Softback Booklets
Professional soft-cover booklets with a clean square spine and durable glued binding. Available in sizes up to A4 with custom paper, cover and lamination options, they are ideal for brochures, catalogues, magazines, manuals, portfolios and event programmes. Order from a single booklet up to larger print quantities.
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Softback Booklets
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Softback Booklet Technical Specifications
Preparing Artwork for Softback Booklets
Artwork Submission
Please provide two separate files:
- Cover artwork: Supply the cover as a spread that includes the spine. Use our spine-width calculator to determine the correct spine measurement.
- Internal artwork: Supply all inner content as individual pages arranged in consecutive reading order.
For example, a 40-page brochure should be submitted as:
- A 36-page PDF containing the internal pages
- A two-page cover PDF, with page 1 showing the outside cover spread and page 2 showing the inside cover spread
File Preparation Requirements
- Page count: The total number of booklet pages must be divisible by two.
- Safe zone: Keep text, page numbers and images at least 10 mm away from every edge.
- Non-printable area: Leave the spine section of the inside cover blank to ensure the glue bonds correctly. This area must include the spine and extend 6 mm beyond each side of the fold.
- Bleed: Add 3 mm of bleed to all sides.
- Colour mode: Submit the artwork as a CMYK PDF.
- Fonts: All fonts must be outlined or embedded.
- Resolution: Prepare all artwork at 300 dpi.
Cover Lamination
We recommend laminating the cover for added protection. During production, a clamp holds the booklet while the spine is glued to the internal pages. This process can cause scuffs or printer marks around the spine and other areas of the cover containing heavy ink coverage.
If you prefer not to use lamination, reduce the amount of artwork or background colour extending across the outer and inner spine sections.
Artwork Support and Resources
For help preparing perfect-bound booklet artwork, explore the following guidance:
- Learn how to supply artwork for a perfect-bound booklet.
- Find out how to calculate the correct perfect-bound spine width.
- Read an explanation of the cover’s non-printable area.
- View advice for preparing crossover images and text in a perfect-bound book.
For further assistance with creating and submitting files, visit our Booklets and Brochures Help Pages. Additional booklet-printing guidance is also available in the booklet section of our Resource Hub.
Download our free Design Guide PDF for support when creating perfect-bound book artwork.
UK shipping is free, although exceptions apply.
High-Quality Printing with Environmental Responsibility
We are working to minimise our environmental impact through an emissions-reduction programme designed to lower both direct and indirect emissions. These efforts support our goal of reaching Net Zero by 2040.
We are also introducing more products with credible environmental benefits and encourage customers to consider selecting these options.
Tradeprint supports Two Sides, the print and paper advocacy group that challenges greenwashing myths and promotes paper as a genuinely sustainable product.
Reducing waste is another important priority, with a particular focus on eliminating problematic plastics from our printing and fulfilment operations.
Read our complete environmental policy for more information.
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