US vs China Paper Weights
When it comes to choosing the right stock weight for your hard cover book or soft cover book there are many options printing overseas.
There are 3 main categories in choosing the right paper weight.
First you have to decide if it’s going to be Glossy, Matte or Uncoated stock. After that it goes to what weight or thicknesses of paper do you want. Every project is different and it depends on what type of book you are printing. Are there a lot of 4 color images or only 1 color (black) texts? How thick do you need or want your paper stock to be? Heavy weight, so the photos or images don’t come through to the other side of the paper? Or do you need or want a thinner stock to save money and book weight? Either way, all paper stock has some kind of transparency to it. For the most part choosing the right weight for your book is up to you, however it depends on your book because there are limits. (This is where PRC Book Printing comes in to help you decide what stock will work best for your project.)
Since United States is the only country in the world that uses pounds for “some reason”, we have to convert or establish the equivalence in gsm (grams per square meter).
Below is the estimated equivalence in offset printing from US’s Pounds to China’s gsm
Text Stock — Glossy C2S
US Pounds VS China equivalent gsm VS Points
43 lbs. = 64 gsm = 2.25 pts
54 lbs. = 80 gsm = 2.75 pts
71 lbs. = 105 gsm = 3.50 pts
86 lbs. = 128 gsm = 3.75 pts
106 lbs. = 157 gsm = 5 pts
Cover Stock Glossy C2S
US Pounds VS China equivalent gsm VS Points
80 lbs. = 200 gsm = 7 pts
90 lbs. = 230 gsm = 8 pts
100 lbs. = 250 gsm = 9 pts
203 lbs. = 300 gsm = 10 – 12 pts
236 lbs. = 350 gsm = 11.50 pts
270 lbs. = 400 gsm = 15.50 pts
Cover Stock Glossy C1S
US Pounds VS China equivalent gsm VS Points
142 lbs. = 210 gsm = 11 pts
155 lbs. = 230 gsm = 12.75 pts
169 lbs. = 250 gsm = 13.25 pts
203 lbs. = 300 gsm = 16.50 pts
236 lbs. = 350 gsm = 18 pts
270 lbs. = 400 gsm = 21 pts
Text Stock – Matte Paper
US Pounds VS China equivalent gsm VS Points
54 lbs. = 80 gsm = 2.75 pts
71 lbs. = 105 gsm = 3.50 pts
86 lbs. = 128 gsm = 3.75 – 4.50 pts
106 lbs. = 157 gsm = 5 – 6 pts
Cover Stock Matte Paper
US Pounds VS China equivalent gsm VS Points
135 lbs. = 200 gsm = 7.5 pts
155 lbs. = 230 gsm = 9.5 pts
169 lbs. = 250 gsm = 10-11 pts
203 lbs. = 300 gsm = 12.5 pts
236 lbs. = 350 gsm = 14 pts
Please note: All lbs., gsm and points are estimated and will vary depending on the paper manufactures / brands.
If you’re interested in more information about PRC Book Printing and / or this blog, please contact us at 888-659-8320 or email info@prcbookprinting.com
