free and supported by Patreon. 3D-Lithophane.com covers panels, cubes, lanterns, globes and lampshades behind a free account. For a quick four-sided photo lamp shade, Litho-Lamp does one job and does it for free.

Vextrude Lithophane Maker is a newer free tool with 22 shapes and no account. It wraps a photo around a cylinder, cone, vase or polygon lantern with a hole in the base for an LED tealight or bulb, and also makes spheres, domes, hearts and a four-sided photo box. You can combine up to four photos in a collage, and the preview switches between the printed look, a backlit glow and the heightmap. The site says your photos are processed in the browser and never uploaded. It exports a plain STL only, and it has little outside feedback so far.

Lamp lithophanes make heavy files, which slow down slicing. The Lithophane Maker on Omnvert makes flat, curved and cylinder lamp shapes with a backlit preview, and its mesh uses fewer triangles in flat areas: our test plate came out at 0.3 MB, where two browser lithophane makers gave about 12 MB. It needs no account, but you get one free lithophane a day, then a $2.99 pack of 3, a $4.99 day pass or $14.99 a month. Your photo is uploaded to its server, and the pages carry ads.

For a gift, the Photo Moon Lamp Generator from 3D MakerBench blends your photo into a moon surface built from NASA data, so the picture shows in the craters when the lamp is lit. The moon sits on a printed stand for a 38 mm LED tea light or a USB puck, or hangs from a pendant holder with a snap-on cap. It is free with no account, the photo stays on your device, and the maker confirmed that you may sell the prints. Expect a large file (about 60 MB for the default 100 mm moon) and a long print at 100 percent infill.

For something different, the MakerLab Lithophane Folding Fan turns an image into a hand fan with lithophane blades. The built-in designs are free; using your own photo needs its paid Pro unlock.

ItsLitho vs Lithophane Maker

Choose ItsLitho for a panel, arc or sphere that you want to preview backlit before printing. Choose Lithophane Maker for a finished object built around a light you already own, such as a shade that sits on a table lamp’s socket or a panel that slides into a plug-in night light. Both are free and export STL.

Feature	ItsLitho	Lithophane Maker
How it works	One app: pick a shape, edit the photo, preview it backlit	A separate page for each object, with settings for that object
Shapes	Planes, arcs, cylinders, spheres, vases, bells and lamp shades	Lamp shades, night lights, globes, light boxes, hearts, ceiling fan inserts, Christmas trees, and flat, curved and circular panels
Fits real hardware	Attachments such as night light fitters and LED puck holders	Lamp shades with a ledge that sits on your lamp’s socket, night light panels with a slot you size to your plug-in light
Color	A matching image printed on paper and placed behind a white lithophane	Multicolor files printed with matching filaments
Export	STL	STL
Price	Free; a few advanced settings are premium	Free web tools, supported by Patreon

Best lithophane print settings

Print a lithophane in plain white PLA with 100 percent infill and 0.12 mm layers or finer, and light it from behind with a warm LED.

• Use white PLA that is evenly pigmented. Not silk, not glossy, not cream.
• Print with 100 percent infill so the thickness map is solid plastic.
• Use fine layers (0.12 mm or less) and slow outer walls for smooth gradients.
• Light it properly. A warm-white LED behind the print makes the photo come alive. Our picks are in the box below.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best free lithophane generator?

ItsLitho is the most complete free option, with many shapes, an image editor and a backlit preview. 3dp.rocks is the simplest classic. Bambu Lab users get color (CMYK) lithophanes for free with MakerLab Make My Lithophane.

How do I make a lithophane from a photo?

Pick a sharp, contrast-rich photo, upload it to a free generator such as ItsLitho or 3dp.rocks, choose a flat, curved or lamp shape, set a thickness of about 0.8 mm to 3 mm and download the STL. Print it in white PLA with 100 percent infill and fine layers, then put a warm LED behind it.

Which lithophane maker is best for lamps?

Lithophane Maker is the best lithophane maker for lamps: its free web tools build shades, night lights and globes around a light you already own. ItsLitho can also make a lamp shade with a backlit preview, and Litho-Lamp does a simple four-sided photo shade for free.

What filament should I use for a lithophane?

A plain, evenly pigmented white PLA. Avoid silk, glossy or off-white filament: they scatter light unevenly and show blotches when backlit. For color lithophanes you need cyan, magenta, yellow and white.

What are the best print settings for a lithophane?

Print upright if your printer is stable, with 0.12 mm layers or finer, 100 percent infill and a slow outer wall. A thickness range of about 0.8 mm to 3 mm works for most photos.

How long does a lithophane take to print?

A 10 x 15 cm flat lithophane at fine layers usually takes a few hours. Curved and lamp versions take longer. Your slicer shows the exact estimate once the file is sliced.

Can I make a color lithophane?

Yes. Tools such as MakerLab Make My Lithophane, Lithophane Maker and the PTP Create Color Lithophane Creator make color lithophanes that stack cyan, magenta, yellow and white layers. You need a multicolor printer or a lot of patience with manual filament swaps.