The design looks great on screen: vivid, juicy colours you cannot stop looking at. Then the print arrives and the colours seem toned down. No, the printer did not ruin anything - it is usually a matter of colour mode. Screen and print are two different worlds, and the shorthands that describe them are RGB and CMYK. It sounds like jargon, but in a moment you will see it is simple. We explain the difference and suggest what to choose.
- RGB is screen colour - it is made of light (red, green, blue).
- CMYK is print colour - it is made of ink (cyan, magenta, yellow, black).
- For print, choose CMYK. A printer will convert an RGB file anyway, but you would rather know in advance how the colours will turn out.
- The standard profile for print on paper is Coated Fogra 39.
RGB - what you see on screen
RGB stands for three colours: red, green and blue. The screen of your phone, laptop or TV creates all colours by mixing these three glowing points. These are colours made of light.
Light has the advantage of being very intense. That is why on screen a green can be neon and a blue almost glows. The screen emits light straight into your eyes - hence that juiciness.
CMYK - what the machine prints with
CMYK is four inks: cyan (a blue), magenta (a pink), yellow and black (the letter K stands for black here). The printer lays them on the paper in layers, and that is how every colour on a print is made. These are colours made of ink, not of light.
And here is the heart of the difference. Ink does not glow - it reflects the light that falls on it. That is why print will never be as vivid as a screen. It is not a flaw, just the nature of things: paper is not a monitor.
A screen glows with its own light, paper only reflects light from around it. That is why the same colours in print are always a little calmer - and that is normal.
Why a print looks less vivid than the screen
Since the screen glows and ink only reflects, some of the loudest screen colours simply cannot be reproduced with ink. This most often affects intense greens, strong blues and neon, "electric" shades.
It does not mean print looks worse - it looks different. A well prepared CMYK file is predictable: you see on screen roughly what you will get on paper. It is worse when you design in strong RGB and only the print shows the colours have "settled". That is a disappointment that is easy to avoid.
It is also worth knowing that different papers render colours slightly differently. Coated, smooth paper holds colours more vividly and sharply. Uncoated, absorbent paper tones them down a little, because the ink soaks into it. This is normal and there is no "better" paper here - only paper matched to the effect you want. That is why the same file on two stocks can look a little different, even though the colours in the file are identical.
If a specific colour matters in your design (for example a logo colour), set the file in CMYK and check how the colour looks in that mode before printing. Better to see it on screen than be surprised on paper.
Colour profile - one name worth knowing
CMYK alone is not everything - the colour profile also matters. It is a setting that tells the machine how exactly to render colours on a given paper. You do not need to understand how it works - it is enough to use the right one.
For most prints on paper the standard is Coated Fogra 39. A file prepared this way is simply predictable. One exception is worth remembering: for printing on CDs a different profile is used - Coated Fogra 27.
- Print on paper (flyers, business cards, posters) - Coated Fogra 39 profile.
- Print on CDs - Coated Fogra 27 profile. If you order CDs with print, prepare the file in that one.
How to set up the file - simply
You do not need to be a graphic designer to get this right. Just follow a few steps.
- Design or export in CMYK. In graphics programs this is usually the "colour mode" setting. Choose CMYK instead of RGB.
- Assign the Coated Fogra 39 profile for print on paper (and Coated Fogra 27 for CDs).
- Save to PDF. It is the safest format for print - colours and layout stay in place.
- Do not panic if your file is in RGB. It can be converted to CMYK. Just know the colours may then shift a little - better to check them before printing than after.
Not sure which mode your file is in? No problem. Prepare the design as best you can, and you will find the step by step print preparation details in the file preparation section. If in doubt, write to us - we will help.
Where to check it in practice
It is best to see the difference on your own design. If you are planning classic flyers or advertising posters, prepare the file in CMYK with the Coated Fogra 39 profile - the printed colours will then be predictable and close to what you see on screen.
If colour really matters to you, for example a brand colour, order a proof print before the full run. It is the surest way to see the final effect on paper, not just on screen. That way you avoid a surprise and can be sure you are ordering exactly what you expect.
This was a short guide, deliberately without needless complications. If you want to understand the topic more deeply - why the screen "lies", how profiles work and where the differences between monitors come from - read the fuller post on CMYK, RGB and colour profiles. And if you want to be sure the whole file is print ready, we have a guide on how to prepare a file for print step by step. You will find more materials on the blog.
Remember one thing: RGB for the screen, CMYK for print. That single decision at the start saves a lot of disappointment at the end.
