Screen printing artwork requirements

Artwork Requirements

Clean artwork leads to cleaner prints. Here’s everything you need to know before submitting artwork for your next screen printing project with Boxcar Creative Co.

Approved Artwork

What Is
Print Ready Artwork?

Print ready artwork means your file is properly prepared for professional screen printing production. The cleaner and higher quality your artwork is, the better your final print will look on press.

We strongly recommend submitting vector artwork whenever possible. Raster artwork is accepted as long as the file is created at a minimum of 300 DPI at final print size.

Preferred Vector Files

.AI   •   .PDF   •   .EPS   •   .SVG

Accepted Raster Files

.PSD   •   .PNG   •   .JPG

Raster artwork must be a minimum of 300 DPI at the actual print size.

Artwork Basics

Better Files Make Better Prints

Screen printing is only as clean as the artwork behind it. Here’s a simple breakdown of what makes a file usable, what can cause problems, and how to make sure your design is ready for production.

01

Vector Artwork

Vector artwork is built with clean shapes, lines, and paths instead of pixels. It can be scaled larger or smaller without getting blurry.

  • Best choice for screen printing
  • Clean edges and sharp detail
  • Great for logos, type, and illustrations
  • Preferred file types: .ai, .eps, .pdf, .svg
02

Raster Artwork

Raster artwork is made from pixels. These files can work, but they need to be high resolution at the actual size you want printed.

  • Must be 300 DPI minimum
  • Best for photos, textures, and detailed artwork
  • Screenshots usually will not work
  • Accepted file types: .psd, .png, .jpg
03

Outlining Fonts

If your design includes text, all fonts should be outlined before sending your artwork. This keeps the design from changing when we open the file.

  • Convert live text into shapes
  • Prevents missing font issues
  • Keeps your layout exactly as designed
  • Double check spelling before submitting
04

Common File Issues

A lot of artwork problems come from files that were never built for print. Low quality images may look fine on a phone but fall apart on press.

  • Logos pulled from websites or social media
  • Low resolution screenshots
  • Small artwork stretched too large
  • Flattened files with no editable artwork
05

Not Sure If Your File Works?

Send it over and we can take a look. If your artwork needs cleaned up, rebuilt, converted to vector, or fully redesigned, our graphic design team can help get it ready for print.

Need Help Creating Artwork?

Don’t have a shirt design yet? No problem. We offer in-house graphic design and illustration services to help bring your ideas to life. Whether you need a completely custom t-shirt graphic, logo cleanup, vector conversion, or production-ready artwork, our team can help get your files print ready.

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