PES vs JEF: which embroidery format should you use?
PES is Brother's format, used by Brother and Baby Lock home machines; JEF is Janome's, used by Janome and Elna home machines. Both store thread colors. The stitches are the same in both, so use the one your machine reads and convert when you need the other.
| Feature | PES | JEF |
|---|---|---|
| Made by | Brother | Janome |
| Machines | Brother, Baby Lock | Janome, Elna |
| Mainly used on | Brother and Baby Lock home machines | Janome and Elna home machines |
| Stores thread colors | Yes | Yes |
| File extension | .pes | .jef |
Choose PES if…
… you sew on a Brother or Baby Lock machine, or share files with Brother owners.
PES is the format Brother's embroidery machines and PE-Design use. Baby Lock machines are built on the same platform and read PES too.
Choose JEF if…
… you sew on a Janome or Elna machine.
JEF is Janome's embroidery format, used by the Memory Craft and Skyline embroidery machines and by Elna machines built on the same platform.
Turn any image into PES or JEF
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PES vs JEF questions
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What's the difference between PES and JEF?
PES is Brother's format, used by Brother and Baby Lock home machines; JEF is Janome's, used by Janome and Elna home machines. Both store thread colors. The stitches are the same in both, so use the one your machine reads and convert when you need the other.
Can I convert PES to JEF?
Yes. Open the .pes file in the free PES to JEF converter and save it as .jef. The stitches carry over exactly; thread colors are matched to the closest threads.
Does converting between PES and JEF lose quality?
No. Both formats store the same needle positions, so the design sews the same. What can change is the color information and any software-only extras, not the stitches.
Which is better, PES or JEF?
Neither is better in itself. Use PES if you sew on a Brother or Baby Lock machine, or share files with Brother owners; use JEF if you sew on a Janome or Elna machine.
How do I make a file in either format from an image?
Upload the image to the digitizer, check the stitch preview and download PES, JEF or any other format. Digitizing and previewing are free with an account.
More format comparisons
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