What is wide format printing? It's the process of producing printed output on materials between 18 and 100 inches wide, using specialized wide format printers built for banners, posters, vehicle wraps, POP displays, blueprints, and outdoor signage.
The wide format print market hit an estimated USD 10.04 billion in 2024 and continues to grow across advertising, retail, architecture, and education. If your shop handles print jobs beyond standard letter or tabloid sizes, wide format printing is likely part of your workflow already.
What Qualifies as Wide Format Printing?
Wide format printing covers any output produced on a printer that accepts media between 18 and 100 inches wide. Anything above 100 inches typically falls into the super-wide or grand format category. The printing technology emerged in the mid-1980s alongside early digital printing and has matured into an indispensable tool for many different industries.
Modern wide format printers can produce output covering up to 600 square meters per hour, depending on the model, resolution, and substrate. Most work with rolls of media for continuous printing, though some flatbed models print directly onto rigid substrates like foam board, acrylic, and corrugated plastic.
Common Wide Format Printing Applications
Wide format printing supports a broad range of print jobs across many different industries.
Trade shows and events rely heavily on wide format output. Booth backdrops, retractable banners, directional signage, and hanging graphics all run through wide format printers. A single trade show can generate dozens of print jobs per exhibitor.
Retail and POP display printing is another core use. Window graphics, floor decals, point-of-purchase displays, and promotional materials drive foot traffic and in-store sale conversions. Retailers invest in wide format printing because the high impact visuals are cost effective at short run quantities.
Vehicle wraps require printed adhesive vinyl that conforms to compound curves. Solvent inkjet and eco-solvent wide format printers produce the durable, vivid colors these wraps demand, with resistance to UV exposure and weather.
Architecture and engineering firms use wide format printers to produce blueprints, site plans, technical drawings, and large scale documents. CAD output at accurate scale is a core wide format application across architecture and construction industries.
Outdoor signage and banners cover roadside advertising, building wraps, and directional signage that needs printed images capable of holding up to UV exposure, rain, and temperature swings. Indoor graphics, including wall murals, canvas prints, backlit film displays, and photo paper prints for galleries and retail spaces, round out the range.
Types of Wide Format Printers
The printing technology inside a wide format printer determines what substrates it handles, how durable the output is, and how fast it produces.
-
Solvent and eco-solvent inkjet. Solvent inkjet printers spray ink directly onto vinyl, banner media, and other non-porous substrates. The solvent evaporates during drying, leaving a durable printed image suitable for outdoor use. Eco-solvent printers use a milder formula with lower VOC output, making them suitable for shops without heavy ventilation. These are common in sign shops producing vehicle wraps, outdoor signage, and banners.
-
Latex printers. Latex wide format printers use water-based ink with latex polymers that cure under heat. The result is good outdoor durability, low odor, and compatibility with a wide range of substrates. Latex has gained traction in shops that need indoor and outdoor use from a single printer without the ventilation demands of solvent technology.
-
UV-curable printers. UV wide format printers spray ink directly onto the substrate and cure it instantly with UV light. Because the ink cures on contact, these printers can print directly onto rigid materials like foam board, wood, glass, and acrylic. UV curable ink resists UV exposure well and produces high quality prints with vivid colors on both flexible and rigid stock.
-
Aqueous (dye and pigment) printers. Aqueous inkjet printers use water-based ink and are the standard for fine art, photography, photo paper, and canvas output where color accuracy matters most. They don't match solvent or UV printers for outdoor durability without lamination, but they produce the highest quality output on compatible media. Toner based technology also exists in wide format, using heat and pressure to fuse toner onto the surface, though inkjet dominates the graphics and signage market.
Wide Format Substrate Options
The wide format substrate is the material your printer prints on. Choosing the right one determines the look, durability, and cost of every job.
-
Vinyl. Calendared and cast adhesive vinyl covers everything from vehicle wraps to wall graphics and window graphics. PSD carries 54" x 150 Feet, Calendared Adhesive Vinyl and 38" x 165 Feet, Calendared Adhesive Vinyl in widths that fit common wide format printers. See the full Solvit Self Adhesive Vinyl collection for the complete range.
-
Banner media. Flat banner media in white-back and grey-back finishes handles indoor and outdoor banners, POP display printing, and event graphics. PSD stocks 38" x 100 Feet, Flat Banner Media (White Back), 38" x 100 Feet, Flat Banner Media (Grey Back), and 50" x 165 Feet, Flat Banner Media (White Back). Browse the full Banner Media collection for other sizes.
-
Canvas. Polyester coated canvas is the go-to wide format substrate for fine art reproductions and gallery prints. Canvas produces a textured, high quality output that paper can't match. See the Polyester Coated Canvas and Canvas Paper for Printing collections.
-
Paper and specialty media. Photo paper, backlit film, and coated papers round out the wide format substrate range. Backlit film is the standard substrate for illuminated signage and light boxes. One way vision film lets you print graphics on one side of glass while maintaining visibility from the other. Browse PSD's Papers and Printing Media and One Way Vision Film collections.
-
Inkjet inks. Matching ink chemistry to your printer type and substrate determines color quality, adhesion, and durability. See PSD's Inkjet Inks collection.
Wide Format Printing vs. Standard Office Printing
A standard office printer handles individual sheets of paper up to about 8.5 x 11 inches (the default printer setting for letter-size output) or 11 x 17 at most. Wide format printers accept rolls or sheets up to 100 inches wide and print on vinyl, canvas, fabric, banner media, rigid boards, and more. The difference comes down to scale, speed, and substrate range.
For businesses in advertising, retail, architecture, education, security, and print services, the investment in a wide format printer reduces outsourcing costs significantly. In-house printing lets you print exactly the quantity you need on your own schedule. The wide format print market is expected to reach USD 12.43 billion by 2029 as more industries bring the process in house.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is considered wide format printing?
Wide format printing refers to any print job produced on equipment that handles media between 18 and 100 inches wide. It covers output on vinyl, canvas, banner media, paper, backlit film, and rigid substrates. Printers handling widths above 100 inches are classified as super-wide or grand format.
What is the difference between a wide format printer and a regular printer?
A standard printer handles individual sheets up to about 13 inches wide. Wide format printers accept media rolls and sheets from 18 to 100 inches, support a broader substrate range (vinyl, canvas, rigid materials), and use advanced printing techniques like solvent inkjet, UV curable, and latex ink systems.
What size is a wide format print?
Wide format prints range from 18 to 100 inches in width, with virtually unlimited length on roll-fed media. Common widths include 24", 36", 42", 50", and 54".
What printer setting is 8.5 x 11?
The 8.5 x 11 inch setting is standard US Letter size, which is the default for regular desktop and office printers. It isn't a wide format size. Wide format printing starts at 18 inches wide and scales up from there.
Stock Your Wide Format Media With Supplies That Ship Fast
Printing Supplies Direct has supplied US print shops with wide format substrates, banner media, adhesive vinyl, canvas, and inkjet inks since 2010. Whether you're running solvent, eco-solvent, latex, or UV wide format printers, we carry the materials your shop needs. Most orders ship same or next day, with free shipping to the contiguous 48 states. Call 860-516-6393 or email info@printingsuppliesdirect.com.
By the Printing Supplies Direct Team.