Determining the Correct Number of Pages for Your Project

It may seem simple, even a bit elementary, to discuss “counting” but it really can be a bit confusing when it comes to counting the pages for a booklet quote.  It is important that this concept is understood in placing a quote on the Short Run Printing, Ltd. quote engine in order to get an accurate project quote.

The confusion comes with two terms:  Sheets of Paper or Pages.  Each sheet of paper will create 4 pages in the finished book/booklet/magazine when creating a saddle stitched product.  The easiest way to understand this is to take a sheet of paper and fold it in half.  While still folded, count the number of sides — page 1 or cover is the top side; open the folded piece and you will find page 2 and page 3; turn the page and you will find page 4 or the back cover of our very simple “book”.  If making a perfect bound piece, each page will be cut separately so will produce page 1 on one side and page 2 on the back side of that sheet.

In getting your print quote, it is the number of pages in your book that is needed, not how many sheets of paper it took to achieve that number.  This number should include the cover as well, even if it is to be a different weight paper than the content pages.

Numbering pages in your book is at your discretion; however, if a printer were given a choice in the matter, the choice would always be to have numbers on the content pages.  This just offers another way to double check accuracy as far as the order of the book.

If designing a saddle stitched book or magazine, the number of pages (including cover) must be divisible by 4.  A perfect bound book or magazine can be any number of pages.  Of course, both the number of pages in the book and the weight of the paper stock chosen will determine the spine width on a perfect bound book.  Spine width will determine whether you have room for any printing on the spine.  Spine design is something we will be happy to create for you when the above two things are determined.