Exporting figures as SVG or PDF for journal submission

Most rejected figure files fail for format reasons, not scientific ones.

Vector or raster

Vector (PDF, SVG, EPS) stores your figure as shapes and text. It stays sharp at any size, and text stays selectable. Use it for anything drawn: scatter plots, line plots, bar charts, box plots, forest plots.

Raster (TIFF, PNG) stores a grid of pixels. Use it for photographs, micrographs, gels, and heatmaps with very many cells.

Vector is the right default for the majority of scientific figures.

Which vector format

PDF is accepted almost universally and is the safest default. EPS is requested by some older submission systems. SVG is ideal for editing and for the web but less often accepted for submission. Export PDF for submission and keep an SVG for future edits.

The font problem

If fonts are not embedded, your carefully set axis labels can be substituted at the publisher's end, which changes their width and breaks your layout. Embed fonts in the PDF, or convert text to outlines if the journal permits it. Check by opening the PDF on a machine that does not have your font installed.

If raster is required

300 DPI for photographic content, 600 to 1200 DPI for line art and anything containing text. See what DPI journals require.

Set the DPI at export. Increasing it afterwards in an image editor adds pixels without adding detail and produces a blurry file at a large size.

Before you submit

Check the figure at 100% on screen, check text is legible at final print width, and confirm the file size is within the journal's limit.

In Plotara

Export as 300 DPI PNG, or as vector SVG and PDF, with a transparent background option.