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Glowforge Aura settings — cut & engrave cheat sheet
Starting-point power, speed and pass settings for the Glowforge Aura, an enclosed 6 W blue diode craft laser (450 nm) that runs from Glowforge's cloud app on its own 1–10 Power dial and a separate Speed dial — not mm/s and not a percentage. We have not run this machine ourselves: every number below is credited to a laser-materials vendor's published Aura/Spark chart or to a Glowforge owner's own post on the community forum, not to a Glowforge-published numeric chart. Confirm on a material test grid before a real job — batches and machines both vary.
Quick answer: The Glowforge Aura runs on its own 1–10 Power dial and a separate Speed dial, not mm/s or a percentage. Craft Closet's published Aura chart cuts 1/8 in basswood at Power 10 / Speed 15 / 2 passes and 1/8 in dark acrylic at Power 10 / Speed 13 / 3 passes; a community-run spreadsheet covers the non-Proofgrade materials Glowforge itself doesn't publish numbers for.
Glowforge itself is still trading: co-founders Dan Shapiro and Mark Gosselin bought the company's key assets out of a 2025 creditor restructuring and are running it today, and the Aura remains part of the current lineup. Glowforge's own store listed the base Aura as sold out with an email-notification signup when we checked in September 2026, while Glowforge's product page still showed active buy buttons — check current stock yourself before quoting a job on a machine you don't already own.
Glowforge Aura settings (Power 1–10 / Speed dial / passes)
Glowforge doesn't publish a numeric materials chart for the Aura — its non-Proofgrade guidance is the same "materials vary too much" line it gives for the CO2 machines — and the live Power/Speed dial in Manual mode only shows once you're signed into a Glowforge account. Most rows below are from Craft Closet, a laser-materials vendor that publishes its own recommended Aura/Spark cut chart; the two PU leather rows are from an individual owner's post in the Glowforge community forum's Aura settings-spreadsheet thread. Power is confirmed by owners on that forum to run 1–10, not a percentage; Speed is a separate, unitless dial the same forum says Glowforge has raised over time (from a cap of 100 up to 400 on newer app versions), so don't assume a number from an older post still matches the current app. We couldn't find a source we trusted for bamboo cutting boards or slate coasters specifically on the Aura — the numbers circulating for those on aggregator sites didn't hold together against everything else here — so those rows are left out; the community spreadsheet linked in the FAQ below is the better next stop.
| Material | Job | Setting |
|---|---|---|
| Wood manufactured core 1/8 in (3.2 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 10 / 3 passes |
| Basswood 1/8 in (3.2 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 15 / 2 passes |
| Basswood 1/16 in (1.6 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 15 / 1 pass |
| Balsa wood 1/4 in (6.4 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 40 / 2 passes |
| Colored MDF 1/8 in (3.2 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 10 / 3 passes |
| Dark acrylic 1/8 in (3.2 mm) — Jet Black Matte | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 13 / 3 passes |
| Faux leather 0.03 in (~0.8 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 50 / 2 passes |
| PU artificial leather 0.05 in (1.3 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 30 / 1 pass |
| PU artificial leather 0.05 in (1.3 mm) | Engrave | Power 4/10 / Speed 90 / 270 LPI / 1 pass |
| Chipboard 0.03 in (~0.8 mm) | Cut | Power 10/10 / Speed 35 / 1 pass |
Always: the Aura's laser head has a built-in fan, so there's no separate air-assist switch to remember. Don't hold Power at 10 to force a thicker cut through — add a pass instead, the way every row above already does — and confirm your own numbers with a material test grid.
These are the Aura's own dial numbers, not mm/s. The CO2 Glowforge (Basic/Plus/Pro) uses a percentage for Power instead of a 1–10 dial, so don't carry a setting between the two machines — see our Glowforge Basic/Plus/Pro settings for that machine's own numbers.
In the box: the Aura printer body, a pre-attached laser head, the crumb (cutting) tray and an exhaust hose for venting through a window — Glowforge's own unboxing article's full list. The Craft Laser air filter is sold separately, not included.
Get an exact price for the Glowforge Aura
Settings give you the speed; the calculator turns your file's path length into machine time and cost, scaled to the Aura.
Open the Glowforge Aura calculator →Stock that fits an Aura
The Aura's bed is 12 × 12 in, so buy sheets already cut to that size — and only dark or opaque acrylic, because the blue beam passes straight through clear.
Basswood sheets 1/8 in, 12 × 12: Check price on Amazon ↗
Black cast acrylic 1/8 in: Check price on Amazon ↗
Faux leather sheets: Check price on Amazon ↗
Chipboard sheets: Check price on Amazon ↗
Disclosure: some links are affiliate links — if you buy through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Prices are approximate list prices at the time of writing; always check the current offer.
Bed size: what actually fits
Glowforge's own spec page puts the Aura's work area at 305 × 305 mm (12 × 12 in), with a passthrough slot built into the enclosure for longer stock — up to 9.5 mm (3/8 in) tall, 305 mm (12 in) wide, and any length — so oversized parts only work if they're thin. Maximum cut thickness is 6.35 mm (1/4 in); engraving allows up to 19 mm (3/4 in) with the crumb tray removed, or 6.35 mm (1/4 in) with it in place.
| Common stock | Size | On this machine |
|---|---|---|
| A4 sheet | 297 × 210 mm | Fits |
| 300 × 300 mm craft ply | 300 × 300 mm | Fits — about 2.5 mm to spare on each side |
| 400 × 400 mm sheet | 400 × 400 mm | Does not fit — wider than the 305 mm passthrough slot, so cut it down first |
| 600 × 300 mm sheet | 600 × 300 mm | Not flat on the bed — but it goes through the passthrough slot if it is 9.5 mm thick or less |
A 305 × 305 mm bed is Glowforge's own Proofgrade size for this machine, and the passthrough only rescues stock that is both thin and no wider than 305 mm — anything past 3/8 in thick or 12 in wide still has to be cut down first.
What the Glowforge Aura cannot do
This is a 450 nm blue diode in an enclosed body, and that combination sets limits no setting can move:
- No clear or transparent acrylic. Clear acrylic barely absorbs blue light, so the beam passes through instead of cutting it. Dark, opaque acrylic cuts fine — Craft Closet's own Aura chart lists dozens of black, coloured and metallic 1/8 in acrylics — but clear needs a CO2 machine.
- 1/4 in plywood is marginal. A Glowforge community moderator put it plainly on the forum: the Aura is "pretty challenged" by 1/4 in material, closer to a burn than a clean cut at the machine's own stated ceiling.
- Bare or anodised metal barely marks, even with spray. One owner reported needing 10 or more passes to get bare aluminium to take any mark at all — a 6 W diode is a poor match for metal of any kind.
- Nothing past 6.35 mm (1/4 in) cuts. That's Glowforge's own published cut ceiling; thicker items can still be engraved, up to 19 mm (3/4 in) with the crumb tray removed.
- No mm/s. Glowforge has never published a conversion from the Aura's Speed dial to a physical unit, so a number from this machine doesn't carry over to a CO2 Glowforge or to a machine that uses mm/s or mm/min.
Troubleshooting: symptom, cause, fix
| Symptom | Usual cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| App gets stuck on "Calibrating" | Weak Wi-Fi can't upload the lid camera's images to Glowforge's cloud — the Aura needs an internet connection to run at all | Improve the Wi-Fi signal at the machine, restart the app and the Aura, then retry; Glowforge's own Stuck Calibrating article covers the rest. |
| Aura keeps dropping Wi-Fi or won't finish network setup | Owners on the community forum most often trace this to a mistyped password rather than a real fault | Type the network password into a plain text editor first and check for 0-vs-O, capitalisation and stray spaces before re-entering it in the app. |
| 1/4 in plywood chars or scorches instead of cutting through | The Aura is genuinely under-powered at its own stated thickness ceiling | Drop speed and add passes rather than raising power further, and treat 1/4 in as a best-case ceiling, not a comfortable working thickness. |
| Bare or anodised aluminium won't take a mark | 6 W of blue diode is marginal on metal, sprayed or not | Budget 10 or more passes and test on scrap first, or accept the material isn't a good fit for this machine. |
| Cut looks fine on top but doesn't go all the way through | Focus set for the wrong thickness, or speed too high for the pass count | Re-measure the exact sheet, drop speed before adding a pass, and check the underside, not just the top. |
If none of that helps, work through why won't my laser cut all the way through? or how to stop burn marks on wood.
FAQ
Is the Glowforge Aura still available to buy?
Glowforge itself is still trading — co-founders Dan Shapiro and Mark Gosselin bought the company's key assets out of a 2025 creditor restructuring and are running it today (GeekWire, November 2025) — and the Aura is still part of the current lineup. Glowforge's own store listed the base unit as sold out with an email-notification signup when we checked on 25 September 2026, even though Glowforge's product page still showed active buy buttons, so check current stock yourself before relying on it for a paying job.
What units does the Glowforge Aura use for power and speed?
Its own dials, not mm/s or a percentage: Power runs 1–10, and Speed is a separate, unitless dial that Glowforge owners on the community forum say has been raised over time (from a cap of 100 up to 400 in newer app versions). Glowforge has never published a conversion from either dial to a physical unit, and the live values only show once you're signed into the Aura's own app.
What is the Glowforge Aura's bed size?
305 × 305 mm (12 × 12 in), per Glowforge's own spec page, plus a built-in passthrough slot for stock up to 9.5 mm (3/8 in) thick, 305 mm wide and any length. Maximum cut thickness is 6.35 mm (1/4 in).
Can the Glowforge Aura cut clear acrylic?
No. It's a 450 nm diode, and clear acrylic passes the beam straight through instead of absorbing it. Dark or opaque acrylic cuts — Craft Closet's own Aura chart lists settings for black, coloured and metallic 1/8 in acrylic — but clear needs a CO2 machine.
What are the Glowforge Aura settings for 1/8 inch acrylic?
Craft Closet's published Aura/Spark chart gives Power 10, Speed 13, 3 passes for 1/8 in Jet Black Matte acrylic — one of dozens of specific colours and finishes on that chart, all at Power 10 with Speed values from 5 to 13 depending on the finish. Dark and opaque colours only; clear acrylic doesn't cut on this machine.
Is there a Glowforge Aura settings spreadsheet?
Yes — Glowforge owners maintain a shared, editable Google Sheet of non-Proofgrade Aura settings, started by a community member (deirdrebeth) in the forum's "Spreadsheet for Non-Proofgrade Materials - AURA" thread on community.glowforge.com. Treat entries on it the way you'd treat any owner-shared number: a starting point to confirm on your own material.