Interior Page Specifications For Hard Cover Books - inches
5.5x8.5 Portrait
Sheet Size [w x h] 5.5 x 8.5
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
6x9 Portrait
Sheet Size [w x h] 6 x 9
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
8.5x11 Portrait
Sheet Size [w x h] 8.5 x 11
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
8.5x5.5 Landscape
Sheet Size [w x h] 8.5 x 5.5
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
9x6 Landscape
Sheet Size [w x h] 9 x 6
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
11x8.5 Landscape
Sheet Size [w x h] 11 x 8.5
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
5.5x5.5 Square
Sheet Size [w x h] 5.5 x 5.5
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
8x8 Square
Sheet Size [w x h] 8 x 8
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
12x12 Square
Sheet Size [w x h] 12 x 12
Margin Inset:
Binding Edge .625
Top, Bottom and Outside Edge .50
Bleeds add .125
Building Covers For Hard Cover Books
Cover Specifications
Front and Back Panel 8.75 x 5.5
[Spine Calculator] x 8.75
Bleed (all edges) 0.313
How to calculate book spine thickness and create a book cover.
If you’re having a hardback book printed, there are one or two things to bear in mind when producing cover artwork.
Artwork for your hardback book cover needs to be larger than for a softback book because the cover image needs to be able to wrap around the edges of the greyboard card used to create the hard spine and covers.
With that in mind we require 1mm to be subtracted from the width and 5mm to the height of the front and back cover. This will allow for artwork to be wrapped around the actual edge of the book cover. A margin of 8mm on each side of the spine will be added to the width where the spine will be crimped. There also needs to be a 15mm bleed margin (see the below diagram) added to both the width and height of the cover. Once the book has been created this area will be on the inside covers of the book and will be covered by the internal end papers.
The following examples should hopefully be helpful, though if you have any questions don't hesitate to contact us.
Need to know your page size?
Example for an 8.5 x 11 book:
152 page hardback book printed on 100gsm paper
Hardback Book Front Cover
Width: 215.9mm –1mm = 214.9mm
Height: 279.4mm + 5mm = 284.4mm
(+15mm on outside, top and bottom edges for image bleed)
Hardback Book Back Cover
Width: 215.9mm –1mm = 214.9mm
Height: 279.4mm + 5mm = 284.4mm
(+15mm on outside, top and bottom edges for image bleed)
Hardback Book Spine Thickness
Width = 10.6mm (See Spine Thickness Calculator above) + 3mm = 13.6mm
Height: 297mm + 5mm = 284.4mm
(+15mm on top and bottom edges for image bleed)
Now add all the horizontal measurements for width:
15mm margin + 214.9mm front cover + 8mm crimp area + 13.6mm spine + 8mm crimp area + 214.9mm back cover + 15mm margin = 489.4mm width
Do the same to determine the page height:
15mm margin + 284.4mm cover + 15mm margin = 314.4mm Height
The final page size of your document would be 489.4mm wide x 314.4mm high
