First and foremost, you’re the designer in charge. You want your work to come out as you envisioned it, and don’t want to risk the printing software misrepresenting the colors you chose.
Second, color matching is crucial because you want to meet your customer’s expectations. Remember those “expectations vs. reality” online shopping memes? Imagine that happening to a customer with your products. Yikes.
And third, beautifully cohesive colors just look better and that’s another point why you should focus on color matching from design files to prints.
Here’s what we’ll go through to master the art of color matching:
The writer Roy T. Bennett noted: “It takes sunshine and rain to make a rainbow.” Same goes for color matching.
Before we wander into the world of color, let’s go through my glossary of color printing terminology so you can get a better grip on color matching.
Color design and printing glossary
Color model—the mathematical formula of a color. The numbers of the formula express what other colors a given color consists of.
A screenshot of Adobe Photoshop Color Picker with various color values.
RGB—a color model where the formula of a color is expressed in three primary colors: Red, Green, Blue.
The RGB color model is based on the way how we see colors—with the help of light. Similarly, the RGB color model is used to display images on devices that emit light.
CMYK—a color model where the formula of a color is expressed in four primary colors: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key (black).
All printers use the CMYK color model. The printed colors are created by overlaying the four colors in CMYK.
The bluish color in the printed image on the left is a blend of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The image on the right is what the color formation looks under a microscope.
Color space—a range of colors produced by specific color models like RGB, CMYK.
Each color model has its own color space and limitations to what it can display. The way color is displayed varies across devices too. For example, the colors you see on your phone screen will look slightly different than on tablets.
Color values—decimal and / or letter combinations used to represent colors.
Each color spaces have different values for displaying a color. The screenshot below shows how the same color is displayed for different color models.
Color profile—the limit of how many and which colors are displayed within a color space.
Color profiles define the color values within a color space they were created in. For example, you take a photo of a tomato and then upload it to Instagram. Your phone will then pass the color profile information to Instagram, so your tomato photo is in the shade of red it was captured in. Most common color profiles are sRGB and Adobe RGB for the RGB color model, PSO Coated v3 and Fogra51 for CMYK.
At Printful, we recommend to save and upload your design files in the Adobe Photoshop color code sRGB IEC61966-2.1 for RGB in combination with PSO coated v3 for CMYK.
Our DTG printers work with an upgraded CMYK color space. We’ve added more ink colors, allowing us to achieve print colors that fall outside of the CMYK color range. The closest color space to our upgraded CMYK is the sRGB and that’s why we recommend it for print files.
Color gamut—a range of colors which can be represented within a given color space.
When you convert a digital design to a different color space than you designed it in, you alter its gamut. Some of your original colors can change to the closest available colors in the color space you converted it to.
The RGB color space has a broader color gamut than CMYK, so you can lose colors (especially bright neons) when converting a design created in RGB to CMYK.
An approximate preview of what our eyes can see and the colors recognized within the RGB and CMYK color spaces.
Color matching—a technique used for matching a color from a digital design file to a design printed on a product.
Color matching is usually done using a design software like Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop.
Now you know all the whats related to color matching and color design. You’re ready to understand the whys.
2. Why printed colors look different from digital designs
The designs on your screen won't always match the ones on your printed product 100%.
There are various factors that contribute to color inconsistencies. Let’s go through them so you know what to look out for the next time you’re designing!
Design color spaces
CMYK is the color space that’s used for printing designs. RGB, on the other hand, is the color space used by most creators when designing print files and due to technicalities, it’s the color space we recommend uploading your design files in.
Most beginner or web design software supports only the RGB color space. Advanced design programs (see our blog on free Photoshop alternatives!) allow you to switch between the RGB and CMYK color spaces.
If you’re working within the RGB color space and upload that design for printing, our printing software will convert it to the CMYK color space it supports. That’s the risky step where your design can lose some colors it originally had.
The CMYK color space recognizes a smaller range of colors than RGB. If your design has colors outside of the CMYK color space, then our printing software matches those colors to the closest ones in the CMYK color space.
The original photo taken within the RGB color space is on the left. The photo on the right is the same one, converted into the CMYK color space.
To take color matching in your hands, design within the CMYK color space and then convert to RGB yourself, without losing any colors. Or, if your software doesn’t support the CMYK color space, use an online RGB to CMYK converter to check which colors of your design are out of CMYK color space and adjust those.
Tip! Try out the rgb2cmyk.org color space converter. Select the output format as .jpg and set the CMYK profile to SWOP2006.
Types of fabric
Your print outcome varies depending on the fabric you choose to print on. Printful has plenty of options to pick from, like:
100% cotton
Poly blends (50% cotton/50% polyester)
Tri-blends (50% polyester/25% cotton/25% rayon or 50% polyester/37% ring-spun combed cotton/13% rayon)
We tested how DTG prints show up on different fabric. Fabric made of 100% cotton has a tight weave and, for that reason, it’s the best choice to show off your design in its full opacity. Thicker 100% fabric is more likely to absorb ink, so the final print can have a bit of a faded effect.
Fabric made of poly and tri-blend has a looser weave and, for that reason, it’s the best choice to show off your designs in a faded / vintage kind of vibe.
The differences between prints on 100% cotton (left) and tri-blend fabrics (right).
If you like your designs to have a faded color palette, go for products with blended fabric. If you want that maximum opacity, choose products with 100% cotton.
The same color will look different depending on the color of the fabric your design is printed on.
At Printful, we print a white underbase layer beneath prints on colored and dark garments to keep the designs vibrant and colorful. When choosing the right colors for your design, I’d even suggest going with darker shades for lighter colored fabrics to get a more vibrant design.
Let’s go through the steps you can do to assure your design comes out exactly as you envisioned it!
3. Steps to getting the print colors you want
The ideal scenario to get the perfect print color is a combination of actions. I’ll sort these steps, starting with the easiest and most important one.
Avoid neon colors in RGB or create design files in CMYK
Remember that neon colors and deeply saturated shades exist in the RGB color space, but our printers support the narrower, neon-less CMYK space.
For the best color quality, you have two routes:
1. Create design files in RGB and steer clear of neons and saturated shades as they simply won’t print!
2. Create design files in CMYK and experiment with neons and saturated shades.
Here’s how to create designs with CMYK:
When you start designing, choose the CMYK color space.
The settings for switching to this color space is different for each design software. I suggest you do a quick Google search—”switching to CMYK in [the program you use]”.
When you finish designing, save your work in the RGB color space.
For the best possible color accuracy for your design, convert the file to sRGB color profile, sRGB IEC61966-2.1 to be exact. Most editing programs have this color profile as default. If yours doesn’t, don’t worry—the regular RGB color space will also work.
Order product samples
Getting your own product samples is a must to assure your designs come out great. It’s an investment that lets you check design placement and color, and overall product quality. Plus, you can use samples for creating top-notch product photos and videos, or use them in giveaways.
How to order product samples:
Log into your Printful Dashboard
Click New Order, choose your store, and click Sample order
Choose your products and place an order
A screenshot of placing a sample product order via Printful.
You can place 1 sample order per month, with a maximum of 3 items when you sign up with Printful. When you complete other milestones, like reach a certain threshold in accumulated sales, you get more sample orders. Read more about Printful’s sample orders.
Create and order your own custom color swatches
By creating your own color swatches, you can test only the colors you plan to design with. If your designs or brand colors are monotone, wonderful—prepare a design file with all the colors of gray, red, pink, yellow—whatever! And once you check those colors, you won’t have to test each and every design you create with them.
Here’s how to create custom color swatches:
Choose the product you’ll test your color swatches on and check the product’s recommended file dimensions.
Open the design software you use and start a new design with your product’s recommended file dimensions.
Draw whichever shapes you like, fill them in with your chosen colors and add their color values.
Save your design file in the RGB color space and choose the .png file format.
And you’re done! Upload your custom color swatch on Printful and place a sample order with your design. Once you get your product, you can then decide which colors work and which don’t.
Here’s a custom color swatch our designers created. Our designers tested particular RGB color values and went with this weird shape because why not.
An example of how you can customize your own color swatches.
Custom color swatches printed out on a creamy t-shirt.
Have you ever created a custom color swatch before? Let me know in the comment section below.
The power of color matching is in your hands
As I said before, you’re the designer in charge. Now you have all this knowledge on color matching and designing for print-on-demand products—time to use it!
I want to hear back from you—what’s your main takeaway from this blog post? What did you find interesting and which design tips will you try out next time you’re in the zone?
Una’s a passionate content team lead with a keen interest in delving into the world of marketing campaigns and the psychology behind persuasive advertising copy.
Una’s a passionate content team lead with a keen interest in delving into the world of marketing campaigns and the psychology behind persuasive advertising copy.
