What does Saddle Stitch Binding Mean?
The term “saddle stitch binding” refers to the stapling of folded pages along the fold, or spine, to form a booklet. Covers and pages are printed, with 4 pages to a sheet and trimmed to size.
The covers are creased to prevent cracking along the printed fold, and together with the pages, folded and stapled by machine. Because the innermost pages are pushed forward by the folding, the “leading edge” of the booklet is trimmed as a final step.
Laser Sharp’s Stapled Booklets
- 2 sizes – 8.5″ x 11″ portrait and 5.5″ x 8.5″ portrait or landscape
- Saddle stitch binding for 8 to 40 pages (2 to 10 sheets, including the cover), in multiples of four
- Full colour or black and white throughout or separate cover
- Complete range of paper choices to create your own look according to your budget
- Use same paper for pages and cover or select different cover stock
- Creased cover on spine for cover stock for professional, finished look
- Clean, trimmed leading edge
- Fast turnaround on print ready orders
Format for Saddle Stitch Binding
Saddle bound booklets are comprised of folded papers held together with staples. Each paper, folded, makes 4 printed pages. Therefore, for a booklet with saddle stitch binding to “work” and look complete, the content must be spread across and fill 4 page increments.
Simply put, if you have 22 pages of content, you either need to add 2 more pages to make 24 or place 2 blank pages in the pdf print file where you want the blanks to be. Most likely, the blanks would go on the inside of the covers.
Booklets with page numbers that are not in multiples of 4 or that are larger than 40 pages (9 text sheets and 1 cover) in length may be better suited for coil binding.
The price is right
Without the need for coils or glue, limited page numbers, and less labour to produce, saddle stitched booklets are a budget friendly booklet option. For the same reasons, faster turnaround times are possible. This makes them a great choice for magazines, catalogues, yearly reports, real estate property brochures, or colouring books.
Self Cover Booklets
The print quality will look great regardless of the paper you choose, so any paper is a good choice for the pages. For the cover, you can choose from any of the “cover” stocks. Included on the list of covers are all of the same paper choices as on the pages list.
This gives you the option to print “self cover” booklets, where the cover and pages are on the same paper. Self covers work best on booklets with fewer pages, and it is always advisable to have a cover that is at least the same weight as the pages, not less.
For booklets with fewer pages (8 – 16), self-cover is a popular option. In other words, the same paper is used for the cover and the pages.
We have recently printed some stunning, 8-page sales booklets on 28 lb text with creased folds. Beautiful, full colour, inexpensive, letter sized with saddle stitch binding and ready in just hours of getting the order.
For saddle stitch binding of mixed paper booklets, 20 lb pages and a light 8 to 12 point cover are cheaper options with great results.
The 12 point cover that is coated on one side is a particularly good cover choice for saddle stitch binding, as the outside of the cover has a smooth, coated surface, and the inside print surface is a good match for uncoated pages.
Booklets for saddle stitch binding should:
- be multiple page pdf files
- have a .125″ bleed around each edge of every page
- be designed for the correct page size
- have pages in multiples of 4, with blanks appropriately placed in the file
- have an inside margin to keep important content from getting cut out in trimming or lost in the folds
- be saved as a high resolution file for quality printing
Please note: pages laid out in letter size do not work for a half page booklet. The proportions of the page are not the same, and reducing the page to fit results in very small text and layout issues.
Natasha (verified owner) –
The shipping was super fast and I was very happy with the quality of the final product.
Anonymous (verified owner) –