Illustrator, JPEG, PSD and DSC 2.0, PNG, PDF and TIFF are the best file formats for t-shirt printing. There are actually many benefits to PNG files. However, it is important to note that when JPEG file is saved, it is compressed and artifacts built in the process.
So, when it comes to printing, know that PNG files are an excellent option for delivering good quality printouts using office or home printers. This is because these files contain high-resolution images and better color depth. Images from JPEG files become blurry in printouts.
Any of these work well at a high DPI but we love PNG format files for t-shirt printing. To save your image, select File > Save As. You can then choose the format you want to save your picture in. PNG is preferred by most printing companies, including us!
The recommended resolution for t-shirt printing is a minimum of 300ppi.
What is the right file format for t-shirt printing? You will need to submit your t-shirt design in vector format. This will likely be an AI, PDF, or EPS file. Any of these formats will work, but if you're unsure which one to send to your printer, choose a PDF since it's the most versatile.
If printing on adult size shirts, the standard size is 11” x 11” (or 11” wide by proportionate height). This will look good on almost any adult size. For printing on youth sizes, a good design size is about 9” x 9”.
There are two main types of files for apparel printing that you should know, Vector and Raster. A vector file is always the best option and most printers will ask for this file type as it will always produce the best results.
Add a border. This is one of my favorite things to recommend for photo prints because it's easy to do and looks great. There are simple designs where you want an image slapped on a shirt with no border, but most of the time a border will improve the look and quality of the print, even if it's just a thin line.
When preparing images for print, the highest quality images are desired. The ideal file format choice for print is TIFF, followed closely by PNG.
One of the main reasons most professionals don't recommend PNG for printing is based on the fact that it doesn't support CMYK color. This is because the commercial printing industry that produces T-shirts, Mugs, Posters, etc. works with equipment that supports, and it's calibrated for CMYK color.
A PNG logo is a logo saved in the Portable Network Graphics (PNG) format. To understand this better, we must first understand what a transparent logo is. A transparent logo is a logo that has a transparent background which effectively means no background at all.
A logo in PNG format supports a transparent background, so you can easily use it as a watermark without clashing against the contrasting colors of your media and products.
A good quality print will require a resolution of 900 x 1260 pixels. For a better-quality print, use 1200 x 1680 pixels. Finally, for the best quality, you should go with 1500 x 2100 pixels.
Generally, the CMYK color mode is best for printing t-shirts, because the colors found in the CMYK color space, are easy to accurately reproduce with plastisol inks. The exception is if you're going to print to direct to garment, also known as DTG.
The best resolution may vary depending on the medium. For example, the default for photographs and digital media is often 300 DPI. However, at Spoonflower, we have found that 150 DPI is the sweet spot for fabric, which is why we convert every file to 150 DPI during upload. Why only 150?
Both PNGs and TIFFs are excellent choices for displaying complex images. But PNGs tend to be smaller in size, so are potentially better suited for websites. TIFFs, on the other hand, are often the best choice for professional use, scanning, and print options.
Is PDF or PNG better for printing? For printing, PDF images are recommended. PDF files are also an excellent choice for flyers, posters, magazines, and storing images online. If you are planning to edit and save your file multiple times, PNG is the proper file type for this.
For screen printing 300 dpi is the standard resolution for a good quality print.
RGB offers a much wider range of colours than CMYK does, and RGB colours tend to be more vivid than CMYK. Many RGB colours cannot be duplicated using the CMYK process. You will need to work in CMYK when producing artwork for direct to garment t-shirt printing and t-shirt screen printing.
Yes, as long as you stick to the Permitted Uses when you're using our Content (see Section 5 of our Content License Agreement for full details). For example, you can legally sell your design on printed merchandise like t-shirts, posters, stickers, tote bags and the like.
The biggest advantage of PNG over JPEG is that the compression is lossless, meaning there is no loss in quality each time it is opened and saved again. PNG also handles detailed, high-contrast images well.