| Feature | EPS | SVG | Conversion |
|---|
| Paths and shapes | Yes | Yes | Clean |
| Text | Yes | Yes | Mostly clean |
| Fill colors | CMYK / RGB / Spot | RGB | Color shift if CMYK |
| Strokes | Yes | Yes | Clean |
| Gradients | Yes | Yes | Mostly clean |
| Patterns | Yes (PostScript) | Limited | May lose detail |
| Embedded raster | Yes | Yes (data URL) | Clean but bloats SVG |
| Spot colors | Yes | No | Lost |
| CMYK separations | Yes | No | Lost |
| Print bleed | Yes | No | Lost |
| Clipping paths | Yes | Yes | Clean |
| Layer information | Yes (Illustrator EPS) | Yes (<g> groups) | Mostly clean |
For most graphics: paths, shapes, text, and basic colors transfer cleanly. Print-specific features (CMYK, spot, separations) don't survive.
| Tool | Cost | Quality |
|---|
| Inkscape | Free | Good |
| Adobe Illustrator | Paid | Best |
| ImageMagick | Free | Variable |
| pstoedit | Free | Good for simple |
| Online converters | Free/paid | Varies |
| pdf2svg (after EPS→PDF) | Free | Excellent |
For most workflows: Inkscape or Illustrator. Both produce clean SVG from typical EPS source.
For free conversion:
- Install Inkscape
- File > Open > select EPS file
- Inkscape converts via Ghostscript (must be installed)
- File > Save As > SVG (Inkscape format) or Plain SVG
- Inspect; clean up if needed
Inkscape format includes Inkscape-specific metadata. Plain SVG strips this for maximum compatibility.
For batch conversion:
for f in *.eps; do
inkscape --export-type=svg --export-filename="${f%.eps}.svg" "$f"
done
For batch processing patterns, see Batch Processing Files Guide.
For Illustrator users:
- File > Open > EPS file
- Object > Document Color Mode > RGB Color (if EPS is CMYK)
- File > Export > Export As > SVG
- Choose SVG settings:
- SVG Profile: SVG 1.1
- Subsetting: All Glyphs (preserves text)
- Image Location: Embed (or Link to keep file separate)
- Decimal Places: 2 (small file size)
- Click OK
Illustrator's SVG export is high-quality. Text remains as text (not converted to paths) which keeps file size down and allows search engines to index content.
For automation:
# EPS → PDF first
gs -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -o intermediate.pdf -dEPSCrop input.eps
# PDF → SVG via pdf2svg
pdf2svg intermediate.pdf output.svg
# Or directly via Ghostscript
gs -sDEVICE=svg -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -dQUIET -o output.svg input.eps
Quality varies by EPS complexity. Simple line art: excellent. Complex with patterns/gradients: may need cleanup.
For EPS files in CMYK (most print-oriented EPS):
# Inkscape converts CMYK to RGB automatically
# Manual conversion in Illustrator: File > Document Color Mode > RGB
# Verify with View > Proof Setup
The conversion is approximate. Pure CMYK colors don't have exact RGB equivalents. Slight color shift is unavoidable.
For print-specific color, see CMYK vs RGB Printing.
Text Handling
EPS files may have:
- Text as text: best, converts cleanly
- Text as outlines: pre-rasterized, file size larger but font-independent
For SVG with searchable text: source must have text as text. If outlined: SVG output will have outlined paths instead of text elements.
In Illustrator: Type > Create Outlines (one-way). The "Convert Text to Outlines" option in Save dialog does this for SVG export, often unwanted.
For typical small graphic (logo or icon):
| Format | File size |
|---|
| EPS | 50-200 KB |
| SVG (with text) | 10-50 KB |
| SVG (text outlined) | 30-150 KB |
| Optimized SVG (with svgo) | 5-30 KB |
SVG is dramatically smaller than EPS for the same graphic. The XML format is text and compresses well.
For SVG optimization:
# Install svgo (npm)
npm install -g svgo
# Optimize an SVG
svgo input.svg -o output.svg
svgo removes unnecessary metadata, simplifies paths, and reduces decimal precision. Typically 30-50% size reduction.
Text appears as paths: source EPS had outlined text. Can't reverse this without OCR.
Color shift on conversion: CMYK → RGB approximation. For exact color: use ICC profile-aware conversion in Illustrator.
Missing fonts: text in EPS uses fonts not installed. Substitute fonts shift the layout. Embed fonts or convert to outlines before conversion.
Patterns simplified or lost: PostScript pattern not representable in SVG. Inkscape often produces simplified version.
Embedded raster huge: EPS contained raster (JPG/TIFF). SVG embeds as data URL. File size bloats. Extract raster separately if size matters.
For broader image format issues, see our image converter.
SVG support in 2026:
| Browser | SVG support |
|---|
| All modern browsers | Yes (universal) |
| Email clients | Limited (Gmail Web yes, mobile varies) |
| Old IE (legacy) | No |
For web embed: SVG works in <img src="logo.svg"> or inline <svg>...</svg>. For email: use PNG fallback.
For browser-rendering context, see WebM vs MP4.
SVG supports animation:
<svg>
<circle cx="50" cy="50" r="40">
<animate attributeName="r" from="40" to="50" dur="1s" repeatCount="indefinite"/>
</circle>
</svg>
EPS doesn't have animation. Conversion to animated SVG requires manual addition.
For Lottie-style animations: see Lottie JSON to MP4.
For web use: convert to SVG. For print: keep EPS (CMYK, spot colors). For both: maintain both versions.
Yes. Illustrator opens SVG natively. The conversion preserves editable paths and groups.
This pipeline often produces cleaner SVG than direct EPS to SVG. PDF is a more constrained intermediate.
Yes. Modern Inkscape versions read AI EPS reasonably. Some Illustrator-specific features (gradient meshes, certain effects) may not survive.
Yes. Inkscape command-line, or shell script with Ghostscript. Plan for 1-5 seconds per file on modern hardware.
Yes for web. svgo (npm package) reduces file size 30-50%. Doesn't affect rendering.
For EPS to SVG conversion: Inkscape for free, Illustrator for paid. Convert CMYK to RGB before save. Keep text as text (not outlined). Optimize with svgo for web. Print-specific features (CMYK, spot colors) don't survive; maintain EPS originals for print. Our image converter handles related vector format conversions.
