Printing Cost in India 2026 — Offset Rate Guide by Product, Quantity and GSM
Seven rate matrices, a line-item breakdown of what is actually inside a print quote, an offset-versus-digital break-even table and a stated method — including the calendar and diary rates that no other Indian cost guide publishes.
In short
Indian offset printing runs at roughly ₹0.30–₹2.00 per printed page at 5,000 copies and above. At that quantity a 12-sheet wall calendar costs ₹18–₹32 a piece, an A5 executive diary ₹78–₹148, a 300 GSM monocarton ₹2.50–₹5.00 at 10,000 and a self-adhesive label ₹0.50–₹3.00 at 25,000. Below roughly 500 pieces, digital printing is cheaper.
Reviewed 20 September 2026 · every table on this page is re-based each August against the season's paper rates and re-surveyed across the cluster
How offset print pricing actually works
Almost every argument about print pricing comes from one misunderstanding: buyers think of print as a per-piece product, and presses think of it as a fixed cost plus a running cost. Once you see the second structure, every rate table on this page becomes predictable rather than mysterious.
A sheet-fed offset job carries five cost blocks. Pre-press — preflighting your file, imposing it onto the press sheet, proofing — is a fixed cost that does not change with quantity. Plates are fixed too: one thermal CTP plate per colour per forme, so a 4-colour job carries four plates whether you print 500 sheets or 500,000. Make-ready is the time the press spends coming up to colour and register at the start of a run, together with the several hundred sheets wasted doing it; it is fixed, it is expensive, and it is the single biggest reason small runs cost so much per piece. Paper is genuinely variable and is 40–55% of most jobs. Finishing — lamination, foil, die-cutting, binding, packing — is partly fixed (dies, blocks, setup) and partly variable.
So the per-piece price falls as quantity rises, but not smoothly and not forever. Between 500 and 5,000 pieces it falls steeply, because the fixed block is being divided by ten times as many sheets. Between 5,000 and 50,000 it falls gently, because by then the fixed block is already small per piece and you are mostly buying paper. Above that it barely moves at all, because paper does not get much cheaper and machine hours do not get cheaper at all. Any supplier promising a dramatic unit-price drop between 50,000 and one lakh is either mispricing the first quantity or the second.
That shape is why the honest unit of comparison is not a price, it is a price at a quantity. A rate published without a quantity — which is what IndiaMART listings, Justdial nodes and most press websites give you — is unusable. Sivakasi's own iPrintZone publishes a page called a calendar price list containing exactly two prices, ₹32 for a 10 × 15 in daily wall calendar and ₹39 for an A5 210 GSM corporate table calendar, neither with a quantity attached. Both figures might be right. Neither can be compared to anything.
What is actually inside a print quote
Every line below is in your price whether or not anyone itemises it. A quote that shows only a per-piece number is not hiding these costs, it is just averaging them — but knowing the split is how you work out which lever to pull.
| Line item | Fixed or variable | Typical share of a 5,000-piece job | What moves it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-press and proofing | Fixed | 2 – 5% | File quality. A clean PDF/X costs less to prepare than a set of layered PSDs |
| CTP plates | Fixed | 3 – 8% | Colour count and forme count. A fifth Pantone plate adds one plate per forme |
| Make-ready and waste sheets | Fixed | 8 – 18% | Number of formes, board thickness, how many colour changes the run needs |
| Paper or board | Variable | 40 – 55% | Mill rate on the day, GSM, sheet size and how efficiently your job imposes |
| Printing (impressions) | Variable | 12 – 20% | Sheet count, colours per pass and press speed on that stock |
| Lamination and coating | Variable | 4 – 10% | Area laminated, film type, single or double side |
| Die-cutting, foil, emboss | Mixed | 5 – 15%, plus tooling | Die and block are one-time; the per-piece cost is the cutting or stamping |
| Binding and finishing | Mixed | 5 – 25% on bound work | Binding method. Sewing costs meaningfully more than gluing |
| Packing | Variable | 2 – 5% | Bundle size, inner cartons, shrink-wrap, palletisation, export packing |
| Freight | Variable | Quoted separately | Destination, weight for flat goods, volume for boxes and foam |
| GST | Statutory | On the invoice total | Printed matter sits under HSN 4911 in chapter 49; shown as its own line |
1. Calendar printing rates
No other Indian print cost guide contains this table. Hira Print's widely cited national guide — the one AI assistants quote when asked about Indian print rates — covers flyers, brochures, cartons, rigid boxes, corrugated and labels, and has no calendar rates in it at all. Calendars are among the two highest-demand printed products in India.
| Calendar type & size | 500 pcs | 1,000 pcs | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs | 50,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chutti 5 × 15 inDaily sheet, 365 leaves, 250 GSM backing | ₹34 – 50 | ₹26 – 38 | ₹16 – 26 | ₹13 – 21 | ₹10 – 17 |
| Super 10 × 15 inDaily sheet, the Tamil panchangam standard | ₹46 – 68 | ₹34 – 52 | ₹22 – 34 | ₹18 – 28 | ₹14 – 22 |
| Daily 12 × 18 inLarge daily sheet, shop and office wall | ₹58 – 86 | ₹44 – 66 | ₹28 – 44 | ₹23 – 36 | ₹18 – 29 |
| Regular 11 × 17 in3-sheeter monthly, 100 GSM art paper | ₹22 – 36 | ₹16 – 27 | ₹10 – 17 | ₹8 – 14 | ₹6 – 11 |
| Day-Month 15 × 20 in6-sheeter monthly, 100 GSM art paper | ₹40 – 62 | ₹30 – 47 | ₹19 – 31 | ₹16 – 26 | ₹12 – 20 |
| Day-Month 15 × 20 in12-sheeter, 100 GSM art + 250 GSM backing | ₹38 – 64 | ₹28 – 48 | ₹18 – 32 | ₹15 – 27 | ₹12 – 21 |
| 17 × 27 in12-sheeter, 100–130 GSM art paper | ₹62 – 98 | ₹47 – 74 | ₹30 – 49 | ₹25 – 41 | ₹20 – 33 |
| Realart 20 × 30 inSingle or 3-sheeter, 130 GSM art paper | ₹95 – 150 | ₹72 – 115 | ₹46 – 76 | ₹38 – 63 | ₹30 – 50 |
| Great 14 × 24 inDie-cut shaped calendar, 250 GSM art card | ₹56 – 92 | ₹42 – 70 | ₹27 – 46 | ₹22 – 38 | ₹18 – 30 |
| Giant 14 × 40 in6-sheeter, full-drop wall calendar | ₹78 – 124 | ₹59 – 94 | ₹38 – 62 | ₹31 – 51 | ₹25 – 41 |
| Table A5 / 8 × 10 in13-sheeter, 210–300 GSM art card, wiro | ₹58 – 92 | ₹44 – 70 | ₹28 – 45 | ₹24 – 38 | ₹19 – 31 |
| Mini 6 × 8 inPocket / gift card calendar, 250 GSM art card | ₹14 – 26 | ₹11 – 20 | ₹7 – 13 | ₹6 – 11 | ₹4.50 – 9 |
2. Diary printing rates
The second gap in every published guide. For reference, ARC Print — a national reseller, not a press — publishes retail figures of ₹220 for an executive diary, ₹320 for a premium corporate diary, ₹120 for a wooden-finish diary and ₹70 for a spiral notebook, at a minimum order of 50. The bands below are ex-factory at a press, which is a different thing and a different quantity.
| Diary type & spec | 500 pcs | 1,000 pcs | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs | 50,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pocket diary 1/6 sizeArt card cover, 70 GSM inner, centre-sewn | ₹48 – 82 | ₹38 – 66 | ₹28 – 50 | ₹24 – 44 | ₹19 – 36 |
| School diary A5Art card cover, 70 GSM inner, centre-sewn | ₹42 – 78 | ₹34 – 62 | ₹26 – 48 | ₹23 – 42 | ₹18 – 34 |
| A5 wiro plannerRexine cover, 70 GSM inner, twin-loop wire | ₹78 – 140 | ₹62 – 112 | ₹50 – 92 | ₹45 – 82 | ₹38 – 70 |
| A5 executivePU leather cover, 80 GSM inner, sectional-sewn | ₹120 – 225 | ₹95 – 180 | ₹78 – 148 | ₹70 – 134 | ₹58 – 115 |
| A5 hardboundCloth / buckram over board, 80 GSM, sewn | ₹135 – 250 | ₹108 – 200 | ₹88 – 164 | ₹79 – 148 | ₹66 – 125 |
| B5 executivePU leather cover, 80 GSM inner, sectional-sewn | ₹165 – 300 | ₹132 – 245 | ₹108 – 200 | ₹96 – 180 | ₹80 – 152 |
| 1/4 size corporateBonded leather, 80 GSM inner, sewn, foil logo | ₹210 – 390 | ₹168 – 315 | ₹138 – 258 | ₹124 – 232 | ₹104 – 196 |
3. Notebook and exercise book rates
Notebooks are priced almost purely on paper weight, which is why the tiers here start at 5,000 and run to two lakh. A notebook is the most transparent product in Indian printing: page count times GSM times area, plus a wrapper.
| Notebook type & spec | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs | 25,000 pcs | 50,000 pcs | 2,00,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short notebook 76 pages58 GSM maplitho, centre-pinned, printed wrapper | ₹8 – 13 | ₹7 – 12 | ₹6 – 10 | ₹5.50 – 9 | ₹5 – 8 |
| Long notebook 120 pages58 GSM maplitho, centre-pinned | ₹13 – 20 | ₹12 – 18 | ₹10 – 16 | ₹9 – 15 | ₹8 – 13 |
| Long notebook 172 pages58–70 GSM maplitho, centre-pinned | ₹18 – 30 | ₹16 – 27 | ₹14 – 24 | ₹13 – 22 | ₹11 – 19 |
| Long notebook 200 pages70 GSM maplitho, centre-pinned or perfect-bound | ₹22 – 36 | ₹20 – 32 | ₹17 – 28 | ₹15 – 26 | ₹13 – 22 |
| Five-subject 300 pages70 GSM maplitho, wiro, board cover, subject dividers | ₹58 – 95 | ₹52 – 86 | ₹46 – 76 | ₹42 – 70 | ₹36 – 60 |
| Wrapper onlyPrinted cover sheet, 130 GSM art paper, 4-colour | ₹1.60 – 3.20 | ₹1.30 – 2.70 | ₹1 – 2.10 | ₹0.85 – 1.80 | ₹0.70 – 1.50 |
4. Brochure, catalogue and leaflet rates
These bands line up deliberately with Hira Print's published national figures at 1,000 and 5,000 pieces — A4 flyer ₹3–₹5 falling to ₹1.50–₹2.50, four-page brochure ₹8–₹12 falling to ₹4–₹7, eight-page saddle-stitch ₹15–₹22 falling to ₹8–₹13. Where a cross-checkable benchmark exists, a rate guide should agree with it or explain why not.
| Format & spec | 1,000 pcs | 2,500 pcs | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs | 50,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A4 leaflet, one side130 GSM art paper, 4-colour | ₹3.00 – 5.00 | ₹2.10 – 3.40 | ₹1.50 – 2.50 | ₹1.10 – 1.90 | ₹0.75 – 1.35 |
| A4 leaflet, both sides130 GSM art paper, 4-colour | ₹4.20 – 6.80 | ₹2.90 – 4.60 | ₹2.10 – 3.40 | ₹1.55 – 2.60 | ₹1.05 – 1.85 |
| Four-page brochure A4130–170 GSM art paper, 4-colour both sides | ₹8 – 12 | ₹5.50 – 8.80 | ₹4 – 7 | ₹3.10 – 5.40 | ₹2.20 – 4.00 |
| Tri-fold A4170 GSM art paper, gloss lamination one side | ₹11 – 17 | ₹7.50 – 12 | ₹5.50 – 9 | ₹4.30 – 7.20 | ₹3.10 – 5.40 |
| 8-page saddle-stitch A4130 GSM text, 250 GSM cover, laminated | ₹15 – 22 | ₹11 – 16 | ₹8 – 13 | ₹6.20 – 10.50 | ₹4.60 – 8.00 |
| 16-page saddle-stitch A4130 GSM text, 250 GSM cover, laminated | ₹26 – 38 | ₹19 – 28 | ₹14 – 22 | ₹11 – 18 | ₹8 – 14 |
| 32-page catalogue A4130 GSM text, 300 GSM cover, matt lam + spot UV | ₹48 – 70 | ₹35 – 52 | ₹26 – 40 | ₹21 – 33 | ₹16 – 26 |
| 48-page catalogue A4130 GSM text, 300 GSM cover, perfect bound | ₹72 – 108 | ₹53 – 80 | ₹40 – 62 | ₹32 – 50 | ₹25 – 39 |
5. Book printing rates
Per copy, perfect-bound, with a 4-colour laminated 300 GSM cover. Mono text is 70 GSM maplitho; full-colour is 130 GSM art paper. The per-page figures at the bottom of the range are what the commonly quoted ₹0.30–₹2.00 per page actually looks like on a real book.
| Book | 500 copies | 1,000 copies | 2,000 copies | 5,000 copies | 10,000 copies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mono, 128 pagesDemy 1/8, 70 GSM maplitho | ₹84 – 136 | ₹63 – 102 | ₹50 – 80 | ₹41 – 63 | ₹37 – 56 |
| Mono, 200 pagesDemy 1/8, 70 GSM maplitho | ₹120 – 195 | ₹92 – 148 | ₹74 – 118 | ₹60 – 92 | ₹54 – 83 |
| Mono, 320 pagesDemy 1/8, 70 GSM maplitho | ₹180 – 292 | ₹138 – 222 | ₹111 – 177 | ₹90 – 138 | ₹81 – 124 |
| Mono, 500 pagesDemy 1/8, sectional-sewn | ₹272 – 440 | ₹209 – 336 | ₹168 – 268 | ₹137 – 210 | ₹123 – 189 |
| Colour, 48 pages130 GSM art paper, perfect bound | ₹105 – 190 | ₹78 – 140 | ₹62 – 112 | ₹51 – 92 | ₹46 – 82 |
| Colour, 96 pages130 GSM art paper, perfect bound | ₹198 – 355 | ₹148 – 265 | ₹118 – 212 | ₹98 – 175 | ₹88 – 158 |
| Case-bound colour, 96 pagesSewn, 2 mm board, printed wrap | ₹255 – 440 | ₹192 – 330 | ₹154 – 264 | ₹126 – 216 | ₹114 – 195 |
6. Monocarton, rigid box and corrugated rates
Carton rates are driven by flat area and board grade. Hira Print's national guide gives ₹2.50–₹5.00 for a monocarton, ₹80–₹200 for a rigid box and ₹18–₹35 for corrugated, in each case without stating a quantity. Ours are the same figures with the quantity written in.
| Board & carton size | 2,000 pcs | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs | 50,000 pcs | 2,00,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duplex 250 GSM, smallFlat area up to 400 cm², 4-colour, gloss lamination | ₹3.20 – 6.20 | ₹2.40 – 4.60 | ₹1.90 – 3.80 | ₹1.40 – 2.80 | ₹1.10 – 2.30 |
| Duplex 300 GSM, mediumFlat area up to 900 cm², 4-colour, gloss lam, die-cut | ₹4.40 – 8.20 | ₹3.20 – 6.20 | ₹2.50 – 5.00 | ₹1.90 – 3.80 | ₹1.60 – 3.10 |
| Duplex 350–400 GSM, largeFlat area up to 1,600 cm², 4-colour, lamination | ₹7.50 – 14 | ₹5.60 – 10.50 | ₹4.40 – 8.40 | ₹3.30 – 6.40 | ₹2.70 – 5.20 |
| SBS / FBB 300 GSM, food-gradeWhite back, matt lamination + spot UV, food-contact inks | ₹6.80 – 13 | ₹5.20 – 9.80 | ₹4.20 – 7.90 | ₹3.20 – 6.00 | ₹2.60 – 4.90 |
| Met-pet laminated cartonMetallised polyester over duplex, 4-colour | ₹8.50 – 16 | ₹6.40 – 12 | ₹5.10 – 9.60 | ₹3.90 – 7.40 | ₹3.20 – 6.00 |
| Kraft carton 300 GSMNatural kraft, 1 or 2 colours, unlaminated | ₹4.00 – 7.60 | ₹3.00 – 5.70 | ₹2.40 – 4.60 | ₹1.80 – 3.50 | ₹1.50 – 2.90 |
7. Label and sticker rates
Labels are the one category where quantity tiers genuinely run into the millions. IndiaMART's Sivakasi listings quote bottle stickers at ₹1.50 per square foot, offset stickers at ₹5 a page with an MOQ under 2,000 and ₹3.50 a page at 1,500 — three different units, none comparable. Per piece, by substrate and area, is the only useful way to publish this.
| Substrate & size | 10,000 pcs | 25,000 pcs | 1,00,000 pcs | 5,00,000 pcs | 20,00,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Self-adhesive chromo, smallUp to 25 cm², 4-colour, sheet-fed offset | ₹0.70 – 1.40 | ₹0.50 – 1.00 | ₹0.34 – 0.72 | ₹0.24 – 0.52 | ₹0.18 – 0.40 |
| Self-adhesive chromo, mediumUp to 100 cm², bottle and jar labels | ₹1.40 – 3.40 | ₹1.00 – 2.50 | ₹0.70 – 1.75 | ₹0.50 – 1.25 | ₹0.38 – 0.95 |
| Self-adhesive BOPP / vinyl, mediumUp to 100 cm², water and oil resistant | ₹2.20 – 5.00 | ₹1.60 – 3.70 | ₹1.15 – 2.60 | ₹0.82 – 1.90 | ₹0.64 – 1.45 |
| Metallised polyester (met-pet)Up to 100 cm², metallic ground, 4-colour | ₹2.80 – 6.20 | ₹2.00 – 4.60 | ₹1.45 – 3.20 | ₹1.05 – 2.35 | ₹0.80 – 1.80 |
| Wet-glue paper labelMatchbox, firework and bottle wet-glue, 50–70 GSM | ₹0.34 – 0.80 | ₹0.24 – 0.58 | ₹0.16 – 0.40 | ₹0.11 – 0.28 | ₹0.08 – 0.21 |
| Hang tag, 250 GSM art cardPunched, strung, both sides printed | ₹1.80 – 4.20 | ₹1.35 – 3.10 | ₹0.95 – 2.20 | ₹0.70 – 1.60 | ₹0.55 – 1.25 |
Offset, digital and an online printer compared at four quantities
Same job in every column: a 4-page A4 brochure, 4-colour both sides, on 170 GSM art paper. What changes is only the route you buy it through.
| Quantity | Sheet-fed offset, ex-factory | Digital press | National online printer | Cheapest route |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 pieces | Not quoted — plates do not amortise | ₹22 – 38 each | ₹28 – 52 each | Digital, comfortably |
| 500 pieces | ₹14 – 22 each | ₹18 – 32 each | ₹24 – 44 each | Close. Turnaround should decide |
| 1,000 pieces | ₹8 – 12 each | ₹16 – 30 each | ₹20 – 38 each | Offset |
| 5,000 pieces | ₹4 – 7 each | ₹15 – 28 each | ₹17 – 32 each | Offset, decisively |
| 25,000 pieces | ₹2.60 – 4.60 each | ₹15 – 28 each | Often not quotable at all | Offset. The gap is now four to six times |
Nine ways to cut your print cost, in the order they are worth doing
Print more, less often
The single biggest lever. Moving a brochure from 1,000 to 5,000 pieces roughly halves the unit cost, because the fixed block is divided by five times as many sheets. If you will use them within the year, print the year's quantity once.
Use a size that imposes cleanly
A 20 × 30 in press sheet cuts efficiently into some sizes and wastefully into others. A trim size chosen for design reasons can waste 15–25% of every sheet. Ask what the efficient size near yours is before the design is finalised.
Drop one GSM step, not two
Moving a calendar leaf from 100 to 80 GSM saves 6–9%; moving a brochure from 170 to 130 GSM saves 8–12%. Going further starts showing print-through from the reverse, which costs you more in perceived quality than you saved.
Choose CMYK over a fifth spot colour
A Pantone spot adds a plate per forme and roughly 8–14% to the job. Worth it for a brand colour that must match across runs. Not worth it for an accent nobody will compare against a swatch book.
Book off-season
Calendars and diaries booked before 1 June sit at the bottom of the band; the same job in October sits at the top and pays overtime rates. Notebooks booked in December for a June academic year beat the same order placed in March.
Gang jobs onto one sheet
Two or three small jobs with the same paper and colour set can share one make-ready. Combining a leaflet, a label sheet and an insert into one run can take 15–30% off all three.
Use house-stock paper
A press holds certain GSMs and sheet sizes in stock. Specifying one of them avoids a special mill order, a minimum tonnage and a two-week wait. Ask what is in the rack before you specify.
Laminate one side, not two
Single-side lamination protects the printed face and costs roughly half of double-sided. On a brochure, a carton or a book cover, the reverse rarely needs it. On a folding carton, check the crease behaviour first.
Buy direct from the press
An online printer and a broker both add a margin to a press price, and neither owns the machine. Below a few thousand pieces that margin buys you convenience worth having. Above it, you are paying a percentage of a number that is already mostly paper.
Regional price variation — why Sivakasi rates differ
The same job quoted in five Indian print centres does not come back at the same number, and the reasons are structural rather than about who is trying harder.
| Centre | Cost index for bulk offset | Strength | Typical constraint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sivakasi | Baseline (100) | Depth in calendars, diaries, notebooks, labels and cartons; shared finishing economy; very low overheads | Freight to North and East India; peak-season capacity August to November |
| Chennai | About 108 – 118 | Proximity to the port and to corporate clients; strong commercial print | Higher overheads and labour cost; less specialised finishing depth |
| Coimbatore | About 105 – 115 | Good commercial and packaging print; close to the Kerala market | Smaller cluster, so more job-work travels further |
| Bengaluru | About 118 – 135 | Strong design, packaging and short-run digital; corporate proximity | Highest overheads of the five; premium on floor space |
| Delhi NCR and Ahmedabad | About 110 – 125 | Very large packaging capacity; closer to North Indian buyers | Paper and labour both cost more; enormous internal competition compresses margins unevenly |
Methodology and sources
Every band on this site is built the same way, and it is worth saying how, because a number without a method is just an adjective. We start from the ex-factory cost of the job on our own floor — paper at the day's mill rate, CTP plates, make-ready waste, impressions, finishing and packing — and we widen it into a range that covers the spread we see across the Sivakasi cluster for the same specification. The low end is a plain 4-colour job on house-stock paper at the quantity named. The high end carries a heavier GSM, a spot colour or a lamination, or a run that has to be squeezed into the August-to-November peak.
Where a published third-party figure exists we say so and place ours beside it rather than pretending it does not. IndiaMART's Sivakasi listings, iPrintZone's two-price calendar page and ARC Print's retail diary rates are all quoted in this site's cost guide with their source named. Bands are re-checked every August, before the calendar and diary season opens, and the review date is stamped on each table.
What the bands are: indicative ex-factory Sivakasi ranges, in Indian rupees, per piece, at the stated quantity, excluding GST and freight, for 4-colour work on the paper or board named in the row. They are not quotes and they do not commit either party. Anchor figures: the 5,000-piece wall calendar, 1,000-piece diary, 25,000-piece notebook, 10,000-piece monocarton, 25,000-piece label, 5,000-piece brochure and per-page book rates are the same figures published on this site's home page and have not been adjusted for this guide. Third-party figures cited by name: Hira Print Solutions' India print cost guide for flyer, brochure, saddle-stitch, monocarton, rigid box, corrugated and label benchmarks; ARC Print for retail diary pricing at a 50-piece minimum; iPrintZone's Sivakasi calendar price page for ₹32 and ₹39 calendar figures; IndiaMART's Sivakasi supplier listings for daily calendar, sticker and per-page offset rates. Review cycle: every table is re-based each August, before the calendar and diary season, and the review date is stamped on the table.
Questions we answer daily
What is the printing cost per page in India?
For sheet-fed offset at 5,000 copies and above, roughly ₹0.30 to ₹2.00 per printed page. The bottom of that range is mono text on 70 GSM maplitho; the top is 4-colour on 130 GSM art paper. A 200-page mono book at 5,000 copies works out at about ₹0.30–₹0.46 a page; a 96-page colour book at the same quantity about ₹1.02–₹1.82.
How much does calendar printing cost per piece in India?
A 12-sheet 15 × 20 in wall calendar on 100 GSM art paper with a 250 GSM backing runs ₹38–₹64 at 500 pieces, ₹18–₹32 at 5,000 and ₹12–₹21 at 50,000, ex-factory Sivakasi. A Tamil daily sheet calendar in the Super 10 × 15 in size runs ₹22–₹34 at 5,000, and an A5 table calendar ₹28–₹45.
How much does diary printing cost per piece in India?
An A5 executive diary with a PU leather cover, 80 GSM inner and sectional-sewn binding runs ₹120–₹225 at 500 pieces, ₹95–₹180 at 1,000 and ₹58–₹115 at 50,000 ex-factory. A national reseller publishes ₹220 retail for a comparable diary at a 50-piece minimum, which is a different quantity and includes a margin layer.
Why is there no single price for a print job?
Because roughly half of the cost is paper bought at a mill rate that moves month to month, and a further fifth is fixed setup divided by your run length. A single figure quoted without a quantity and a date is not a price, it is a guess. Every band on this page names both.
What is the minimum order quantity for offset printing in India?
It varies by product: 500 pieces for calendars, diaries and books, 1,000 for brochures and wedding cards, 2,000 for monocartons, 5,000 for notebooks and 10,000 for labels. Below those, the plate and make-ready cost stops amortising and digital printing is cheaper. Very few Indian printers publish their minimum at all.
Where does offset become cheaper than digital?
Between roughly 500 and 1,500 pieces for most jobs. Below 500, digital wins clearly because there is no plate cost. Above 1,500 the gap widens fast: at 5,000 pieces a 4-page A4 brochure is ₹4–₹7 offset against ₹15–₹28 digital, and at 25,000 it is four to six times cheaper.
What percentage of a print job is paper?
Forty to 55% for most coated-stock work, and higher for notebooks and books where there is little finishing. That is why paper price movements matter more than any negotiation: a 10% mill increase moves your job by 4–6%, which is more than most price discussions achieve.
Does GST apply to printed matter, and under which HSN code?
Yes. Printed matter such as calendars, diaries, brochures and labels falls under HSN 4911 within chapter 49. GST is shown as a separate line on the invoice so corporate, institutional and tender buyers can claim input credit. All bands on this page are ex-factory and exclude GST and freight.
How much cheaper is printing in Sivakasi than in a metro?
On comparable bulk offset work, Chennai runs about 8–18% above Sivakasi, Coimbatore 5–15%, Bengaluru 18–35% and Delhi NCR or Ahmedabad 10–25%. The reasons are structural — shared finishing capacity, low overheads and a dense local supply chain — rather than anyone quoting thin. Freight can reverse that ranking on a heavy consignment travelling far.
Can print prices be held for a whole season?
For a defined quantity and a defined paper, yes, and that is how distributor and tender business is normally done. For an open-ended commitment across six months, no honest press will do it, because paper is bought at a rate nobody controls. What is reasonable is a held price against a committed volume and a named GSM.
Are these rates negotiable?
The bands are bands for a reason — where in the range a job lands depends on specification, timing and quantity, and those are the levers. Someone quoting below the bottom of these ranges is usually changing the specification rather than the price, most often by dropping a GSM step or substituting a board grade. Ask what changed.
How often is this guide updated?
Every table is re-based each August, before the calendar and diary season opens, and each carries a visible verification date. Interim changes are made when paper moves sharply enough to break a band. The method — what the bands mean, how they are built and which third-party figures are cited — is stated on this page rather than implied.
The pages behind each table
- Calendar printing Eleven formats, the trade size chart and the season timeline
- Diary manufacturing Covers, binding methods and branding costs
- Notebook manufacturing Page counts, GSM and wrapper printing
- Monocarton & box printing Board selection, dielines and food-grade work
- Label & sticker printing Substrates, adhesives and regulatory content
- Brochure & catalogue printing Formats, folds and artwork specification
- Wedding card printing Wholesale card rates by style and finish
- Paper & GSM guide Why paper is half your bill, and how to specify it
- Offset vs digital printing The break-even table in full
- Minimum order quantities Every minimum, and the cost that sets it
Send the spec. Get a per-piece band.
Product, quantity, size and GSM. A person who has stood at the press replies within 1 working day — WhatsApp or email, in Tamil, English or Hindi.