If Design Space changes a project from Mat to Without Mat after you increase Project Copies, check your desktop version: Cricut lists that exact bug as fixed in its 30 September 2026 version 10.5 release. Reopen Prepare and choose the load type that matches the material physically in your hands. Inspect every resulting mat before cutting; the release note also lists a separate fix for copies not being applied correctly after a load-type change.
This is a documented software fix, not a claim that every mat-selection problem disappeared. Cricut's desktop release notes now list version 10.6, dated 5 October 2026; the copy-count fix is recorded under the 30 September 10.5 release and in the newer notes' six-week recap. Check the version currently offered by Cricut rather than looking specifically for a 10.5 installer. The 10.5 mat-preview guide covers the wider preview change; this article focuses on the copy-count and load-type failure.
What did version 10.5 actually fix?
Cricut names two related fixes in the 30 September desktop notes: increasing Project Copies could change the material load type from Mat to Without Mat, and copies could fail to appear correctly on the Prepare screen after the load type changed. These are narrow software issues. The note does not establish that a project created in an older version repairs its saved layout automatically, that mobile was updated at the same time, or that every machine supports matless cutting.
Version 10.5 also expands mat visualization to more project flows and changes the Material and Mat Preparation guides. Those interface changes may make the route to Prepare look different from a tutorial recorded on 10.4. The load type on the final Prepare screen remains the decision to verify before feeding material.
Recover a project that changed to Without Mat
- Save the design before changing the cut setup. Record the intended machine, number of copies, material, and mat size. A screenshot of the wrong Prepare layout is useful if the issue persists.
- Confirm the desktop version. Compare About or the app's version display with Cricut's current desktop release notes. The fix first appears in 10.5; Cricut lists 10.6 as the current release on 7 October. If an update is available, follow Cricut's normal updater and reopen the project. Do not treat a beta label as proof that the production fix is installed.
- Go to Make and inspect Prepare. Select On Mat for material mounted on a machine mat. Select Without Mat only when the selected machine and the actual Smart Material support that path. For a card mat, use the matching card-mat option when offered.
- Set Project Copies, then inspect again. Confirm the copy count, number of mats, placement, material size and load type after the change. Check every color or operation mat, not just the first thumbnail.
- Run one small cut on the intended material. If the layout still resets, record the exact version, machine and steps and send those details to Cricut support rather than sacrificing a full sheet.
Cricut's load-type help says Without Mat offers Smart Material settings, and warns that putting a physical mat in after choosing Without Mat can produce an incorrect cut because the usable widths differ. A display that merely looks like a mat is no substitute for this setting.
If Mat is unavailable or the material will not fit
Do not use the copy count to diagnose the fit by itself. Prepare may divide copies across several mats; that does not mean the first mat can hold the whole run. Check the physical mat size selected for each preview, the material size, and the number of copies actually displayed on every mat. If one copy already exceeds the available cutting area, adding copies will only create more previews of the same impossible layout. Reduce the design at its intended finished dimensions, choose a genuinely larger supported mat if your machine and material allow it, or divide the project deliberately. Keep the machine selection fixed while comparing, because a different machine can change the available load choices. This inspection also helps distinguish Cricut's documented 10.5 copy bug from a project that was simply too large before the update.
First verify the selected machine. Cricut says original Maker and Explore Air 2 or older models require a mat; newer compatible models can use supported Smart Materials without one. If On Mat is disabled, check whether the design exceeds the cuttable area for the selected mat and whether the project flow or chosen machine offers that load type. The 10.5 bug fix does not make an oversized layout fit.
For ordinary sticker paper, cardstock or standard vinyl, match the physical sheet and machine mat in Prepare. Changing the load type to make an option clickable can create a worse problem at the cutter. If multiple copies spill onto additional mats, check each one and reduce copies or design size deliberately. For a vector with unexpectedly large dimensions, inspect its width before import; Makerfern's browser-local SVG checker can help identify structure, while the Cricut SVG preparation tool can set an output width. Neither tool controls Design Space's load type.
What to report if 10.5 still changes the choice
Keep a reproducible sequence: desktop version, operating system, machine model, chosen material and load type, Project Copies before and after, and screenshots of Prepare. Note whether the problem also occurs in a blank project with one simple shape. That separates a repeatable interface issue from the geometry of one imported SVG. Avoid changing cut pressure to solve a layout or feed-type mismatch: pressure affects depth, not mat allocation. For a cut that reaches too far through sticker backing, use the separate kiss-cut diagnosis.
Confirm the production version, select the load type for the material, change copies, and check Prepare once more before pressing Go. Makerfern does not control Cricut's software or machine compatibility; our local-processing explanation and current export options describe only our file-preparation tools.
Sources and dates
- Cricut: Design Space desktop release notes, version 10.5 dated 30 September and version 10.6 dated 5 October 2026; accessed 7 October 2026. Source for the two copy/load fixes, interface changes and current version.
- Cricut: How to Select Material Load Type, edited 27 July 2026; accessed 6 October 2026. Source for Mat, Without Mat and Smart Material distinctions.
- Cricut: loading mats and materials, accessed 6 October 2026. Source for older machine mat requirements.
Makerfern's image processing runs in your browser. SVG export is free; some export and batch features require Pro. External software and materials have their own requirements. If something in this post is wrong or out of date, please tell us — the date at the top is the last time it was checked.