A print-ready file is a file that’s fully prepared for printing with no additional edits needed on our end including high resolution images, color modes, and margins for a clean, accurate print.
Submitting a print-ready file helps us turn your order around faster and ensures your final product looks exactly the way you intend.
Our File Guidelines
- File Format: PDF
- Resolution: 300 DPI or higher when possible
- Bleed: .125″ (1/8 inch) on all sides
- Margin: .125″ (1/8 inch) on all sides, .1875″ (3/16 inch) preferred
- Crop Marks: Included
- Color Mode: RGB or CMYK are both accepted for digital printing
RGB is preferred for large format posters, art, and photo prints
Bleed: What It Is and Why It Matters
Bleed is extra artwork that extends past the edge of your final trim size. We require .125″ (1/8 inch) of bleed on all sides — meaning your background, images, or colors should extend 1/8″ beyond where the page will actually be cut.
Why it matters: cutting a stack of printed sheets can shift slightly, even by a fraction of an inch. Without bleed, that tiny shift can leave a thin white edge along your trimmed piece. Bleed gives the cut room to move without exposing any unprinted paper.
Without bleed, the design stops short of the trim edge risking a white sliver after cutting.
Crop Marks: What They Are and Why They Matter
Crop marks (also called trim marks) are small lines placed at the corners of your file that show exactly where the final piece should be cut. They sit outside the bleed area and aren’t part of your design.
Why they matter: crop marks tell our printers precisely where your finished size begins and ends, so your piece is trimmed accurately and consistently, especially important for jobs with tight margins or multiple pieces printed on one sheet.
Artwork extends past the crop marks, giving the trim room to shift without leaving a white edge.
Not Sure If Your File Is Print-Ready?
No problem, send it over and we’ll take a look. If anything needs adjusting, we’ll let you know before your order goes to print.