Laser Engraving Settings for Wood, Leather, Acrylic, and Metal

Most engraving problems start before the first file runs: the machine, material surface, speed unit, and test method are not matched. Use this guide as a practical starting point, then confirm every setting on scrap from the same supplier and batch.

Start by choosing the workflow

• Use TYVOK P2 for compact gifts, tags, leather goods, coated cards, and small personalised items.
• Use P2 Ultra 20W 1064 nm for faster compact metal marking on stainless steel, anodized aluminium, brass, copper, tools, and metal cards.
• Use X1S or X1S Pro for larger diode work such as wood signs, panels, packaging prototypes, leather cutting, and repeatable batch layouts.
• Use K1 Pro 100W CO2 when clear acrylic, thicker acrylic, plywood, MDF, and studio cutting are the main material path.

Starter speed rules

• P2 2W should usually start around 20-30 mm/s for controlled small-item tests.
• P2 10W should usually start around 30-50 mm/s. Going much faster can hurt finish quality on many customer-facing pieces.
• P2 Ultra metal marking is different from standard P2 blue-laser engraving and can run much faster on suitable metal surfaces.
• X1S and X1S Pro diode settings are usually handled in mm/min, while K1 Pro CO2 settings are usually handled in mm/s. Check the software unit before running a job.

What to save after testing

• Save machine, material supplier, material color, coating, thickness, software unit, speed, power, passes, focus note, air-assist state, photo, and final result.
• Do not use one setting for every wood, every leather, or every coating. Supplier and finish can change the result.