BLEED MARGIN: where is it located?
By downloading our template, you’ll notice some coloured guidelines that help you place your design correctly. Among these guidelines, one is green, called the bleed margin.
If you use Designer, our online graphic design tool, the bleed margin is not marked by a line, but is the white area beyond the cut line (magenta).
BLEED MARGIN: what is it for?
During the cutting process of the printed product, slight deviations of about 1-2 mm may occur. This is a normal and unavoidable cutting tolerance. It's the same as when you cut a sheet of paper with scissors, right?
To avoid unwanted white borders caused by slight cutting shifts, please extend the background colour or image beyond the cut line, covering the full bleed area specified for your product.
If you use the template:
If you create your design through Designer:
Print result with artwork extended to the bleed margin (on the left) and artwork that does not go beyond the cut line (on the right).
The dimensions of the bleed margin vary depending on the product you have purchased. If you use our templates or create your project with our Designer, the document size (including the bleed margin) and guidelines are already correctly set up, making it much easier to create a print-ready file.
| Bleed margin | Products |
| 1 mm | Flyers, Folded flyers, Invitation cards, Self-adhesive vinyl, Rigid media, Posters, Standard advertising banners |
| 2 mm | Tags, Stickers, Paper business cards |
| 3 mm | Books, Unbound sheets, PVC cards, Blockout and Backlit fabric banners |
| 5 mm | Cardboard packaging and Envelopes, Double sided advertising banners and Rigid media |
| 10 mm | Flexible packaging and Shipping supplies |
Always extend the background colour or of your artwork of your product all the way to the bleed margin to avoid white edges after cutting and ensure the best possible result.
If you still have any doubts, please contact us. We'll be happy to help!