Question 1

What are the benefits of perfect bound book printing?

Accepted Answer

Perfect bound book printing is the most popular choice for novels, memoirs, nonfiction, creative writing, and family histories. Perfect binding produces a professional softcover or paperback book at a fraction of the cost of hardcover binding — making it ideal for retail sale, since you can print a title on the spine (when wide enough) so books are easy to shelve and index.

Perfect bound books are best for pleasure reading, where pages don't need to lie completely flat. If your project requires flat-surface use — such as cookbooks, technical manuals, or training materials — or needs extra durability like laminated covers or vinyl backings, consider one of our other book binding options instead.

Question 2

How do I design books for perfect binding?

Accepted Answer

Perfect binding file prep requires special setup for the covers, since the front and back cover are all part of the same sheet. Click the File Setup tab for more info on preparing your print files for perfect binding.

Calculate your spine width and other cover design specifications on our Perfect Binding Cover Setup page

Question 3

How many pages can be printed in a perfect bound book?

Accepted Answer

Perfect bound books require enough pages for a glued spine to hold securely — we allow as few as 10 sheets, but recommend alternative binding options for very thin books. On the upper end, the maximum is 446 sheets of 20/50# Bond; heavier paper reduces that limit proportionally. Our cost calculator will alert you if your book exceeds the thickness limit for perfect binding.

Question 4

How do I avoid show-through to the backside of my pages?

Accepted Answer

For 100% opacity and virtually no show-through, we recommend the 32/80# Text Smooth/Gloss or higher. For books where most of the content is text, most people are happy with 28/70# Text Smooth. This is a mid-weight paper and has minimal show-through, which is much less noticeable with text-oriented pages where the text is more or less aligned back-to-back.

Question 5

Are custom book sizes available with perfect binding?

Accepted Answer

Yes, custom perfect bound book sizes are available. Simply choose the next size up, click Need a Custom Size? and enter your dimensions. The custom book price will be shown in the calculator.

Question 6

Will I receive a digital proof before you print my perfect bound booklets?

Accepted Answer

In most cases, we do not automatically send a digital proof, so make sure to request this in the notes if you want one. But there are some cases in which we must send a proof and receive approval before we can print:

Files which are not JPG, PNG or PDF
Any time you request file edits
If we happen to notice something that doesn't look right

Question 7

Can you mail my perfect bound books?

Accepted Answer

To add mailing to your perfect binding job, click Bulk Mailing and choose Mail in Padded Envelopes. Upload your mailing list (Excel or CSV) with your print files at checkout. We will print and bind each book, insert them individually in protective envelopes and mail them out typically in 3-5 business days. The exact USPS service used will depend on each book's weight. Please note that this service may not include tracking information.

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