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Writer's pictureManisha Sharma

5 things you need to know about White Ink printing

Updated: Aug 9, 2023

Unlike CMYK inks, white toner is completely opaque and covering. It can be combined with different inks and finishes, such as clear varnish (Clear) or fluorescent inks (Neon Pink and Yellow), for example. White ink printing is possible on different types of media, for a multitude of original and interesting effects. The combination possibilities are very numerous and can create different styles. That is the reason why printing with white ink is interesting to different types of customers. Whether you are a small, medium or large company, a freelance, a graphic designer, or an artist, the use of white ink allows you to obtain elegant, original, personalized and highly visual products.

What is White Ink?

What is White Ink?


White Ink is the extra exceptional fifth colour in our printing process which will take your designs to a whole new level of creativity. Here we explain the five things you need to know about White Ink and how you can get the most out of it.


How is White Ink different to normal print processes?

The entire spectrum of printed colours is made up of cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK), but not white. This elusive beast used to be rarer than a genuine yeti sighting until now.

The kind of White Ink printing we offer is ‘spot white’. This means that the ink appears as a colour in a design, like printing a white flower onto a coloured paper stock, for example. Because white is a light coloured ink, we need to layer the ink up and get a stronger colour, which means the finished effect won’t be transparent against the coloured card.

By adding white as the fifth colour in the CMYK printing process, you can use vibrant, brightly coloured paper stocks and still get white colour in your artwork. Without White Ink, the elements you colour white in your design will simply show as the colour of the paper underneath.


What can I use White Ink for?

What can I use White Ink for?

White Ink is the perfect way to stand out in a sea of generic marketing materials. You will find White Ink available on…


Leaflets & Flyers

Make your mark with luxurious leaflets, perfect if you’re a graphic designer destined to be noticed; and great for retailers, hoteliers and event organisers who want to make their presence known. Basically, anyone who wants to catch the eye with bright, pigmented paper flyers with a clean and crisp finish.


Postcards

Whether you’re creating portfolio handouts or promotional direct mailers, striking white postcards will help set the standard impossibly high. If you fancy showing off some artistic flair or need something rather seasonal, white ink is the graphical greatness you need on your postcards.

Business Cards

Become a business card big shot with white ink. There’s no better way to make your card stand out, and with the choice of coloured paper stocks, suddenly your business card goes from a small calling card to striking design.


How do I upload my artwork ‘White Ink’ ready?

On each product page we have information in our white ink artwork video guides to help you set up your artwork perfectly. Just choose between Business Cards, Postcards or Leaflets & Flyers and head to the Support tab. If you need any further assistance, you can also speak with Customer Services.


What paper stocks are perfect with White Ink?

This sophisticated and striking finish doesn’t just offer you the exciting new challenge of designing for White Ink printing, it offers you a range of five uncoated, highly-pigmented coloured papers with it! Introducing…


Cosmo Pink Uncoated

For designs that need to bring the sass, this punchy pink number is definitely the right shade to pick.

Guardsman Red Uncoated

A regal red with a princely pigment that works for both up-market and everyday styles.

Black Uncoated

This timeless classic shade suits luxury brands and those that love a dash of darkness with their designs.

Urban Grey Uncoated

Edgy, sophisticated and classic, this paper works for both out of the ordinary and chic designs.

Navy Blue Uncoated

This pigment is ideal for those that need something dark and sumptuous to complement white ink but wants to avoid black yet still out-of-the-ordinary exude quality.


White ink printing is often used to personalize flyers, brochures, business cards, greeting cards, postcards, invitations, book covers, annual company reports, catalogs, posters, labels, tags, stickers… Different supports can be used to print with white toner:

  • Synthetics such as polyester (white, transparent or translucent)

  • Coated and uncoated papers

  • Textured papers

  • Metallic papers

  • Colored papers

  • Adhesive papers

  • Recycled papers

  • Kraft papers

  • Cardboard papers

Attention: Make sure you prepare your files for printing by specifying your document’s white ink printing areas on Illustrator, InDesign or Corel! You can add white as a 5th ink on top of the CMYK ones.

Reasons for using white ink: White toner creates contrast for striking and original communication supports. White ink on dark subtrates makes your message more visible thanks to the contrast and does not tire the eye. On top of black, it gives a subtle effect. It is very elegant combined with gold or silver metallic paper or finishes.



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