Helpful Tips - Trim Size

We have developed five standard book sizes, with built-in savings. These sizes are generally the most common trim sizes in bookstores. Special trim sizes, which stray from standard ones, require an extra fee.

Unless yours is a specialty book which requires a unique size or shape, we recommend that you choose a standard trim size, which is commonly accepted and most economical.

• The only real rule is that mass market books have to be 4-3/4″ x 7″. These books are often sold through racks at point of purchase sites in supermarkets, airports, drugstores and the like and their size is an essential part of the way they are distributed.

• Trade paperbacks, a pretty loose category of books, are often in the 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" to 6" x 9" range. This page proportion—for instance in the 6″ x 9″ size—of 2:3 has long been considered an ideal for a book page, and you can create good looking books at different sizes but in the same page proportions.

• Manuals and workbooks are larger and, depending on the printing equipment being used to produce them, are 8-1/2″ x 11″ range. This size is also good for directories and instructional books with lots of graphics or detailed drawings to follow. It lends itself to a 2-column text layout which is an efficient use of space.

• Novels appear in lots of different sizes but for a shorter book I prefer smaller sizes that seem to be more intimate a reading experience. 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″ is probably the most popular size. Memoirs are similar sizes. Longer novels move to 6″ x 9″ to avoid becoming overly bulky at smaller sizes.

• Short story collections or collections of essays are generally the same size as novels and memoirs

• General nonfiction titles seem to come out in 6″ x 9″ making this size arguably the most popular of all. It’s also the most widely used size for hardcover books. When more room is needed on the page.

Standard Trim Sizes:

• 8.5” x 11”
• 7” x 10”
• 7.5” x 9”
• 6” x 9”
• 5.5” x 8.5”

Special Trim Sizes:

• Must be between 4.75” x 7” and 8.5” x 11”