Exporting your newspaper to PDF

Once you've read our artwork guidelines and finished designing your newspaper, you need to export a PDF from your software, and upload it to your Newspaper Club account to be printed.

To make sure that your newspaper is ready to print, follow this simple guide.

Newspaper Club PDF Requirements

Where possible, use the PDF/X-1a:2001 preset

This creates the simplest kind of PDF, and takes care of almost everything that could cause issues at the press.

Export your newspaper as single pages in reading order

Export your newspaper as one PDF containing all pages, in reading order. Make sure you export as pages, not spreads.

Margins and bleed

Make sure your document has the margins set up according to the artwork guidelines for that size. We can't print tabloids or broadsheets that have artwork in the margins. Minis must have a 5mm bleed around the outside of each spread.

Image resolution above 150 dpi, maximum 300 dpi

We recommend you set the image resolution to a maximum of 300dpi — anything higher and you'll make your file slower to upload, without any improvement in quality. You may start to see some pixellation below 150dpi.

All images must be CMYK (no RGB or spot colours)

RGB images will be automatically converted to CMYK before printing. It's better if you take care of this so you can see how the colour balance is affected, but if you're not sure how, we can convert these for you. We can't print spot colours.

Flatten transparencies

Some transparencies and effects will not print. You should flatten any transparencies within your document, as they may not print as expected, and could appear differently in print to how they do in your PDF. The PDF/X-1a:2001 preset will do this for you.

Export guides

Using a different software package? Please contact us.

Don’t forget to check your newspaper!

When you upload a PDF, our automatic PDF checker will flag up any pages that don’t follow our artwork guidelines. It will pick up problems with page set-up, low-resolution images, missing fonts and transparencies.

It won’t pick up typos or design mistakes, so always double-check your PDF before ordering.