How to prepare your print file

Most failed print jobs come from the file, not the printer. Here are the five things we check every time — and that you can check before sending.

1. Send a PDF

A Word or PowerPoint file looks different on every computer: a missing font gets substituted and the whole layout shifts. PDF freezes everything — fonts embedded, positions locked. In any program: File → Export → PDF.

2. Check the resolution

An image that looks sharp on screen can be blurry on paper. Screens show 72 dots per inch; printing wants 300. A photo 500 pixels wide will not go beyond about 4 cm without turning mushy. Simple rule: if you have to zoom in hard to see detail on screen, it is too small.

3. Beware of images taken from the web

An image copied from a website is almost always 72 dpi. Fine for a screen, never for a flyer. Ask the author for the original file.

4. Leave margins

Do not push text to the edge of the page. Guillotines have a tolerance of one to two millimetres, so text at the very edge can be trimmed off. Keep at least 5 mm of inner margin. If a colour background must reach the edge, you need bleed — see our separate article.

5. Proofread before, not after

We print what we receive: we do not correct spelling or layout. Have someone else read it — nobody spots their own typos. Across a thousand copies, one mistake is expensive.

If in doubt

Send us the file: we look at it before starting production and call you if something is off. It costs nothing and saves a lot of trouble.

Send a file to print →