The print decisions behind a catalogue, and what they cost
Binding, paper weight, finish and run length all affect what a catalogue costs to produce and to post. This page sets out how each decision works, with indicative, dated figures and no supplier named.
Read the mailing guide next: binding, paper and weight decided here set the Royal Mail pricing band. See the fuller process in Producing a catalogue: from product data to the finished book.Saddle-stitched or perfect-bound: which binding fits
The right binding for a catalogue comes down mostly to page count and how long the reader is expected to keep it.
| Binding type | Best for | How it holds together | Cost and durability trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saddle-stitched | Shorter catalogues, higher run lengths | Pages sit around a single fold and are stapled through the spine, so the page count is limited before the binding starts to struggle | Cost per copy tends to fall as run length increases; less suited to a catalogue that will be kept and referred back to repeatedly |
| Perfect-bound | Longer catalogues, thicker spines | Pages are glued into a flat spine like a paperback book, which holds together over a much higher page count | Costs more per copy at low run lengths but reads as a more substantial product and survives repeated handling better |
General guidance on binding behaviour. Confirm page-count thresholds and pricing directly with a print supplier before committing to a run.
Paper, run lengths and lead times
A catalogue's production cost is largely set before the print run starts, in decisions about paper, finish, run length and how the job is checked before it goes to press. Each of these decisions moves the price in a different way, so it helps to know which lever does what. The ranges and patterns described below are indicative, reflecting general print-industry conventions as of 2025, and are not a quote or specification from any particular printer.
Paper weight and finish
Paper weight is measured in grams per square metre (gsm). A heavier sheet feels more substantial and shows less print through from the page behind it, but it also weighs more in the post, which affects the Royal Mail pricing band a mailed catalogue falls into. Text pages in a typical mail-order catalogue often sit in the 60 to 90gsm range, with the cover run heavier, commonly 200 to 300gsm, to survive handling. Finish is a separate choice: gloss or silk coatings reproduce photography with more contrast and are common on product-heavy pages, while uncoated stock costs less and reads as plainer.
Run length and unit cost
The cost per copy falls as the run length rises, because the cost of setting the job up for print, plates for litho, calibration for digital, is fixed regardless of how many copies come off it afterwards. That fixed cost is then spread across more copies, so a run of a few thousand carries a noticeably higher unit cost than a much longer run of the same specification. Digital printing generally suits shorter runs because it needs no plates, while litho becomes the cheaper method once the run length passes a threshold that depends on page count, format and press availability. Anyone comparing quotes should ask what run length the unit price assumes, since a headline figure quoted at one run length says little about the cost at another.
Proofs and lead times
A proof is a sample of the job produced before the full run, checked against the artwork for colour, position and page order. Approving it is the point at which errors become the buyer's responsibility, so it is worth checking properly. A digital proof is faster and cheaper to produce but does not always match the colour of the finished press run as closely as a wet proof pulled on the actual stock. Lead time covers everything after artwork is signed off: proofing, plate-making where litho is used, the print run itself, binding, and dispatch to a mailing house, and a realistic schedule allows time at each of these stages.
Format and paper weight also determine which Royal Mail pricing band a mailed catalogue falls into, so a decision made for print cost reasons can raise or lower the postage cost as well. See Mailing a Catalogue Legally for how weight and dimensions map onto pricing bands, and Producing a Catalogue for how these print decisions sit alongside product data and page layout in the wider production process.
Certified paper: what FSC and PEFC marks mean
Certified paper carries a label from an independent scheme confirming that the wood used to make it came from a forest managed to that scheme's standard, and that every business the paper passed through on the way to the printer held the certificate needed to keep that claim intact. The two schemes a catalogue printer will usually mention are the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). They are separate organisations with separate standards and separate certificates, so a printer holding one is not automatically certified to the other.
What the certificate actually tracks
The certification does not sit with the paper alone. It is a chain of custody: the forest, the pulp mill, the paper mill and the printer each hold their own certificate, and the chain has to stay unbroken for the mark to appear legitimately on the finished catalogue. If a printer's certificate has lapsed, or covers a different scheme to the one specified, the mark cannot go on the job, whatever the paper itself was made from.
Why it is worth specifying
A catalogue mailed in volume uses more paper than most printed items a business will commission, and it lands through a customer's letterbox as physical evidence of that. Specifying certified stock, and asking to see the printer's current certificate, is a straightforward way to have that evidence stand up if a customer or a buyer ever asks where the paper came from.
Putting it in the brief
The scheme, FSC or PEFC, and the certificate reference should sit in the print specification alongside the paper weight and finish. A printer working to either scheme can usually confirm which papers in their range currently carry a valid chain-of-custody certificate for that run.
Paper choice, weight and format also determine which Royal Mail pricing band a mailed catalogue falls into, which the mailing guide covers directly, and sits alongside the other print decisions set out in Producing a Catalogue: From Product Data to the Finished Book.
Format and weight decisions here carry through to the mailing costs covered next
Royal Mail pricing bands are set by size and weight, so a binding or paper choice made at the print stage fixes part of the postage cost before a single copy is mailed.