There’s nothing quite like the feeling of a book in your hands. It’s even more exciting if you made the booklet yourself.
But booklet printing is different from printing flyers or invitations. Suddenly, you have to account for multiple pages at once and how the entire booklet comes together. Plus, there are often minor differences between booklet options that confuse customers.
Here, we’re breaking down everything you need to know before printing booklets so that you can place your order with confidence.
Before You Get Started
Before you get started ordering your booklet and looking into options, there are a few things to keep in mind. Considering them early on will make it easier to narrow down your printing options and get exactly the booklet you want.
Start by considering what kind of booklet you’re looking for. Is it a menu? A magazine? A guide? Think about what kind of information you plan to cover in your booklet.
This will help you figure out how much information you need to cover, how to layout your pages, and how large the booklet should be. For example, if you have a lot of information (as in a menu) would you benefit more from large pages with a lot of information, or several small pages with more white space?
Also, think about the aesthetic you want your booklet to evoke? Should it be clean and classic? Fun and lively? Elegant and sophisticated? Think about what you want your booklet to say so that you can make the right choices for that statement.
Choosing Your Booklet Size
From there, you’re ready to think about basic concepts, like your booklet size.
There are four standard sizes for booklets:
- 5.5″ by 8.5″ portrait
- 8.5″ by 5.5″ landscape
- 8.5″ by 11″ portrait
- 8.5″ by 11″ landscape
The largest of these sizes is equal to the size of standard printer paper. All four are the standard magazine sizes in the U.S., perfect if you’re looking to turn your little zine into a real publication. Plus, these sizes work well for wire-O binding or saddle stitch binding.
Types of Booklet Paper
Once you know your sizing, you can start to think about the type of booklet paper that’s perfect for the job. The common paper finishes are:
- Gloss
- Matte
- Uncoated
You can order inside pages as paper, while covers can be ordered as paper or cardstock for a more sturdy exterior. Inside pages go as low as 70 lbs or as high as 100 lbs, which refers to the paper’s base weight. This guide can help you make sense of paper weight for your booklet order.
Gloss vs. Matte vs. Uncoated
First, let’s talk about finish.
Generally, cardstocks are coated or uncoated. Coated cardstocks are treated with a sealant that lends the paper certain characteristics, such as glossiness or stiffness. The idea is to protect the sheet from wear and tear and reducing the amount of ink a sheet can absorb, creating a crisper image.
Uncoated cardstocks have an untreated surface and are less reflective. Ink absorbs into the paper more effectively, which diffuses the image and makes it look softer. The ink absorption also makes uncoated paper the better choice for writing and embossing, since the finishes are softer and less likely to crack.
A paper with a glossy finish has gone through a glazing process which gives the page more sheen and reflectivity. Since this is a type of coated paper, glossy finishes are great for printing photos, since they produce clearer images.
Matte finish is still a type of coated paper, but it is slightly duller and much less reflective. It has a subtle sheen that showcases colors while producing an easy-to-read product, lending a soft, professional appearance to a page.
Color
You will also have to consider whether or not you want your booklet to be printed in color. We offer booklet printing with full-color or grayscale interior pages.
There are two factors to think about with color.
First, you have to consider your printing budget relative to the impact of your booklet. It’s more expensive to print in full color, but color also lends a certain vibrancy to the final product.
Second, you’ll have to consider how much color you have in your booklet and the depth of color. If you have a lot of images, this consideration will go hand-in-hand with your paper finish. Keep in mind that glossy, coated pages produce sharper images, but they can also be overwhelming to the eye if you have a lot happening on the page.
Types of Booklet Binding
Time to bring it all together!
There are two common booklet binding options:
- Wire-O binding
- Saddle stitch binding
Wire-O binding, also known as twin loop, double-O, double-loop, or duo-wire binding, uses a continuous hinge of double-wire loops to hold the pages of a book together. It’s a popular binding option for graphic designers who want a stylish bind in a variety of colors.
Saddle stitch booklet printing is a popular binding method in which folded sheets of paper are gathered one inside the other and bound together using staples. The staples pass through the folded crease on the outside and clinched between the centermost pages. It’s one of the most popular (and cost-effective) types of bookbinding.
That said, saddle stitching is better for smaller booklets, since it only allows for a page count between 5 and 80.
Finishing Touches
Last but not least, don’t forget about your finishing touches.
The cover paper has the most impact since it’s the first part of your booklet that the world will see. Covers come in two types:
- Self-cover
- Plus cover
A self-cover, or soft cover, is when the inner pages and the cover use the same type of paper. A plus cover uses cardstock which is thicker than the inside pages, which will make the booklet feel better to flip through. A plus cover is more durable than a self-cover, but a self-cover can be more cost-effective.
Tips for Cheap Booklet Printing
With all of that in mind, if you’re taking a look at your project budget with some trepidation, let’s talk about how to get the booklet you want through cheap booklet printing.
As a rule, it’s less expensive to stick with standard offerings than fully custom selections, as printers have these options readily available. Shorter booklets are always cheaper to print than long ones, and saddle stitch binding is cheaper than wire-O. Keep in mind, however, that saddle stitch only works with a smaller number of pages, so if your booklet needs to be longer, invest in wire-O.
Also, keep in mind that it’s more expensive to print a large number of color pages than a large number of grayscale pages.
Looking for Custom Booklet Printing?
If you’re in the market for booklet printing, we’re here to turn your booklet from an idea into a beautiful finished product.
All of our options are clearly laid out so that you’ll know exactly what you’re getting. If your booklet file is on hand, all you have to do is upload the file, give us the specifications, and submit your order.
And if you don’t see the option you want, no worries! Just get in touch with us to let us know the custom specifications for your booklet order and you’ll have your booklet in your hands in no time.