Printing guide
How to print a printable at the right size
A printable is a file made to be printed at home: a planner page, a pattern, a set of tags, a picture for a frame. It was drawn at an exact size, and it comes out at that size if three things are right: the file matches your paper, the print dialog says Actual size, and the paper suits the job. This page goes through the three, then through wall art, planners and patterns, each of which goes wrong in its own way.
1. Open the right file
A download often holds several files. A PDF carries its own page size, so it is the one to print from whenever there is one. A JPG or PNG is a picture with no page size of its own: the program you print it from decides how large it comes out, which is fine for wall art and wrong for anything that has to measure true. When the seller gives an A4 file and a US Letter file, take the one for the paper in your printer; the next section says what happens with the other.
2. A4 or US Letter
The two sheets are close but not the same: US Letter is 5.9 mm wider and A4 is 17.6 mm taller. A file made for one prints on the other in one of two ways, and the print dialog chooses for you unless you choose yourself.
| File and paper | At Actual size (100%) | At Fit |
|---|---|---|
| Letter file on A4 paper | True size. About 3 mm is lost at each side, usually blank margin. | Everything shows, at 97.3%. |
| A4 file on Letter paper | True size. Nearly 9 mm is lost at the top and at the bottom. | Everything shows, at 94.1%. |
So for a planner page or a picture, Fit is the safe choice on the wrong paper: it is a little smaller and nothing is missing. For a pattern, a ruler, a label sheet or a template that folds, 100% is the only choice, and a margin that is cut is the lesser loss. The A4 and US Letter comparison has the two sheets side by side.
3. The one setting: Actual size
Every print dialog has a scale setting, and most of them start on a choice that shrinks the page: Fit, Fit to page, Fit to printable area, Shrink oversized pages, Scale to fit. They exist so that nothing lands in the strip at the edge of the sheet where the printer cannot print, and they make the whole page 3 to 6 percent smaller to do it. Choose Actual size, or Custom scale: 100%, or in Chrome and Edge, More settings > Scale > Default or 100. Where each program keeps the setting is in how to print at actual size, and what each choice does, in Fit to page vs actual size.
Borderless printing is the opposite fault. To run ink off the edge of the paper, a printer enlarges the page a little. Use it for a photo or a picture for a frame; turn it off for anything that is measured, folded or cut to a line.
4. Check one page before you print the rest
Many printables carry a test square or a line with its length written beside it. Print that page alone and measure it with a ruler. If the file has none, print the print scale calibration test with the same settings: its square measures 100 mm when the printer is printing at true size, and the page tells you what a smaller reading means. A square that measures 97 mm means the page was fitted, not that the file is wrong.
Wall art: the ratio decides the sizes
A picture prints without cropping at any size that has its own shape. That is why a wall art download comes as a set of files, one for each ratio of width to height, and why the listing names the sizes each one prints. Portrait sizes, in inches; a landscape picture is the same list turned.
| Ratio | Prints without cropping at | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2:3 | 4 × 6, 8 × 12, 12 × 18, 16 × 24, 20 × 30, 24 × 36 in | The shape of most camera photos and of the 24 × 36 in poster. |
| 3:4 | 6 × 8, 9 × 12, 12 × 16, 18 × 24 in | The 18 × 24 in poster and most phone photos. |
| 4:5 | 4 × 5, 8 × 10, 16 × 20 in | The 8 × 10 in frame. |
| 11:14 | 11 × 14 in | One size only; no other common frame has this shape. |
| 5:7 | 5 × 7 in | The 5 × 7 in frame and card. |
| ISO (1:√2) | A5, A4, A3, A2, A1 | The A sizes; 50 × 70 cm is close but not the same shape. |
A home printer stops at A4 or Letter, so at home the choice is 8 × 10 in, A4 or 5 × 7 in for most frames. Print on matte photo paper with the printer set to that paper and its best quality, and trim to the frame. For a larger picture, a print shop prints the file at its full size; or the poster splitter prints it across several sheets to join, and the image print quality checker says how large a JPG prints before it turns soft.
Planner pages and inserts
A full-page planner prints like any document. Inserts for a smaller planner are the trap: an A5 page is half of A4, and a Half Letter page (5.5 × 8.5 in) is half of US Letter, so two fit on one sheet with nothing to spare. If the file has one small page per PDF page, choose Multiple or Pages per sheet: 2 in the print dialog and set the scale to 100% so that the two pages are not shrunk to leave a border; then cut the sheet in half. A5 inserts on Letter paper, or Half Letter on A4, leave a strip to trim.
Printing both sides: for pages bound at the side, choose two-sided printing with flip on long edge; for two small pages side by side on a landscape sheet, flip on short edge. Double-sided printing shows both, and how to do it by hand on a printer that prints one side.
Patterns, templates and anything measured
A sewing pattern, a papercraft template, a stencil or a label sheet is wrong if it is 3% small: seams do not meet and labels drift off their sheet. Print these from a computer at 100%, measure the test square, and only then print the rest. A pattern drawn on one large page (A0 or a copy shop size) can be printed at home across A4 or Letter sheets with the poster splitter: open the PDF, choose “Same size as the PDF page, 100%”, and it cuts the page into sheets at true scale with marks for joining them.
If a strip is missing at one edge, the page reaches into the part of the sheet the printer cannot print; why prints get cut off tells the causes apart by which part went missing.
If you make or sell printables
You are welcome to point your buyers at this page from a listing, a shop FAQ or the instructions file in a download. There is nothing to ask and nothing to sign up for: the page is free, it has no account, and the tools it links to run in the buyer’s browser without uploading their files. Two things in a download save most of the questions: a square or a line with its length printed beside it, and one file for A4 and one for US Letter.
Frequently asked questions
Why did my printable come out smaller than it should?
Almost always because the print dialog was set to "Fit", "Fit to page", "Shrink oversized pages" or "Scale to fit", which reduce the page so that nothing reaches the strip at the edge the printer cannot print. The page comes out a few percent small. Choose "Actual size" or set the scale to 100%. A printout at about 97.3% is a US Letter file fitted to A4 paper, and one at about 94.1% is an A4 file fitted to Letter paper.
Can I print a US Letter printable on A4 paper, or an A4 one on Letter?
Yes, and if the seller gives both files, open the one that matches your paper. Otherwise: a Letter page is 5.9 mm wider and 17.6 mm shorter than A4. Printed at 100% on A4 it loses about 3 mm at each side, which is usually blank margin; fitted to the page it comes out at 97.3%. An A4 page on Letter loses nearly 9 mm at the top and at the bottom at 100%, so fit it (94.1%) unless the size matters. For anything that has to measure true, such as a pattern, a ruler or labels, print at 100% and accept the cropped margin.
What size will my wall art print without cropping?
At every size that has the same ratio of width to height as the file. A 2:3 file prints as 4 × 6, 8 × 12, 12 × 18, 16 × 24, 20 × 30 and 24 × 36 in; a 3:4 file as 6 × 8, 9 × 12, 12 × 16 and 18 × 24 in; a 4:5 file as 8 × 10 and 16 × 20 in; an ISO file as A5, A4, A3, A2 and A1. At any other size part of the picture is cropped or a white band is left, which is why sellers include several files.
What paper should I print a printable on?
Planner pages and worksheets: ordinary 80–100 g/m² (20–28 lb) paper, a little heavier if you write with a fountain pen. Cards, tags and flash cards: card of 160–220 g/m² (60–80 lb cover). Wall art: matte photo paper or heavy matte paper, with the printer set to that paper type and to its best quality. Check the heaviest paper your printer feeds, and use the rear tray if it has one, since it bends the sheet least.
Can I print a printable from my phone?
You can, but a phone’s print screen rarely lets you choose the scale: neither the iPhone nor Android has an "Actual size" setting of its own, and the printer decides whether to shrink the page. That is fine for wall art and planner pages. For a pattern or anything else that must measure true, print from a computer, or check the test square before cutting.
Should I take a printable to a print shop?
For sizes above A4 or Letter, for heavy card and for borderless wall art, yes. Send the PDF, or the JPG at the size you want, and ask for it to be printed at 100% with no scaling, on the paper you chose. Many sellers allow this for personal use; the listing or the file’s terms say so.