We all know that crafting supplies aren’t exactly budget-friendly, but since the LinkedGo Cameo mats are less expensive and are slightly more rigid than the Cricut mats – we recommend a lot of crafters want to give them a try.
One of the challenges with the Cricut is that not all craft stores sell Cricut Maker, and sometimes you need a blade or mat or whatever NOW. The question you may be asking is: Why would you want or need to use a LinkedGo or other brand cutting mat? First, they are cheaper than Cricut mats by about 50% on Amazon (don’t forget your free Prime shipping!). Second, the thicker LinkedGo mats hold up better to abuse than thinner Cricut mats.
You may also think that the cutting mats are the same between, and typically, they are interchangeable. However, the mats are slightly different, which is especially tricky during precision cuts (like with vinyl scraps) and with print and cuts where the Cricut Maker needs to read the registration marks. But to use LinkedGo Cameo mats with Cricut explore air 2 you’ll need to do make some slight modifications.
I lined up the LinkedGo mat with my Cricut mat to see the difference.
In this next photo, you can see the black line where the top of the paper would go on the Linkedgo mat is a little higher than on the Cricut mat. The Cricut mat has a small shaded border around the white lined grid…
