WebCAM CNC
CNC Software
WebCAM runs entirely in your browser — no installs, no licenses, no complexity. This guide covers every feature across all four studios, from first login to machine-ready G-code.
WebCAM is designed to be intuitive from the first click. Follow these three steps and you'll be generating machine-ready files within minutes.
Sign up for free — no credit card required. Pick the studios you want to set up: WriteStudio, BurnStudio, CutStudio, or PCB Studio. Every studio is included on Free, and you start with 14 days of Pro.
The guided setup wizard walks you through three quick steps: describe your machine (work area, firmware, spindle), add your cutting tools from presets, and create your first project. The whole process takes under five minutes.
Draw or import your design on the canvas, assign cutting operations to each shape, review the 3D toolpath preview, then export your G-code file. Load it into your machine controller and cut.
WebCAM is organized into four purpose-built studios, each tuned for a specific machine type and workflow. Your subscription determines which studios you can access, but the interface and experience are identical across all four.
WriteStudio is designed for pen plotters, drag knives, and any machine that carries a drawing instrument instead of a spinning cutter. It's the right choice for handwriting reproductions, geometric line art, vinyl stickers, paper crafts, and any job where you want clean, crisp vector paths without material removal.
BurnStudio handles diode and CO₂ laser engravers. It supports both vector engraving (clean outline and fill paths at full speed) and raster engraving (line-by-line image burning for photos, gradients, and halftone effects). Power, speed, and pass count are configurable per operation — so you can engrave softwood and cut 3mm plywood in the same project.
CutStudio is the full-featured CNC router and milling studio. It generates 2.5D toolpaths for wood, MDF, plywood, acrylic, aluminium, and soft metals using flat end mills, V-bits, ball nose cutters, and drag knives. Every operation type — pocket, profile, V-carve, engraving — is supported, with automatic feed-and-speed calculation based on your tool and material.
PCB Studio imports standard Gerber RS-274X and Excellon drill files exported from KiCad, Eagle, EasyEDA, or any other PCB design tool, and converts them into machine-ready toolpaths for hobby CNC mills. It handles copper isolation routing, board edge cutting, and drill holes in a single workflow.
The canvas editor is the heart of WebCAM. It's an interactive design surface where you create shapes, import artwork, position toolpaths, and organize multi-layer projects — all live in your browser.
Draw rectangles, circles, polygons, free-form paths, and text directly on the canvas. Every shape can be filled, stroked, scaled, rotated, and mirrored. Hold Shift to constrain proportions; hold Alt to resize from center.
Drag-and-drop or use the Import button to bring in SVG and DXF files. WebCAM preserves layers, groups, and path structure. Complex paths with holes and islands are handled correctly — important for pocket operations.
Double-click any path to enter point-editing mode. Drag anchor points to reshape curves, add or remove nodes, and adjust Bézier handles. Perfect for organic shapes and logo trace cleanup.
Place text anywhere on the canvas with full font selection. Convert text to paths for engraving operations — once converted, each letter becomes a vector shape that toolpaths can follow precisely.
Grid snap, object snap (edges, centers, corners), and smart guides make precise placement fast. Snap to stock boundaries to position designs exactly at your material edges or center point.
Add multiple workpieces to a single project — each has its own stock dimensions, zero point, and operations. Ideal for furniture panels, multi-part assemblies, and any project that spans more than one piece of material.
Scroll to zoom, click and drag the canvas background to pan. Use the View toolbar to fit your design to screen, zoom to actual machine scale, or jump to a specific workpiece. Keyboard shortcuts available for all zoom controls.
Every action is undoable. Use Ctrl+Z / Cmd+Z to step back through your history, and Ctrl+Shift+Z / Cmd+Shift+Z to redo. The history is preserved within your session — navigating away and back restores your last state.
Right-click any shape for quick access to group, ungroup, flip, duplicate, send to back, bring to front, and assign toolpath operations — all without leaving the canvas.
After placing shapes on the canvas, you assign one or more operations to each shape. Operations define how the machine will process that shape — what tool to use, how deep to cut, how fast to move. WebCAM calculates the toolpath geometry and previews it in 3D before generating any G-code.
Removes all material inside a closed shape to a specified depth. Uses a lace or offset fill pattern with stepover configured as a percentage of tool diameter. Common uses: recesses, sign backgrounds, inlay mortises.
Follows the outline of a shape. Offset the path inside, outside, or on the line itself to account for tool radius. Add tabs to keep cut-out parts attached to the stock until the last pass.
Uses a V-bit to carve tapered grooves whose depth is determined automatically by the groove width. Ideal for raised or recessed lettering and decorative linework. Supports flat-bottom V-carve for controlled depth.
Runs the tool along a path at a fixed depth without width compensation. Best for marking surfaces, adding registration lines, or scoring fold lines on sheet goods.
Select from your tool library. Feed rates and spindle speed are pre-filled from the tool's preset and can be overridden per operation.
Maximum depth removed in a single pass. Shallow passes protect the tool; deeper passes are faster. WebCAM automatically calculates the number of passes needed to reach your target depth.
How deep the operation cuts into the stock. Measured from the top surface. For through-cuts, enter your material thickness plus a small clearance (e.g. 0.2 mm).
For pockets: the lateral distance between adjacent passes, expressed as a percentage of tool diameter. 40–50% is typical for flat end mills; reduce for smoother surface finish.
How the tool enters the material. Ramp entry is standard. Helix entry spirals down to depth — preferred for harder materials and smaller tools where a straight plunge would break the bit.
The height the tool retracts to during rapid moves. Safe Z is used between cuts; Clearance Z is used when crossing obstacles like clamps. Both must be above the tallest point on your workpiece.
Small material bridges left uncut on profile operations to hold cut-out pieces in place. Configure tab width and height; remove by hand after machining.
Profile cuts can be offset inside (smaller result), outside (larger result), or on-path (tool center on the line). Inside and outside offsets automatically compensate for tool radius.
WebCAM calculates feed rate and spindle speed automatically from your tool's chipload, flute count, and the RPM your machine supports. The formula is F = chipload × flutes × RPM. Enter your tool specs once in the tool library and the values propagate to every operation automatically. You can always override them.
WebCAM uses your machine profile to set safe defaults for feed rates, work area limits, and G-code dialect. You only need to set this up once; every project inherits it automatically.
The maximum travel your machine can handle in each axis. WebCAM uses this to warn you if a design exceeds machine limits and to set rapids correctly.
Choose GRBL 1.1, Marlin, Mach3, or LinuxCNC. This controls which G-code dialect is used in exported files — modal codes, arc support, and decimal precision all vary by firmware.
Millimetres or inches. All dimensions in WebCAM (tool diameters, depth, feed rates) use this unit consistently. You can switch at any time; all values convert automatically.
Set your machine's maximum RPM (router) or maximum power percentage (laser). The feed & speed calculator uses RPM to derive feed rates; laser power is used to scale S-values in G-code.
A label for your own reference — useful if you have multiple machines. Appears in project settings and G-code file headers.
The tool library stores every cutting tool you own with its physical specs and recommended cutting parameters. WebCAM ships with a curated set of presets for the most common hobby tools — you can use them as-is or customize them to match your exact bits.
The workhorse for pockets and profiles. Common diameters: 3.175 mm (1/8"), 6.35 mm (1/4"), 12.7 mm (1/2"). Use for wood, MDF, plywood, acrylic.
Tapered bit for V-carve engraving and chamfering. Common angles: 30°, 60°, 90°. Depth is calculated automatically from groove width and angle.
Rounded tip for 3D contouring and smooth pocket floors. Diameters: 3 mm, 6 mm, 12 mm. Step-down must be smaller than for flat end mills.
Spring-loaded blade for vinyl, card, and thin sheet. No spindle needed. Offset compensation corrects for the distance between pivot and blade tip.
The cutting diameter of the tool tip. This is the number WebCAM uses for offset calculations and stepover defaults. Measure this carefully — even 0.1 mm matters for tight fits.
Number of cutting edges on the tool. More flutes produce a smoother surface but require higher feed rates to avoid rubbing. Standard: 2-flute for wood, 3–4 flute for aluminium.
Material removed per tooth per revolution, in mm or inches. Multiply by flutes and RPM to get feed rate. Too low causes rubbing and heat; too high breaks the tool.
The upper spindle speed the tool can safely use. Usually dictated by manufacturer spec or machine limit. WebCAM caps the calculated RPM at this value.
The top speed for cutting moves with this tool. Overrides the calculated value if the calculation exceeds it. Useful for router-bit safety limits.
The deepest single pass recommended for this tool. WebCAM divides your target depth by this value to determine pass count automatically.
Default lateral overlap for pocket operations, as a percentage of tool diameter. Pre-filled from the preset and can be overridden per operation.
The included angle of the V-bit tip (not the half-angle). Determines how depth relates to groove width in V-carve operations.
Distance from the blade pivot to the tip. Used to calculate corner compensation paths that keep the blade tracking correctly around tight turns.
Once your toolpaths are set and you've reviewed the 3D preview, export your G-code file or send it directly to a connected machine.
Export a standard .nc or .gcode file and load it into your machine controller the usual way — SD card, USB drive, or via software like UGS, bCNC, or Candle. This works with every supported firmware.
Connect your GRBL machine directly to WebCAM via the Web Serial API (Chrome and Edge only). Stream G-code line-by-line, jog the machine, and monitor status — all from the browser tab. No driver installation needed.
For machines on a fixed workstation without a direct serial port, run the WebCAM Bridge (a small local server) on the shop computer. WebCAM connects to the bridge over your local network — no USB cable needed at your design desk.
Common questions about WebCAM, the studios, G-code generation, and machine compatibility.
No — WebCAM is a cloud-based web application that requires an internet connection to load and save projects. Your project data is stored securely in the cloud, so you can access it from any device. The G-code export and direct serial connection features do work locally once the page is loaded, but you need connectivity to open or save projects.
Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge are recommended. Both support the Web Serial API, which is required for direct machine connection. Firefox and Safari lack Web Serial support, so direct connection is not available in those browsers. All other features (design, toolpath, export) work in any modern browser.
Yes. WebCAM imports SVG and DXF files. SVG files exported from Inkscape, Adobe Illustrator, Affinity Designer, and most vector drawing tools import correctly. DXF files from CAD tools (Fusion 360, LibreCAD, AutoCAD) also import well. PCB Studio additionally imports Gerber RS-274X and Excellon drill files from KiCad, Eagle, EasyEDA, and similar PCB design tools.
Safe Z is the height the tool retracts to between cutting moves within a single operation — it should be just high enough to clear the surface of your stock. Clearance Z is the height used during rapid moves between separate operations, or when crossing the workpiece. Clearance Z must be high enough to clear clamps, hold-down hardware, and any raised features. Setting Safe Z too high wastes time on retracts; setting it too low risks the tool hitting your stock during traversal.
V-carve depth is calculated automatically from the groove width and the V-bit angle using the formula: depth = (width / 2) / tan(angle / 2). If the depth looks wrong, check that the tool angle in your tool library matches your actual bit — a 60° entry for a 90° bit will cut half as deep as expected. Also verify the shapes on the canvas are the correct size in real-world units (mm or inches, not pixels).
WebCAM targets GRBL 1.1, which is the current standard. GRBL 0.9 is largely compatible but lacks some features (notably arc support improvements and real-time status reporting). G-code exported for GRBL 1.1 will usually run on GRBL 0.9 machines, but direct serial connection features rely on GRBL 1.1 status messages and may not work correctly. We strongly recommend upgrading your controller firmware to GRBL 1.1.
CutStudio can generate G-code for aluminium and other soft metals — the toolpath logic is the same. However, your machine must be rigid and powerful enough to handle the much higher cutting forces involved. Most hobby routers (Shapeoko, X-Carve, etc.) can cut 6061 aluminium with appropriate tools, speeds, lubrication, and shallow passes. WebCAM does not enforce material limits; it trusts you to configure feed rates and pass depth appropriately for your setup.
A project can contain multiple workpieces — each representing a separate piece of stock. Each workpiece has its own dimensions, zero point, and independent set of operations. When you export G-code, you can download all workpieces combined (with machine pause commands between them) or export each workpiece as a separate file. This is useful for furniture panels, multi-part jigs, and any project that requires more than one piece of material.
Yes. Projects are saved automatically to WebCAM's cloud storage as you work. There is no manual save required. You can also export a local copy of your project at any time from the project settings. Cloud storage means your designs are safe even if your computer is lost or reset.
There are two plans. Free includes every studio, unlimited projects and unlimited G-code downloads — the same toolpath engine powers both plans. Pro adds sending jobs straight to your machine, unlimited machines, private projects, commercial use and email support. Every account starts with a 14-day Pro trial, no credit card required.
No installs, no CAM license, no weekend of tutorials. Sign up free and run the guided wizard — most makers generate their first G-code file in under ten minutes.