Learn / Formats / DST

Format guide · Tajima DST

Open DST embroidery files on a Mac

DST is Tajima's format and one of the most widely accepted embroidery formats. It records stitch positions, jumps, trims and color changes, but not the thread colors themselves.

Commonly used with: Tajima and most commercial machines, and many home machines.

What Satinsmith does with DST

Open and preview DST files free. Save a design as DST with any export: the free plan includes five exports a month, and paid plans are unlimited. Converting many files at once needs Studio.

  • Because DST has no thread colors, every program shows a DST in its own stand-in colors. Choose threads from the design's source or its color chart, not from the preview.

Satinsmith runs on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 14 or later. Download it free.

What the format stores

  • Extensions: .dst. Maker: Tajima.
  • Stores thread colors: no, only color changes.
  • Trims: yes. Stops: yes.
  • Longest single stitch the format can store: 12.1 mm.

Practice with free files

The library lesson has four original practice designs as PES and DST. Compare the same leaf in both formats, with no signup.

Before you sew

Check your machine's manual for the formats and versions it accepts. Satinsmith checks files in software, reports what an export changes, and does not test files on machines. Known limits.