svg2tex-rs

svg2tex-rs provides the svg2tex command, which converts SVG artwork into PDF literal operators or complete LaTeX source. It is designed for TeX workflows where SVG graphics should stay as vector content whenever possible, while still accepting a broad range of real-world SVG files through hybrid rendering.

Installation

Install from crates.io:

cargo install svg2tex-rs

Clone and build locally without installing:

git clone https://github.com/rice8y/svg2tex-rs.git
cd svg2tex-rs
just build

This writes the binary to target/release/svg2tex.

Clone and install to ~/.local/bin:

git clone https://github.com/rice8y/svg2tex-rs.git
cd svg2tex-rs
just install

The default install target is ~/.local/bin/svg2tex. Override it with LOCAL_BIN_DIR=/your/path just install.

Quick Start

Emit raw PDF literal operators:

svg2tex --input drawing.svg --output drawing.literal

Emit a standalone LaTeX document:

svg2tex --input drawing.svg --tex --output drawing.tex
lualatex drawing.tex

Emit an embeddable TeX snippet:

svg2tex --input drawing.svg --tex --tex-format snippet --output drawing-snippet.tex

Output Modes

• Default mode: raw PDF literal operators only
• --tex: complete TeX-oriented output
• --tex-format standalone: complete cropped document, best default for direct compilation
• --tex-format article: complete article document
• --tex-format snippet: macro-only TeX fragment for inclusion in another document

Rendering Model

svg2tex tries to preserve SVG content as vector output whenever practical. When a subtree requires raster-domain processing, it uses hybrid rendering instead of silently dropping the feature.

Use these flags to control behavior:

• --strict: fail instead of using hybrid rendering
• --fallback-dpi <N>: control raster fallback resolution
• --embed-images: embed raster images referenced by the SVG

Text and Fonts

Text is flattened into paths during conversion. For reproducible results across machines, prefer explicit font configuration.

Useful flags:

• --no-system-fonts
• --strict-fonts
• --report-fonts
• --font-file <PATH>
• --font-dir <PATH>
• --font-family <NAME>
• --serif-family <NAME>
• --sans-serif-family <NAME>
• --monospace-family <NAME>

Recommended reproducible setup:

svg2tex \
  --input drawing.svg \
  --tex \
  --no-system-fonts \
  --strict-fonts \
  --font-file ./fonts/YourFont-Regular.ttf \
  --font-family "Your Font"

TeX Engine Selection

Choose the target backend explicitly when needed:

svg2tex --input drawing.svg --tex --engine luatex --output drawing.tex

Supported engine values:

• auto
• pdftex
• luatex
• xetex
• ptex
• uptex

Limitations

• Text output depends on the fonts you load into the converter
• Some SVG effects are represented through hybrid raster subtrees rather than pure vector PDF
• Exact pixel-perfect matching with every SVG renderer is not guaranteed, especially for complex text and filter interactions

For a fuller user guide, see docs/documentation.pdf.

License

This project is distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.