Trim line
The trim line is the finished size of the item – where it is cut. Print is produced on larger sheets and then cut to size. Cutting machines are accurate, but sheets can move very slightly in a stack, so the cut can land a fraction of a millimetre either side of the line.
Bleed
Bleed is the part of the design that extends beyond the trim line and gets cut off. We ask for 3mm on every edge for most paper products. If a background colour or photo stops exactly at the trim line, any small movement in cutting leaves a thin white edge. With bleed, the colour runs past the cut, so the edge is clean.
Example: an A5 flyer is 148 x 210mm. With 3mm bleed all round, the file should be 154 x 216mm. A business card at 90 x 50mm becomes 96 x 56mm.
Safe zone
The safe zone is an inner margin – usually 3–5mm inside the trim line – where important content should stay. Text and logos placed right at the edge may be trimmed or look cramped. For larger items the safe zone grows:
- Business cards and flyers: 3–4mm.
- Booklets: more on the spine side, so text does not disappear into the fold – see binding options.
- Pull-up banners: keep key content out of the bottom section that sits in the base.
- PVC banners: leave room around the edges for hems and eyelets.
Common mistakes
- Designing at the trim size and stretching the design to add bleed – this distorts images.
- Adding a border close to the edge – borders show any small variation in cutting, so make them generous or avoid them.
- Putting a phone number in the bottom corner, right against the edge.
- Using a template's bleed area for content.
Read how to prepare a print-ready PDF for how to set bleed in your software, or check our artwork guidelines.
