~ PIXEL CRAFT TOOL ~
Free Perler Bead
Pattern Maker
Convert any image to a Perler bead pattern in seconds. Upload a photo, character artwork, or logo — MakeBead matches each pixel to real Perler Midi bead colors and generates a print-ready pattern with grid lines, color codes, and a complete materials list. Free, instant, no sign-up required.
Drop image or click to upload
JPEG, PNG, or WebP
29 × 29 beads · 1×1 board
Templates
Click a template to load it into the tool above
Made something you want to keep?
A free account lets you save patterns to your library, publish to the gallery, like and favorite other creators — all optional, the converter still works without one.
How It Works
Upload Your Image
Drag & drop or click to upload any JPEG, PNG, or WebP image.
Adjust Settings
Choose your board size and limit the number of bead colors for an easier build.
Export & Craft
Download as PNG or PDF with a materials list, grid lines, and color codes.
Features
Instant Image Conversion
Upload any JPEG, PNG, or WebP image and get a bead-ready pattern in under a second. Everything runs in your browser — no server uploads, no waiting.
420+ Colors Across 4 Brands
Switch between Perler (103 colors), Hama (92), Artkal S (199), and Nabbi (30) in one click. Every pixel matches real beads you can buy, using a weighted RGB algorithm.
Image Adjust & Dithering
Tune brightness, contrast, and saturation before conversion. Enable Floyd–Steinberg dithering for smoother gradients and more accurate skin tones.
Background Removal
One-click eyedropper — pick any background color and it is instantly made transparent. Adjustable tolerance handles anti-aliased edges.
Edit Your Pattern
After conversion, fix confetti pixels with flood fill, replace colors globally, paint, or erase — with full undo/redo. No need to re-run with different settings.
Progress Tracker
Start crafting mode lets you mark beads as you place them. Drag to paint, Shift+drag to box-select, auto-save to your browser — pick up where you left off next week.
Multi-Board PDF Export
Print-ready PDF with a board layout map, giant page numbers, prev/next indicators, grid pages with color codes, and a complete materials list.
PNG Export
Save your pattern as a high-resolution PNG with optional transparent background — perfect for sharing or further editing.
Instant & Free, No Sign-Up
Everything runs in your browser — no uploads, no accounts, no paywalls. Design and export unlimited patterns in any of the 4 bead brands.
What Are Perler Beads?
Perler beads are small, colorful plastic beads that you place on a pegboard to create pixel-art-style designs. Once your pattern is complete, you iron the beads with parchment paper to fuse them together into a solid, durable piece of art. In Europe the same craft uses Hama beads; in Asia Artkal is the popular equivalent. All three brands use the same 5mm Midi size and fit the same pegboards — MakeBead supports all of them.
Perler Midi has 103 colors, Hama Midi 92, and Artkal S-5mm a massive 199. Together that's 420+ real bead colors you can pick from — whether you're making kid-friendly characters on one board or wall-sized mosaics across a dozen boards.
A bead pattern maker like MakeBead simplifies the design process. Instead of manually plotting each bead on graph paper, you upload an image and the tool automatically converts it to a color-matched grid pattern. Switch brands with one click, tune brightness and dithering, edit confetti pixels, and track your build — all without leaving the page.
More Pattern Tools
MakeBead works for more than just Perler beads. Try our other free pattern makers:
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Frequently Asked Questions
How does the Perler bead pattern maker work? ▾
Upload any image and our tool instantly pixelizes it to fit a Perler pegboard grid. Each pixel is matched to the closest Perler bead color using a weighted RGB algorithm, giving you an accurate, craft-ready pattern.
Is this tool really free? ▾
Yes — uploading, previewing, and exporting PNG or PDF patterns is completely free with no sign-up required. Exported files include a small watermark.
Do I need an account to use MakeBead? ▾
No. The whole converter and designer — pixelizing, color matching, dithering, editing, PDF and PNG export — works without signing in. An account only matters if you want to save a pattern to a private library, publish it to the public gallery, or like and favorite patterns from other creators. You can switch your usage from anonymous to signed-in at any time and any patterns you previously shared via a quick share link get claimed into your library automatically.
How do I save and share my pattern? ▾
After converting an image, click Save in the toolbar — you'll be prompted to sign in (Google or email magic-link) if you haven't already, and the pattern lands in your private library at /my-patterns. From the library, click Publish to put it on the public gallery with a title, description, and tags so others can discover and remix it. Each published pattern gets a permanent URL like /patterns/p/<slug>-<id> and shows on your profile at /u/<username>.
What image formats are supported? ▾
JPEG, PNG, and WebP. PNG images with transparency are supported — transparent areas are treated as empty cells (no bead).
How many bead colors are available? ▾
MakeBead ships with 420+ real bead colors across four brands: Perler Midi (103), Hama Midi (92), Artkal S-5mm (199), and Nabbi BioBeads (30). Switch brands with the Bead Brand selector. The Max Colors slider defaults to 5–50 for an easier build, and the number box next to it lets you type any count up to the full palette size.
Which bead brands does MakeBead support? ▾
Perler, Hama, Artkal (S-5mm Midi), and Nabbi BioBeads. All four use 5mm Midi-size beads and can be placed on a standard 29×29 pegboard. The Bead Brand switcher re-matches your pattern to the chosen brand instantly — no re-upload needed.
Can I track my progress while placing beads? ▾
Yes. Click Start Crafting after generating a pattern to enter the built-in Progress Tracker. Tap beads to mark them complete, drag to paint a run, or Shift+drag to mark a whole region. Your progress saves to your browser automatically — come back next week and it's still there.
Why does my photo look noisy or confetti-like? ▾
Low-contrast photos and gradients produce scattered single-color pixels. Try three fixes: lower Max Colors to 8–15, turn on Floyd–Steinberg dithering for smoother transitions, or boost contrast in the Image Adjust panel. You can also click Edit Pattern and use flood fill to clean isolated cells.
Can I edit the pattern after conversion? ▾
Yes. The Edit Pattern button opens the converted pattern in the editor: paint, erase, flood-fill, pick a color, or Replace All to swap one color throughout. Full undo/redo. Edits stay in sync with the materials list.
What grid sizes can I use? ▾
Choose from 1 board (29×29), 2 boards (58), or 3 boards (87). The grid automatically adjusts to your image's aspect ratio.
Can I export the pattern as a PDF? ▾
Yes — the PDF includes an overview page with a thumbnail and materials list, grid pages with color codes and bold lines every 5 cells, and a color legend page.
Are the bead colors accurate? ▾
RGB values are sampled from physical Perler beads by the open-source community (beadcolors project, MIT license). They are approximate and may vary from actual beads.
How does the background removal work? ▾
Open Image Adjust in the sidebar, click Remove Background, then click any pixel in the preview that belongs to the background. That color becomes transparent throughout the image. Raise the Tolerance slider to catch slightly different shades (anti-aliased edges). Click each color swatch to undo individually.
Can I make a Perler bead pattern from a photo? ▾
Absolutely. Upload any photo — a portrait, landscape, logo, or character artwork — and MakeBead converts it into a bead-by-bead pattern matched to real Perler Midi colors. The Max Colors slider helps you simplify complex photos.
What is a Perler bead pattern? ▾
A Perler bead pattern is a pixel grid blueprint that shows which colored beads to place on a pegboard. Once all beads are placed, you iron the board to fuse them into a solid piece of art. Patterns can range from small 29×29 designs to large multi-board projects.
How do I choose the right grid size? ▾
For small characters or icons, use 29×29 (1 board). For detailed artwork or photos, try 58 (2 boards) or 87 (3 boards). More cells means more detail but also more beads to place. Beginners should start with 1 board.
Does the materials list tell me how many beads I need? ▾
Yes. After generating a pattern, you get a full materials list (Bill of Materials) showing each Perler color name, color code, exact bead count, and percentage of the total. This makes shopping for supplies easy.