How to Prepare Print-Ready Artwork: A Beginner's Guide

A design can look perfect on screen and still print badly: a white line along one edge, a blurry logo, colours that look flat, text that has been cut off. Almost all of these problems come from the file, not the printer, and almost all of them are easy to avoid. This guide explains what "print-ready" means, in plain language, with a checklist you can use before every order.

1. Choose the right file format

• Best: PDF or AI (Adobe Illustrator). They keep text and logos sharp at any size and hold your layout together.
• Also accepted: high-resolution PNG and JPG, PSD (Photoshop) and Canva share links.
• Not accepted: Word and Excel files. Export them as a PDF first.

If you design in Canva, download your design as PDF Print and tick the options for print bleed. If your design is for a business with an existing brand, ask your designer for the original logo file (AI, EPS, SVG or PDF) rather than a screenshot.

2. Set the right size, with bleed

Set your document to the finished size you ordered, plus 3 mm of bleed on every side. Bleed is extra background that runs past the edge of your design. Paper moves very slightly when it is cut, so without bleed you can end up with a thin white line at the edge.

Product size	Finished size	File size with bleed
Standard business card	9 × 5.5 cm	9.6 × 6.1 cm
A6 flyer or postcard	10.5 × 14.8 cm	11.1 × 15.4 cm
A5 flyer	14.8 × 21 cm	15.4 × 21.6 cm
A4 flyer or menu	21 × 29.7 cm	21.6 × 30.3 cm
DL flyer or rack card	9.9 × 21 cm	10.5 × 21.6 cm

Keep text, logos and anything important in the safe area, well inside the trim line. A design that matches the proportions of the size you order will print exactly as intended; if your design doesn't match the size you've chosen, contact us before you order.

Do I need crop marks?

Crop marks are small lines outside the design that show where to cut. Bleed is what matters most. If your software exports crop marks along with the bleed, that's fine. If you're unsure, message us before ordering and we'll tell you what works for your product.

3. Check the resolution of your images

Resolution is measured at the final printed size, in dots per inch (dpi):

• Small-format print such as stickers, cards, flyers, menus and posters up to A3: 300 dpi.
• Large format such as banners, roll-ups and window graphics: at least 100 dpi at full size. Very large signs can be 72 dpi, because they are seen from further away.

A quick way to check: a photo that is 1,200 pixels wide prints sharply at about 10 cm wide at 300 dpi. Images saved from websites, WhatsApp or social media are usually too small. Increasing the dpi number in software doesn't add detail; you need the original, larger file.

4. Vector or raster?

Raster images (JPG, PNG, PSD) are made of pixels. They are perfect for photos, but blur or turn blocky when enlarged. Vector graphics (AI, EPS, SVG and most PDFs from design software) are made of paths, so they stay crisp at any size.

Use vector for logos, text and icons wherever you can. It matters most for small text, and for large signs and window graphics where every edge is enlarged.

5. Colour: CMYK vs RGB

Screens create colour with light (RGB). Printers create colour with ink (CMYK: cyan, magenta, yellow and black). Some very bright screen colours, such as neon greens, electric blues and hot pinks, can't be reproduced exactly with ink, so they print slightly duller.

• For the closest colour match, supply your file in CMYK.
• For small black text, use plain black (100% K) rather than a mix of all four inks. It prints crisper.
• Colours can vary slightly between screens, materials and print runs. That is normal in printing. If an exact colour matters, ask for a proof.

6. Fonts and text

• Embed your fonts when you export a PDF, or convert text to outlines, so the text prints exactly as you designed it.
• Keep small text at a size people can read comfortably, and avoid very thin lines that may disappear.
• Thai text: make sure the Thai font is embedded too. A missing font is a common reason for text that prints as boxes or in the wrong typeface.
• Check spelling, phone numbers, prices and dates twice. We print your file exactly as uploaded.

7. Stickers, cut shapes and special finishes

Good news: you don't need to create cut lines or white ink layers yourself. Choose the shape, material and finish you want on the product page, and our team prepares the production file.

• Custom-shaped stickers: design your sticker as you want it to look, with a little space around it. We create the cut line around your design.
• Clear vinyl stickers: if only certain parts of the design should be printed on white so they stay solid, tell us which ones when you order.
• Foil: tell us which parts of your design (for example your logo) should be foiled when you order, or message us, and we'll confirm exactly what we need from you.

The most common mistakes

1. No bleed, so a thin white edge appears after cutting.
2. Text too close to the edge, so it looks cramped or gets trimmed.
3. Logos taken from a website, which print blurry.
4. Wrong proportions: a square design ordered as a rectangle.
5. Missing fonts, especially Thai fonts.
6. Typos and old phone numbers, which no printer can catch for you unless you ask for a proof.

Final checklist before you upload

• The document is the finished size plus 3 mm bleed on every side.
• Backgrounds and images extend into the bleed.
• Text and logos sit well inside the trim line.
• Photos are 300 dpi at printed size (or at least 100 dpi for large format).
• Logos and text are vector where possible.
• The file is CMYK, with small black text in plain black.
• Fonts are embedded or outlined, including Thai fonts.
• Spelling, numbers, prices and dates are checked.
• The file is PDF or AI if you can, or a high-resolution PNG or JPG.

Proofs, and getting help

Files are printed exactly as uploaded. If you'd like to see your job before it's printed, add Proof before printing on the product page. You receive a digital preview, then approve it or ask for changes. Production time starts when you approve.

If your file isn't ready, choose Fix my artwork or Design it for me on the product page. Orders where we design or fix your artwork always include a proof, with one round of changes.