Screen printing on clothing made in Bangladesh
Screen printing is still the workhorse of garment decoration, and for good reason: at volume nothing else matches it for durability and cost per piece. The trade-off is set-up. Each colour needs its own screen, so a five-colour design is five set-ups, and that is where quotes surprise people.
- Best for
- Bold designs, limited colours, medium to large runs
- Cost driver
- Number of colours and print positions, not print size
- Softest hand-feel
- Water-based and discharge inks
- Most opaque
- Plastisol, especially on dark fabric
- Approval
- Strike-off on the bulk fabric before production
Which ink to choose
Plastisol sits on top of the fabric, gives strong opacity and holds fine detail, which makes it the safe choice for bright prints on dark garments. Water-based ink soaks into the fibres and feels much softer, almost like part of the fabric, but it is less opaque, so pale inks on dark cotton need an underbase. Discharge ink removes the garment dye and replaces it with pigment, giving the softest result on 100% cotton, though the final shade depends on how the fabric was dyed and needs a test.
Speciality options include puff, which rises when cured, and high-density, which builds a raised edge. Both add texture and cost, and both need a strike-off to approve properly.
What drives the price
Colours drive cost, because each one means another screen, another set-up and another pass on the press. A one-colour chest print at 5,000 pieces is inexpensive per garment; the same design in six colours is not. Print positions multiply the same way: front, back and sleeve is three set-ups.
- Number of colours, including any underbase on dark garments
- Number of print positions on the garment
- Speciality inks and finishes such as puff, high-density or metallic
- Quantity, which spreads screen set-up over more pieces
- Fabric, since blends and performance fabrics can need different inks and curing
Where screen printing goes wrong
Two failures cause most complaints: cracking and colour drift. Cracking usually traces back to curing temperature, ink deposit or a print stretched over a seam. Colour drift happens when the approved strike-off was printed on different fabric from bulk, so the underbase behaves differently.
We approve a strike-off on the actual bulk fabric, wash-test it, and check curing temperature through production rather than at the start only.
How it fits your order
Print development runs alongside sampling: artwork separation, screen making, then a strike-off you approve before bulk. If your design is complex, allow a round of adjustment, because a print that looks right on screen can be too fine to hold at a heavy mesh count.
What we need from you.
Send what you have and we will fill the gaps with you. Everything below fits in the branding section of our free tech pack template.
- Vector artwork (AI, EPS or PDF) with fonts outlined
- Colours as Pantone solid coated references, one per screen
- Print size in centimetres and placement measured from the high point of the shoulder
- Separations if you already have them, or we separate the artwork for you
- The garment colour the print will sit on, since that decides underbase and ink choice
Products we use screen printing on most.
Decoration is quoted with the garment, not separately, so the price you see per piece already includes it. Check what that costs delivered before you set retail prices.
Screen printing: common questions.
How many colours can you screen print on one garment?
Technically a rotary press runs a fixed number of stations, commonly six to twelve, and each colour including an underbase occupies one. In practice the limit is commercial rather than mechanical: every colour adds a screen, a set-up and a pass, so the price per piece climbs steadily. Most commercial designs sit between one and four colours for that reason, and designers who understand the process get bold results within that limit by using the garment colour as part of the design. If your artwork is photographic or has gradients, screen printing is usually the wrong method: simulated process printing can do it, but the set-up cost only makes sense at volume, and digital printing will look better on a smaller run. Send the artwork and we will tell you honestly which method suits it.
Will a screen print survive washing?
A correctly cured print will outlast the garment in normal domestic washing, which is why screen printing remains the standard for retail. Durability depends on three things: ink deposit, curing and fabric. Under-cured plastisol is the usual cause of cracking, because the ink never fully fuses; too heavy a deposit can crack as the fabric stretches; and printing across a seam or a rib puts the print under uneven tension. We wash-test the approved strike-off before bulk, monitor dryer temperature through production, and check prints again at final inspection after a wash test on sample pieces. If your garment will be industrially laundered, such as workwear, tell us at the quotation stage, because that changes the ink and curing specification and needs its own test.
Other decoration and finishing methods
Planning an order with screen printing?
Send a tech pack, a sketch or a photo of a garment you like. We reply within one working day with questions or a first costing.
- One merchandiser responsible for your order
- Certificates and audit reports shared before production
- AQL final inspection report before you approve shipment
- NDA signed on request before you share designs