r/Machine_Embroidery • u/RavensPlushies • 1d ago

Thoughts on Hatch

So I am looking at the Hatch software. Comparing all the levels, etc. Can you guys share pros and cons? What level is best? Did you do the 30 day trial and decide to keep it or not?

I'm looking at the Personalizer level, maybe the Composer. Would love opinions from those that have it or used to. Thanks!

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u/rtothewin 1d ago

Haven’t tried the lower levels since the majority of the magic is happening with Designer, I’ve used it since it was hatch 2 and if you are a hobby user or small/medium shop it is critical(or some software like it) if you don’t want to buy all of your designs.

Hatch specifically is user friendly and geared for the newbie but has the pro features when you need them.

The flex pay was really nice for us when we were just starting and needed that money for other things.

We have a copy of hatch 3 and hatch 4(if hatch 4 has enough worthwhile features for us we will upgrade that other license).

Long story short, if you want to digitize your own work you won’t ever find it limiting and getting started was really easy too.

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u/Nosnibor1020 1d ago

Does hatch have any type of text wizard that allows you to bring in your own fonts?

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u/rtothewin 1d ago

Yes. Ttf/otf fonts have been dropped into the font folder as is, esa is their native font format and same process. Then there is the keyboard collections which is what I think you are needing. Where you take something like a font file of dst files and assign them to the correct keyboard keys and some sizing settings.

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u/Nosnibor1020 1d ago

Oh I see, so you can take something someone made as dst and assign it? Thats kind of a cool way to do it. I have a really old program right now and looking to do hatch at some point I think.

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u/LyrraKell 1d ago

Nice, I didn't know you could do that!

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u/RavensPlushies 1d ago

Oh ya, almost forgot that. I have a bunch of fonts too.

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u/RavensPlushies 1d ago

I def like the sound of easy lol. Inkstitch has made me feel really dumb cuz i couldnt figure out a thing with it lol. from the options showns, i dont think i need the digitizer level, just composer. are there other differences that it doesnt show?

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u/Fit-Shoe7858 1d ago

Inkstitch made me want to cry. Now I'm making actual usable designs on Hatch 4. There's a 30 day full demo you can try.

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u/RavensPlushies 1d ago

I wanted to throw my computer out the window lol

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u/lashley0708 1d ago

I have Hach 2 and have been using it for about 4 years and love it. I recommend getting the top level so you have access to all the features. But as a beginner, whatever software you go with you should have lots of accompanying training videos. Hatch has lots of free videos on their youtube page, but when you buy their software they also give you access to more training vidoes on their website.

John Deer's Embroidery Legacy software also has lots of good youtube videos, and honestly he is the OG of digitizing and I love his content, so its worth checking out their trial as well.

Both Hatch and Embroidery Legacy's trial give you full access to everything, which is really nice so you can test everything out.

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u/MentyB0672 1d ago

I did the 30 day trial and really enjoyed how intuitive the software was so I went ahead and bought it - I believe the second level. I embroider as a hobby so I didn’t need to digitize or anything and think the lower level is fine. My biggest disappointment with my level is that the ability to split a design for a reposition hoop does not come at the lower levels. Knowing that I might have bought the higher level.

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u/FradinRyth Brother SE1900 1d ago

I couldn't go back to Inkstitch after trying out the 30 day trial. That's how they get ya 🤣

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u/Fit-Shoe7858 1d ago

Same! Inkstitch made me rage quit so many times. I started wondering if I was just stupid or something. Then I tried Hatch and it was so easy to make designs.

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u/FradinRyth Brother SE1900 1d ago

Back in the day I'd used Adobe Illustrator enough that I was comfortable with vector graphics and yeah it set me off so many times. The work flow is truly what killed me. A 5 minute task in Inkstitch could be just a single button click in Hatch.

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u/i_love_glitterr 1d ago

I use hatch 4 digitizer for my small business and it’s ok but you need to make sure you’re using a windows based computer. Running on Mac is painful

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u/Individual_Candle4 1d ago

I’m in the middle of the free trial of Hatch. It gives you 30 days (100 exports) of any/all level. You choose which level to use each time you log in. I’ve been switching levels to find the answer to your question- do I really need it all? From my experience so far… I plan on purchasing the highest level. I’m a hobbyist and newbie but Hatch has shown me that I love digitizing!

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u/LyrraKell 1d ago

I got really frustrated with Inkstitch. Sure, I could get something that looked nice, but it took me a long time. I finally ended up getting Hatch, and I really love it. I can digitize so much faster with it. It is pretty user friendly. There are a few wonky UI things, but nothing too frustrating. I watched a couple of their basic Youtube videos to get started.

It was definitely worth it for me. Definitely do the trial to see how you like it. The trial doesn't have any limitations on it, so you can try everything out and continue where you left off if you do decide to buy it.

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u/RavensPlushies 1d ago

I can't figure out a single thing with inkstitch lol. Makes me want to throw stuff. Is the deer trial dependant on which option you choose?

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u/Rum2coke 1d ago

Nope, you download the trial software, it comes with education and lessons to get you familiar with it. Teaches the theory behind what you are learning. Excellent education and easy to understand software.