To PNG - Electron | IMG.LY Docs

Export designs to PNG format with lossless quality and optional transparency support.

Export to PNG example showing CE.SDK with PNG export buttons

5 mins

estimated time

PNG is a lossless image format that preserves image quality and supports transparency. It’s ideal for designs requiring pixel-perfect fidelity, logos, graphics with transparent backgrounds, and any content where quality cannot be compromised.

import type { EditorPlugin, EditorPluginContext } from '@cesdk/cesdk-js';
import packageJson from './package.json';

class Example implements EditorPlugin {
  name = packageJson.name;

  version = packageJson.version;

  async initialize({ cesdk }: EditorPluginContext): Promise<void> {
    if (!cesdk) {
      throw new Error('CE.SDK instance is required for this plugin');
    }

    const engine = cesdk.engine;

    await engine.scene.loadFromURL(
      'https://cdn.img.ly/assets/demo/v1/ly.img.template/templates/cesdk_postcard_1.scene'
    );
    const page = engine.scene.getCurrentPage();
    if (!page) throw new Error('No page found');
    await engine.scene.zoomToBlock(page, { padding: 40 });

    // Export programmatically using the engine API
    const exportProgrammatically = async () => {
      const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
        mimeType: 'image/png'
      });
      await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
    };

    // Export with compression level (0-9)
    // Higher values produce smaller files but take longer
    const exportWithCompression = async () => {
      const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
        mimeType: 'image/png',
        pngCompressionLevel: 9
      });
      await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
    };

    // Export with target dimensions
    // The block scales to fill the target while maintaining aspect ratio
    const exportWithDimensions = async () => {
      const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
        mimeType: 'image/png',
        targetWidth: 1920,
        targetHeight: 1080
      });
      await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
    };

    // Trigger the built-in export action
    const triggerExportAction = async () => {
      await cesdk.actions.run('exportDesign', {
        mimeType: 'image/png'
      });
    };

    // Override the default export action to customize behavior
    cesdk.actions.register('exportDesign', async (options) => {
      // Use the utils API to export with a loading dialog
      const { blobs, options: exportOptions } =
        await cesdk.utils.export(options);

      // Custom logic: log the export details
      console.log(
        `Exported ${blobs.length} file(s) as ${exportOptions.mimeType}`
      );

      // Download the exported file
      await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blobs[0], exportOptions.mimeType);
    });

    // Add export dropdown to navigation bar
    cesdk.ui.insertNavigationBarOrderComponent('last', {
      id: 'ly.img.actions.navigationBar',
      children: [
        {
          id: 'ly.img.action.navigationBar',
          key: 'export-png',
          label: 'Export PNG',
          icon: '@imgly/Save',
          onClick: exportProgrammatically
        },
        {
          id: 'ly.img.action.navigationBar',
          key: 'export-png-action',
          label: 'Export PNG (action)',
          icon: '@imgly/Save',
          onClick: triggerExportAction
        },
        {
          id: 'ly.img.action.navigationBar',
          key: 'export-png-compressed',
          label: 'Export PNG (compressed)',
          icon: '@imgly/Save',
          onClick: exportWithCompression
        },
        {
          id: 'ly.img.action.navigationBar',
          key: 'export-png-hd',
          label: 'Export PNG (HD)',
          icon: '@imgly/Save',
          onClick: exportWithDimensions
        }
      ]
    });
  }
}

export default Example;

This guide covers how to export designs to PNG, configure export options, and integrate with the built-in export action.

Export to PNG#

Use engine.block.export() to export a design block to PNG. The method returns a Blob containing the image data.

// Export programmatically using the engine API
const exportProgrammatically = async () => {
  const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
    mimeType: 'image/png'
  });
  await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
};

Compression Level#

Control the file size versus export speed tradeoff using pngCompressionLevel. Valid values are 0-9, where higher values produce smaller files but take longer to export. Since PNG is lossless, image quality remains unchanged.

// Export with compression level (0-9)
// Higher values produce smaller files but take longer
const exportWithCompression = async () => {
  const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
    mimeType: 'image/png',
    pngCompressionLevel: 9
  });
  await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
};

The default compression level is 5, providing a good balance between file size and export speed.

Target Dimensions#

Resize the output by setting targetWidth and targetHeight. The block scales to fill the target dimensions while maintaining its aspect ratio.

// Export with target dimensions
// The block scales to fill the target while maintaining aspect ratio
const exportWithDimensions = async () => {
  const blob = await engine.block.export(page, {
    mimeType: 'image/png',
    targetWidth: 1920,
    targetHeight: 1080
  });
  await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, 'image/png');
};

Trigger the Export Action#

The built-in exportDesign action triggers the default export workflow with a loading dialog and automatically downloads the file.

// Trigger the built-in export action
const triggerExportAction = async () => {
  await cesdk.actions.run('exportDesign', {
    mimeType: 'image/png'
  });
};

Override the Export Action#

Register a custom handler for the exportDesign action to customize behavior. This allows you to add custom logic such as uploading to a server or processing the exported file.

// Override the default export action to customize behavior
cesdk.actions.register('exportDesign', async (options) => {
  // Use the utils API to export with a loading dialog
  const { blobs, options: exportOptions } =
    await cesdk.utils.export(options);

  // Custom logic: log the export details
  console.log(
    `Exported ${blobs.length} file(s) as ${exportOptions.mimeType}`
  );

  // Download the exported file
  await cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blobs[0], exportOptions.mimeType);
});

The cesdk.utils.export() method handles the export with a loading dialog, while cesdk.utils.downloadFile() triggers the browser download.

API Reference#

API	Description
`engine.block.export(block, options)`	Exports a block to a Blob with the specified options
`cesdk.actions.run('exportDesign', options)`	Triggers the default export workflow
`cesdk.actions.register('exportDesign', handler)`	Overrides the default export action
`cesdk.utils.export(options)`	Exports with a loading dialog, returns `{ blobs, options }`
`cesdk.utils.downloadFile(blob, mimeType)`	Downloads a Blob as a file

Next Steps#

Conversion Overview - Learn about other export formats
Export Overview - Understand the full export workflow
To PDF - Export designs to PDF format