Laser cutting
Laser cutting nesting software, online and free
Nestpact nests parts for laser cutting straight from a DXF in your browser. A laser kerf is narrow and repeatable, which means you can pack parts tight — and a good optimizer turns that tight tolerance into real material savings on every sheet.
Set a small kerf and a small part-to-part gap, choose how freely parts may rotate, and Nestpact arranges them with true-shape collision detection so curved and irregular profiles slot together instead of each claiming a wasteful rectangle.
Work in metric millimetres or US inches, on anything from a small metric sheet to a standard 4ft x 8ft (4x8) blank. It runs in the browser with nothing to install, and there is a free plan.
- Tight kerf and gap settings suited to fiber and CO2 lasers
- True-shape nesting so curved parts interlock, not just rectangles
- Fine rotation control down to 5° steps for the densest layouts
- Grain-aware rotation locking for brushed or directional stock
- Multi-sheet overflow with per-sheet quantity tracking
- Export an optimized DXF or laser G-code with lead-in/out and layer routing
Why density is the whole game for laser
Laser sheet stock — stainless, mild steel, aluminium, acrylic — is priced by the sheet, so the metric that matters is utilization: how much of the sheet leaves as finished parts. Because laser kerf is small, the ceiling on density is high, but only if your nesting actually closes the gaps.
Nestpact compares several sorting and packing strategies on each run and keeps the densest result, then runs a compaction pass that nudges parts toward each other. On mixed jobs that routinely pushes utilization well past hand-placement in CAD.
Laser kerf by material and thickness (approximate)
Laser kerf is narrow and grows slowly with thickness. The values below are a starting reference for fiber laser on metal and CO2 on acrylic — measure a test cut for exact numbers, then enter that kerf in Nestpact.
| Material | Thickness | Approx. kerf |
|---|---|---|
| Mild steel (fiber, O2) | 1 mm | 0.10 mm |
| Mild steel (fiber, O2) | 3 mm | 0.15 mm |
| Mild steel (fiber, O2) | 6 mm | 0.25 mm |
| Stainless (fiber, N2) | 3 mm | 0.18 mm |
| Aluminium (fiber, N2) | 3 mm | 0.20 mm |
| Acrylic (CO2) | 3 mm | 0.20 mm |
| Acrylic (CO2) | 10 mm | 0.40 mm |
Approximate; kerf depends on power, assist gas, focus and speed. Cut a test coupon and measure for production tolerances.
Rotation freedom without losing the grain
For most laser work you want parts free to rotate so they tessellate. Nestpact lets you pick the rotation granularity per job — none, 90°, 45°, 30°, 15° or free 5° steps. Finer rotation finds tighter fits at the cost of a little more compute, which is exactly the trade the deeper optimization levels are built for.
If a material has a grain or brushed finish you want to respect, lock rotation to 0° and 180° and the layout stays grain-aware while still packing efficiently.
Clean DXF in, clean cut path out
Upload your parts DXF (the built-in DXF health checker can close open contours and strip stray entities first if needed), set quantities, and nest. Accept the layout and download a DXF for your CAM, or generate laser G-code with lead-in/out and per-layer routing for cut, engrave and mark.
Recommended starting settings
A sensible starting point for fiber laser on thin-to-medium sheet. Adjust kerf to a measured test cut.
Laser kerf is tiny, so parts can sit close; a small gap avoids back-cutting the neighbour.
Keeps cuts off the sheet edge and any clamp or skeleton-support zone.
Fine rotation chases maximum density on curved and irregular parts.
Laser tolerances reward a harder search; drop to Standard for quick previews.
Frequently asked questions
Is the laser nesting free?
Yes. Nestpact has a free plan that includes laser nesting, multi-sheet layouts and DXF export. No install — try a nest without signing up, then create a free account to keep nesting.
What kerf should I use for laser cutting?
Laser kerf is typically 0.1–0.5 mm depending on power, material and thickness (see the table above). Cut a test coupon, measure the kerf, and enter that value so Nestpact spaces parts by half the kerf.
Can it keep parts aligned to material grain?
Yes. Restrict rotation to 0°/180° in the settings and the nest respects grain or directional finishes while still packing efficiently.
Does it export G-code for laser controllers?
Yes. You can download an optimized DXF or generate G-code with lead-in/out and layer-to-operation routing for laser, plasma and waterjet.