File Formats for Printing

Which Format Should You Send?

Getting the file format right saves time and ensures your print job looks exactly as you expect. For everyday printing — documents, brochures, flyers and business cards — a high-quality PDF is usually best. For photos and posters, send JPG or TIFF at the highest resolution you have.

Signage, stickers, decals and shopfront branding work best from vector files (AI or EPS) or print-ready PDFs. Logos with transparent backgrounds should be sent as PNG. Not sure? Send what you have — we will advise you.

Branding & Print-Ready Files

For signage, shopfront branding, decals, vehicle graphics and other branded items, the quality of your artwork file matters as much as the print itself.

Canva and AI-generated designs are not considered suitable for professional branding and printing of branded items. These files are often low resolution, use fonts that cannot be reproduced accurately, or contain elements that do not translate well to print at full size.

If Canva or AI-generated artwork is all you have, we can use it as a guide only. Our design team will recreate the artwork as proper print-ready files — quoted separately at additional cost.

For branded work, vector files are always the most suitable. Common formats include AI, EPS, CDR (CorelDRAW) and print-ready PDFs exported from professional design software.

What is a vector design?

In plain terms, a vector design is artwork built from clean lines and shapes — not a photograph made of tiny dots. Think of it like a technical drawing: it can be enlarged to the size of a shop sign or reduced to a business card without becoming blurry or pixelated.

Professional vector files — such as CorelDRAW designs — typically have text converted to outlines, colours set for print, and logos drawn as sharp, scalable shapes. That is why we ask for vector artwork whenever possible for signage, stickers, 3D letters and other branded items.