◆ Rome Prati · Issue by issue

Magazine printing magazines

Glossy or matt coated cover, full-colour inner pages, saddle-stitched up to 64 pages or spiral-bound up to 200. Association periodicals, company house organs, trade magazines, one-off issues for an event. Runs from 50 to 5,000 copies: digital printing means you print the number you actually need, with no plates to amortise.

Request a quote Call +39 06 4424 0707

Cover of the MOTION car magazine printed by GUUG Rome: full-colour magazine on coated paper with a glossy cover — MOTION magazine — coated cover

8-200

Pages per issue

from 50

Minimum copies

from € 1.80

Per copy · indicative

Two bindings, and the page count decides

It isn't a matter of taste: above a certain page count saddle stitch stops holding, and the magazine opens badly.

Saddle stitch

From 8 to 64 pages, in multiples of four: two staples on the centre fold. The classic magazine binding — it opens well and costs little. Above 64 pages the block fans out and needs heavy trimming.

Spiral

Up to 200 pages, in plastic or metal. It opens completely flat, which suits monographic issues meant to be consulted — less so if the magazine has to look newsstand-ready.

Who prints a magazine with us

Associations and clubs

The members' periodical, two or three issues a year, modest runs. You print the quantity you actually need instead of throwing away a hundred copies.

Companies

Internal house organs, magazines for the sales network, special issues for a trade fair or an anniversary. Often the same layout every time, with only the content changing.

Independent publishers

Trade magazines, fanzines, periodical catalogues. Digital printing makes a run of a few hundred copies viable, where offset simply wouldn't add up.

Papers, and why the cover is a separate choice

The standard inner stock is 90-170 gsm coated: 90 works for a text-heavy magazine, 130 and 170 for picture-led ones, since they hold solid backgrounds without show-through. The cover is printed separately on 250-350 gsm card, gloss or matt.

The cover is worth an extra thought: gloss lamination makes colours pop and protects against creasing, while matt looks more restrained but shows fingerprints. On a solid black background — like the show programme we printed for a fashion event — lamination isn't a flourish: without it, the black cracks right along the fold.

Price depends almost entirely on page count and run length. For a sense of scale: an A5 booklet of 16 full-colour pages, 250 gsm cover and 130 gsm inner, saddle-stitched, starts at around € 1.80-2.20 per copy on short runs and drops considerably as quantities rise. For an exact quote we need the PDF: send it to stampa@guug.it.

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Frequently asked questions

How many pages can the magazine have?

With saddle stitch, 8 to 64 pages, always in multiples of four, since each folded sheet makes four. With spiral, up to 200 pages. If your issue lands just above 64, it's usually better to drop or add four pages than to change binding.

Can I print only a few copies of each issue?

Yes, and it's the main reason small magazines come to us: from 50 copies. In digital there are no plates to prepare, so the start-up cost doesn't weigh as it does in offset. You can also print a first batch and reprint if the issue sells out.

How should I supply the file?

A single-page PDF, not spreads, with 3 mm bleed and crop marks. Images at 300 dpi and colours in CMYK: if the file is RGB we'll convert it, but colours may shift slightly and it's better to know in advance. Cover and inner pages as two separate files.

Do you do the layout as well?

Yes, through our in-house design studio: layout from scratch, or a template grid you then reuse issue after issue — the cheaper route if the magazine is periodical. It's quoted separately from printing.

How long does an issue take?

With the PDF ready and a normal run, three to four working days. If it's your first issue, come in and look at a proof copy before we run the whole print: on a magazine, one mistake is multiplied by the number of copies.

Send us the PDF of your issue.

Format, page count and copies: we'll reply the same day with a quote and lead times.

Send us your file Call +39 06 4424 0707