What’s the Difference Between Spot and Process Printing?

Spot Color Printing

• The ink that goes on the press is hand-mixed or comes out of the can the color you want
• More expensive than process printing
• Unlimited paper choices
• Colors are exact

Process Printing

• The ink on a process press only uses four colors: Cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. Those colors are printed in screens to give the appearance of different colors when viewed far away. If you looked at the newspaper under a magnifying glass, you’d see the dot pattern.
• Less expensive than spot
• Unlimited paper choices
• Colors are approximate

Digital Printing

• Less expensive in small quantities
• More expensive in larger quantities
• Similar to color copies; toner based
• Toner is flat, (not shiny) so if it lays on top of shiny paper, the ink will look flat
• Limited paper types
• Colors are approximate

And if you find you’d rather have someone help you find the right printer for your project, give me a call or shoot me an email. I’m always happy to help.