Book Printing
print24 - Book Printers
Print your books
Books have been integral to global culture for centuries. Despite the prevalence of smartphones and tablets, people worldwide still enjoy reading crime novels, non-fiction, and illustrated books. If you're looking to print your own book, print24.com is the ideal choice. As one of Europe's largest printing companies, we offer professional and high-quality printing services for both softcover and hardcover books, whether in large or small print runs. If your template is ready, you can configure your book printing online here.
With print24.com, you have great flexibility in creating your book. Our modern printing technology can handle anything from graphic novels to corporate compliance guides. Whether you're printing a school yearbook, a self-published novel, music books for musicians, or poetry booklets, we can expertly bring your works to life on paper. We also offer a wide range of finishing and design options, including various bookbinding styles, to personalize your paperbacks.
Our paper types for your books
We offer affordable book printing on standard offset paper in thicknesses of 80, 90, or 100 g/m², perfect for simple notebooks. Offset paper is printer-friendly and ideal for writing with ink. For poems or novels, we recommend wood-free book printing papers, which are especially durable and come in 80 and 90 g/m².
Coated art papers are great for recipe books, illustrated books, or documents with multiple color illustrations. You can choose from thicknesses of 115, 135, 150, or 170 g/m², and the paper is available in matte or glossy finishes upon request.
Binding types and extras
You can order books with either sewn or perfect binding. Perfect binding is the more economical choice and is suitable for books with up to 996 pages. In this method, the pages are bound together and a special glue is applied to the spine.
Sewn binding is a highly durable option where printed sheets are stitched with bookbinding yarn before a layer of glue is added to the spine. This technique is mainly used for hardcover books and can accommodate volumes of up to 500 pages. The minimum page count is 40 pages for perfect binding and 48 pages for sewn binding.
To protect your hardcover books from dust and wear, we can add a headband to the spine, which closes the gap between the spine and book block. Headbands are available in white, blue, yellow, green, red, or black. We can also include a bookmark ribbon, a practical feature for novels or lengthy works, requiring a minimum spine width of 10 mm. Additionally, you can choose to add a dust jacket for extra protection and customization. For color covers, options include black, blue, green, or red.
The soft cardboard cover provides the typical "paperback effect" and is particularly suitable for smaller formats. With an optional laminate on the cover, you can ensure durability despite the soft cover. The firmly glued book block is optionally produced with thread sewing or PUR gluing technology.
Your book is protected by a hard cover whose cardboard core is fully laminated with paper. The contents and the cover are connected by a flyleaf. The book block is optionally produced with PUR gluing technology or thread sewing.
Your book is protected by a hard cover with a cardboard core fully laminated with black linen material. The contents and the cover are connected by a flyleaf.
Your book is protected by a hard cover with a cardboard core fully laminated with blue linen material. The contents and the cover are connected by a flyleaf.
Your book is protected by a hard cover with a cardboard core fully laminated with green linen material. The contents and the cover are connected by a flyleaf.
Your book is protected by a hard cover with a cardboard core fully laminated with red linen material. The contents and the cover are connected by a flyleaf.
Black or CMYK - what should it be?
For book printing, we use classic black printing or the CMYK technique. The CMYK method allows us to produce colored images and fonts.
Choose CMYK if you want to print a recipe book, travel guide, comic, or photo book.
Refining options for your books
Upon request, you can upgrade the cover of your paperbacks or softcover books. A popular option is lamination, where we apply a protective film to the exterior of your book, adding durability. For extra protection, our "scratch-resistant" option shields your book against cover scratches.
To further elevate the appearance of your title page, additional enhancements are available. You can choose to have the title or author’s name embossed with hot foil, available in silver, bronze, gold, copper, blue, or red.
Hot foil embossing can be combined with lamination, and this also applies to UV spot varnish. This technique allows for selective highlighting of specific cover or title motifs in an eye-catching way.
If you select a dust jacket for your hardcover book, we can also refine it. We offer classic lamination with a glossy or matte finish, as well as scratch-resistant foil, which can be paired with hot foil embossing for an even more striking result.
At Print24.com, you can have your books individually shrink-wrapped, offering several advantages for you and your customers. Shrink-wrapping protects your books from dust and dirt during transport and storage. For high-quality hardcover books with a refined dust jacket or books with inserts, this extra layer of protection is invaluable. Your customers will receive a pristine copy, clearly identifying it as brand new, which also helps reduce return rates due to defects. This investment in protection quickly pays off, making it a smart choice for safeguarding your products.
With lamination, a wafer-thin film is applied to your printed product. This gives the product a higher quality and at the same time makes it more robust.
With this finishing combination, the lamination creates a glossy or matt finishing layer on the entire surface, with individual areas being visually highlighted once again by the partial varnish.
With this finishing combination, the laminating creates a glossy or matt finishing layer over the entire surface, with individual areas being visually emphasised once again by metallic effects.
Print books in top quality and low prices with print24! If you need matching personalised bookmarks, you can similarly configure and order these online through us. Our online print shop also sells brochures to advertise your book or for other purposes, plus practical and personalised notebooks!
Book Printing FAQ
Is a front-end-paper, also called an FEP, included in the print or must it be created as a blank page?
Endpapers do not need to be created separately; they are already included in the calculation. There is one endpaper at the front and one at the back.
Can cover pages be printed on the inside?
For production reasons, the inside of the cover pages cannot be printed. However, we do offer printing and refining options for a dust jacket. This loose cover is wrapped around the book and over the front edges of the cover.
Which grammages are used for the soft and hardcover of a book and how can the haptics of the hardcover be described in general?
The softcover is made from 275 gsm board. The hardcover consists of 2 mm thick binder's board covered with 150 gsm picture printing paper. This paper is enhanced with a cellophane finish, which can be matte, matte scratch-resistant, or glossy. Additionally, 120 gsm offset facing paper is applied to the front and back.
What exactly is a colour cover?
A color cover is a type of hardcover with a linen texture. It is made with a 2 mm thick binder's board covered in a traditional linen fabric. You can choose from various colors for the linen cover, which can also be enhanced with hot foil stamping.
What does the headband in a book mean?
The polyester headband fills the gap between the spine and book block when the book is closed, enhancing its appearance. It is glued to the upper and lower edges of the spine, protecting the book from dust and wear. If a book has a headband, a ribbon (also known as a bound bookmark) can be added if the spine is at least 10 mm thick.
What is the minimum number of pages for being able to select headband and bound bookmark?
For adhesive-bound books with a hardcover, headbands and bound bookmarks can be ordered based on the following paperweight and page numbers:
- 80 gsm offset - 152 pages
- 90 gsm offset - 140 pages
- 80 gsm book paper, wood-free - 160 pages
- 90 gsm book paper, wood-free - 120 pages
- 115 gsm image printing - 168 pages
Which paper should be used for book printing?
Book paper, or publishing paper, is ideal for letterpress printing. It is the classic paper commonly used in books, appearing "bulkier" than picture printing paper, and its matte surface prevents reflections. Printing paper is available only for adhesive binding.
When should a hardcover or softcover be used for a book?
Hardcovers give your book an exclusive appearance and provide durable protection, making them ideal for larger works. Softcover books are often the classic "paperbacks." With their flexible paper covers, they are much lighter than hardcovers, making them perfect for travel.
Can I have books printed in small print-runs?
Yes, we can print your book in small editions, starting from just one copy.
What is the difference between perfect binding and sewn binding and what are the advantages of the two types of binding?
The perfect binding process involves combining sheets into a book block and bonding them with special PUR adhesive applied to the milled spine. Saddle stitching, on the other hand, uses bookbinding thread to sew the printed sheets into individual brochures after folding, which are then secured at the spine with a PUR adhesive layer. For books that are used extensively and need to remain in excellent condition over time, high-quality sewn binding is recommended. This method also ensures that double pages open cleanly and gives the book an exclusive appearance. However, books with perfect binding are also of very high quality. Additionally, headbands and bound bookmarks can be added to perfect binding for books with a sufficient number of pages.