New to Illustra? This guide walks you through creating your account and converting your first photo into an illustration in under 60 seconds.
Published:
3 min
Welcome to Illustra
Illustra converts any photo into a custom illustration in under 60 seconds. This guide walks you through everything you need to do your first conversion — from creating an account to downloading your result.
Step 1 — Create your account
You don't need an account to try Illustra. Your first conversion is completely free with no sign-up required.
When you're ready to save your conversion history and access SVG downloads, creating an account takes less than 30 seconds:
Click Sign up in the top right corner of any page
Enter your email address and choose a password
Check your inbox for a confirmation email and click the link inside
You're in — your dashboard is ready
If you signed up with Google, skip the confirmation step. You'll be taken straight to your dashboard.
Step 2 — Upload your image
From the homepage or your dashboard, click Upload your image to open the upload panel.
You can upload your photo in two ways:
Drag and drop — drag an image file directly onto the upload zone
Browse — click the upload zone to open your file picker and select an image
Illustra accepts JPG, PNG, and WEBP files up to 10 MB. If your file is too large or in an unsupported format, you'll see a clear error message explaining what to fix.
Once your file is selected, you'll see a thumbnail preview of your image. If it looks right, click Choose a style to continue.
Tip: The quality of your source photo directly affects the quality of your illustration. A well-lit photo with a clear subject will always produce a better result than a dark or blurry one. See our guide to Uploading Images for more detail.
Step 3 — Choose your illustration style
Illustra offers four illustration styles. Each produces a genuinely different result:
Style | Best for |
|---|---|
Flat design | Product shots, UI mockups, marketing assets |
Watercolor | Portraits, nature photography, artistic prints |
Anime | Character art, profile pictures, fan creations |
Pencil sketch | Portraits, architecture, editorial art |
Click a style card to select it. The card will highlight to confirm your selection. By default, the first style is pre-selected when you arrive on this screen.
When you're ready, click Convert now.
Not sure which style to pick? You can always go back and try a different style after seeing your result — your image stays loaded, so you don't need to upload it again.
Step 4 — Wait for your illustration
Illustra's AI processes your image and applies your chosen style. This usually takes between 15 and 60 seconds depending on the complexity of your image.
You'll see a progress screen while your illustration is being created. You can cancel at any time and return to the style picker.
Step 5 — Download your result
When your illustration is ready, you'll see a before and after comparison — drag the slider to compare your original photo with the illustration.
To download:
Select your preferred format — JPG for sharing and social media, SVG for Figma, print, and design projects
Click Download illustration
Your file saves to your downloads folder automatically
You'll also see two options beneath the download button:
Try a different style — keep your image loaded and go back to the style picker
Upload a new image — start a fresh conversion from scratch
Your conversions are saved automatically
If you're logged in, every conversion you complete is saved to your dashboard under My Creations. You can return at any time to download previous illustrations in a different format.
If you converted as a guest, your result is only available during that browser session. Create a free account to save your work permanently.
Need help?
If something isn't working as expected, check our Troubleshooting guide. If you can't find what you need, contact us at support@illustra.co and we'll get back to you within one business day.
