Coated vs. Uncoated Paper
What Is the Difference Between Coated and Uncoated Paper?
Coated paper has a thin layer of clay or calcium carbonate that seals its surface, so ink sits on top and prints sharp, bright color. Uncoated paper has no coating: ink soaks into the fibers, so colors print softer, and the surface feels natural and takes a pen easily. Coatings come in gloss, silk, and matte, from shiny to flat.
Because the two papers print the same CMYK values differently, printers use separate ICC profiles and spot color swatches for each. In CE.SDK, loading the profile for your paper makes CMYK colors on screen reflect that paper.
Coated vs. Uncoated Paper: How Do They Compare?
Where the ink ends up, on the surface or in the fibers, explains most of the differences.
| Coated | Uncoated | |
|---|---|---|
| Surface | Smooth and sealed | Natural, slightly textured |
| Ink | Sits on the surface | Soaks into the fibers |
| Color | Bright and saturated | Softer and more muted |
| Images | Sharp detail | Dots spread, so images print darker |
| Glare | Gloss shines, matte much less | None |
| Writing on it | Pen ink can smudge | Easy |
Which Coated Finish Should You Choose?
Choose by how much shine the piece can take.
Gloss for photos that pop
A shiny surface makes colors look deeper and photos sharper, at the cost of glare under bright light.
Silk for photos with text
Silk keeps strong color with less glare than gloss, which is why brochures and catalogs often use it.
Matte for easy reading
A flat finish cuts glare, so long text is easier to read, while colors stay richer than on uncoated paper.
When Should You Use Coated or Uncoated Paper?
Use coated paper when color and images lead, and uncoated when people will write on it or read a lot of text.
Use coated for
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Flyers and brochures
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Catalogs
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Photo-heavy postcards
Use uncoated for
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Letterheads and forms
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Invitations and RSVP cards
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Books and notebooks
How Do You Prepare a Design for Uncoated Paper?
Plan for softer color and spreading ink before you send the file. Rich black explains total ink limits.
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Convert with the uncoated profile
Ask for the profile for your printer's uncoated stock, so dot gain and the smaller gamut are allowed for.
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Keep total ink lower
Uncoated paper holds less ink before it smudges or marks the next sheet, so printers set a lower limit.
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Use the uncoated spot swatch
Spot colors have separate coated and uncoated swatches, and the uncoated one shows how the ink prints here.
How Does CE.SDK Handle Coated and Uncoated Paper?
Load the profile for the paper
Make the printer’s profile for the stock the document’s CMYK profile, for example PSO Uncoated v3 for uncoated paper. CE.SDK previews CMYK colors through it, so they look closer to how they will print on that paper.
Give spot colors values for the paper
Each spot color carries a CMYK approximation that CE.SDK uses for print previews. Take those values from the swatch for the stock, the uncoated one when the job is on uncoated paper.
Export with a matching profile
On the web and server, the Print Ready PDF plugin’s built-in CMYK profiles, FOGRA39 and GRACoL 2013, are both for coated paper. For uncoated stock, pass your printer’s profile as a custom profile.
Paper Choice in Brand Stationery and Print Shops
Letterheads that preview true to the paper
A brand portal sets the uncoated profile on its letterhead and compliment slip templates, so staff see the softer print color before they order.
A paper choice at checkout
A print shop offers flyers on gloss or uncoated stock. When a customer switches paper, the shop switches both the preview profile and the export profile to that paper’s.
FAQs
Yes. Matte, silk, and gloss are all coatings with different amounts of shine. Uncoated paper has no coating at all, which is why it feels more natural.
Usually uncoated. Everyday office paper is an uncoated bond or offset stock, which suits copiers and takes pen ink. Coated versions of the same weights exist too.
Not easily. Pen ink dries slowly on coated paper and can smudge, and that includes matte. For anything people fill in by hand, such as RSVP cards or forms, choose uncoated.
Either works, and both come in the same card weights, so the finish is the real choice. Silk or matte coated card shows photos and bold color best, while uncoated card gives a softer, more tactile feel.
Coated one side and coated two sides. C1S leaves the back uncoated so it can be written on or glued, which suits postcards, mailers, and packaging, while C2S has both faces coated for cards printed in color on both sides.
Ink spreads into the fibers, so each halftone dot grows and midtones print heavier than the file suggests. Converting the design with the uncoated profile from your printer allows for that, so the preview and the print match more closely.
Coated paper gets its coating at the paper mill, before anything is printed. A varnish is a clear layer added after printing to add shine or protect the ink.
Links
Documentation and references for this concept.
Related Terms
ICC Profile
A standardized file that records a device's color behavior, so colors can be translated correctly between screens, camer…
Color Gamut
The full set of colors a screen, a press, or a color space is able to show or print. CE.SDK converts colors between the …
Spot Color
A precisely defined, pre-mixed ink color specified by a standardized color system (most commonly Pantone) used in print …
GSM Paper
Paper weight given in grams per square meter, from about 80 for office paper to 400 for heavy card. CE.SDK's safety inse…
Embossing vs. Debossing
Two pressed finishes made with metal dies: embossing lifts a design above the paper, debossing sinks it below. In CE.SDK…