Do I have to include a bleed when designing die cut stickers?

The short answer is no.

Our design team will add a bleed to your die cut stickers for you. But if you have specific requirements or ideas about how you’d like your bleed to look, you can either submit your own or let us know when you place your order.

Read on if you want to learn more about what bleeds are and how they’re used.

What is a bleed?

A bleed is an area beyond your cut line. Your cut line marks the edge of your stickers and is indicated by a magenta line on your design proof.

When your design extends beyond the cut line, this extension is called a bleed.

A bleed ensures your design goes all the way to the edge after cutting and won’t have an unsightly white edge.

The image below illustrates the cut line (in pink), and the color extending beyond that is the bleed.

Why die cut stickers need a bleed

The bleed area functions as a safety net when cutting your stickers. It has 3 functions:

• Makes your stickers look awesome
  
• Allows for tiny tolerances during cutting
  
• Ensures that your design extends right to the edge of the cut line
  

When manufacturing stickers, we work with tight tolerances to create intricate custom shapes. Adding a bleed gives the machines some wiggle room.

Think back to your arts and crafts days as a kid. Imagine you’re coloring in a flower that you want to cut out later. To be sure each part of your flower is colored, you might color outside the lines just a little.

This is exactly what a bleed is for. We extend the color of your stickers a bit to make sure the ink goes all the way to the edge of your die cuts.

How to add a bleed to your die cut stickers

For graphic designers, adding a bleed won’t be a challenge. But if you’re using a graphic design program for the first time, it can be a little tricky.

You can add a bleed in Adobe Illustrator by clicking the “offset path” function. You can then offset the edge of your stickers by around 2 mm.

Here’s a video that explains this step-by-step:

In CorelDRAW, this function is called “contour,” and it means a 2 mm contour will be added around your artwork.

If you’re not comfortable using these programs, don’t worry. Our design team will handle that for you.

What will my bleed look like?

There are two ways we add bleeds to custom-shaped stickers.

Background color

Your die cut stickers might include a colored border. If so, we simply extend that color slightly to make sure it reaches the edge of your stickers and die line.

Material color

We can also work with the color of your material. Instead of using color, the border around your stickers can simply consist of the material they’re printed on.

If you choose a white vinyl or biodegradable paper sticker, this can be a white background - or a holographic edge if you go with holographic stickers.

What is the difference between a bleed and a cut line?

The main difference between a bleed and a cut line is that a die cut line indicates the shape of your stickers, whereas a bleed is just a safety feature.

Both your cut line and your bleed are part of your die cuts during the printing process.

Eventually, your stickers are cut along the cut lines to create the shape you ordered. The cut line represents the custom shape of your stickers.

The bleed area doesn’t affect the shape of your sticker. It’s simply an added border that protects your stickers. In the example below, you can see the cut line in the sticker design. The bleed would just be 2 mm added outside the cut line.

And now you’re a bleed expert ready to tackle your next sticker order.

If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to ask our experts. You can also take our quiz to find your perfect material.