Pattern Keeper Compatible Patterns: What the PDF Needs

Pattern Keeper turns a PDF chart into something you can stitch from on a tablet: tap a symbol and every stitch of that color lights up, mark stitches as done, and see how many are left. Once people have used it, "is this pattern Pattern Keeper compatible?" becomes the first question they ask of any chart, including a custom one made from their own photo.

The honest answer is less tidy than most listings suggest. Pattern Keeper itself says it can't publish a strict specification, so this page pulls together what its own help pages do say, and gives you a short test to run on any PDF before you rely on it.

What Pattern Keeper does with a PDF

Pattern Keeper describes itself as a cross stitch PDF reader. According to its home page, it lets you view a chart "as one continuous pattern", highlight symbols to see where to stitch, and mark stitches as finished with a running tally.

To do that, it doesn't just display the pages. It rebuilds the chart as data: which symbol sits in which square, and which thread each symbol means. That is why some PDFs work beautifully and others fail completely, even when they look identical on paper.

What the PDF needs, from Pattern Keeper's own help pages

There is no single checklist on the site. The requirements below are assembled from the import guide, the troubleshooting pages and the export guides Pattern Keeper wrote for charting software. Where a point comes from software-specific advice, it says so.

1. Symbols that are text, not an image

This is the one that decides everything. Pattern Keeper's import guide warns that if you have to add all the grids yourself, "it is probable that the resulting chart will not be searchable in Pattern Keeper since it lacks the proper encodings. For example image charts."

In other words, a PDF that is really a picture of a chart, whether a scan, a screenshot or an export that flattened everything into one image, gives the app nothing to read. The WinStitch/MacStitch export guide describes the practical test: open the PDF and try to select the symbols. If they select as text, the export is set up correctly.

2. Grids the app can find

During import, Pattern Keeper tries to detect the chart grids on each page. When it can't, it asks you to "add, delete or edit the grids" until they match the PDF. Its for-designers page names grid detection as one of the two most common compatibility problems.

The same WinStitch guide asks designers to turn off grid preview options, because Pattern Keeper "will assume that the preview is part of the chart".

3. A color key it can read

The other common problem the designer page names is "thread colors not being read properly". After import, the verify screen lists every symbol with its thread number. Symbols without a number are highlighted in red, and you can't continue until each has one, or until you choose the advanced option that assigns grey to all of them.

For designers, the WinStitch guide asks for standard header names in the key. For you as a stitcher, the practical point is simpler: a chart whose key clearly pairs each symbol with a DMC number is one you can fix by hand in a few minutes even if the automatic read misses.

4. Only the chart and the thread list

Pattern Keeper's grey X troubleshooting page lists what commonly breaks an import:

• Several charts in one PDF, such as multiple panels or optional components. Split them into separate files.
• Pages with mockups, gridlines or alphabets. Keep only the chart pages and the thread list.

The import guide says the same about multiple charts: delete the grids for all but one.

5. Page overlap it can account for

Many PDFs repeat a few rows and columns from the previous page, so you can find your place across a page break. Pattern Keeper's overlap guide explains that overlap is usually shown as grey or dotted rows, sometimes a light color, and that because the app lays pages side by side, the overlap "should not be displayed". During import it shows you part of the chart and asks whether there is overlap and how big it is.

So overlap isn't a problem for Pattern Keeper, as long as you answer that question correctly. If the verify mock-up looks distorted, the guide says the overlap settings probably didn't match. Page overlap on large charts explains why overlap matters so much on paper.

6. Sensible page settings (software-specific)

The WinStitch/MacStitch guide asks for Letter or A4 pages, no landscape orientation, and fewer than 100 stitches per page, "preferably around the default 60", for performance. The PCStitch guide is about symbol fonts and which PDF printer to use. These are written for designers using those programs, but they show the kind of file the app handles best.

7. Full crosses only

The FAQ is direct: "Pattern Keeper currently only supports full cross stitches". Backstitch and fractional stitches won't show in the app. You stitch those from the printed page.

The two-minute test for any PDF

Because there is no official specification, the only proof is the file itself. This works for a designer chart, an Etsy commission or a chart from any generator.

1. Open the PDF on a computer and drag your cursor across a row of symbols. Text that highlights is a good sign; a single box around the whole page means it's an image.
2. Search the PDF for a symbol or a DMC number from the key. If the reader's search finds it on the chart pages, the content is encoded as text.
3. Look for extra pages: a color photo mock-up, an alphabet, a cover. Note them; you may need a copy of the file without them.
4. Import it into Pattern Keeper during the free trial and answer the overlap question.
5. Read the verify screen. Any symbol in red has no thread number. Add the numbers from the key.
6. Compare the mock-up to the PDF. Distortion or doubled areas point to wrong overlap settings.
7. Tap two or three symbols in the chart view and check the highlighted squares against the printed page.

If steps 1 and 2 fail, the chart may still import as an image, but you won't get the searching and tallying that make the app worth using.

Where photo patterns fit

Photo patterns are an unusually good match for the one thing Pattern Keeper does brilliantly. A chart made from a photograph is almost all full cross stitches, often in dozens of close shades scattered across the grid. Finding every instance of one shade on paper is the tedious part, and highlighting it on a tablet solves exactly that. Confetti stitches are where people feel the difference most.

The limits matter too. Whiskers, eye outlines and lettering are usually backstitch, so those won't appear in the app. Plan to keep the printed chart, or at least those pages, beside you.

If you stitch on an iPad

As of September 2026, Pattern Keeper's help center says the iOS version has no set time frame. A "Pattern Keeper compatible" label means nothing on an iPad today.

Markup R-XP is the app iPad stitchers most often mention. Its developer's site says it runs on iOS and Android and loads PDFs, digital images, photos or scans of paper charts, with a two-week free trial and a price of £14.99 plus local taxes for a year. Pattern Keeper vs Markup R-XP compares the two, and stitching from a pattern on an iPad or tablet covers setting up a PDF on either.

Not everyone wants an app at all. Highlighter on a printed copy still works, and ways to mark off a cross stitch chart compares paper, pen and app methods.

What to ask before buying a "compatible" pattern

A compatibility badge on a listing is the seller's claim. Pattern Keeper does run a designer program and supplies badges to designers who go through it, as its for-designers page describes, but a custom chart made from your photo won't be in that program. Before paying for any custom pattern you plan to use in the app, ask:

• Is the PDF text-based, with selectable symbols, or an exported image?
• Is the chart one continuous grid, or split into panels?
• Are there extra pages you'd need to remove?
• Is the backstitch important to the likeness? It won't be in the app.
• Can you get a refund or a free re-export if it doesn't import?

If you're comparing generators on this and other features, cross stitch pattern generators compared goes tool by tool, and what a custom pattern costs covers price. New to charts? How to read a cross stitch pattern explains symbols, keys and grids first.

When you're ready, turn your photo into a chart and run the text test on the PDF before you load it onto your tablet.

Frequently asked questions

What makes a cross stitch PDF Pattern Keeper compatible?

A chart whose symbols are real text rather than a picture, with grids the app can detect and a color key it can read. Pattern Keeper's own designer page says strict guidelines are impossible because PDFs vary so much, so compatibility is something you test on the actual file rather than a fixed specification.

Can Pattern Keeper read an image or scanned PDF?

It can open one, but you lose the useful part. Pattern Keeper's import help warns that a chart whose grids you add from scratch, such as an image chart, will probably not be searchable. Paper charts can be photographed and imported, but the app says you can't search them or add thread numbers.

Is Pattern Keeper available on iPad or iPhone?

No. As of September 2026, Pattern Keeper's help center says an iOS version is planned with no set time frame, and the app is sold only through Google Play for Android. There is no desktop version either; the developer suggests an Android emulator such as BlueStacks or Nox on a computer.

Does Pattern Keeper show backstitch and fractional stitches?

Not yet. Pattern Keeper's FAQ says it currently supports only full cross stitches, with backstitch and fractional stitches on its wish list. You can still stitch those from the printed PDF, but they won't appear in the app's chart view or its stitch tally.

How can I check a PDF before buying Pattern Keeper?

Use the free trial, which the app describes as fully featured for one month. Before that, open the PDF on a computer and try to select a symbol with your cursor: if it highlights like text, that's a good sign. Then import it and check the verify screen for missing thread numbers.

Why did my chart import with a grey X?

The import failed. Pattern Keeper's help lists the usual causes: the designer isn't on the supported list, the PDF contains several charts or panels, or extra pages such as mockups, alphabets or loose gridlines confuse it. Split multi-chart files, keep only the chart and thread list, then clear the cache and retry.

Sources

• Pattern Keeper — Home page (features, Android, one-month trial, paper charts)
• Pattern Keeper — For designers ("impossible to set any strict guidelines")
• Pattern Keeper — FAQ (price, trial, full cross stitches only)
• Pattern Keeper — Importing a chart (grids, image charts, overlap prompt)
• Pattern Keeper — Verifying your imported chart (thread numbers, brands, blends)
• Pattern Keeper — How to spot overlap
• Pattern Keeper — Why did my pattern get a grey X?
• Pattern Keeper — Exporting charts from WinStitch/MacStitch (text symbols, page settings)
• Pattern Keeper — Exporting charts from PCStitch
• Pattern Keeper — Is Pattern Keeper available for iOS?
• Pattern Keeper — Is there a desktop version?
• Markup R-XP — Developer site (platforms, chart types, trial and price)