Spiral, perfect bound or stapled: choosing a binding

A dissertation, a report, a recipe booklet: binding changes how a document reads and how it ages. Here is how to choose in a minute.

Stapling

Two staples in the fold. Cheapest and fastest. Works up to roughly 60 pages; beyond that the booklet gapes and will not close.

Best for: programmes, short brochures, event booklets.

Spiral binding

A metal or plastic spiral runs through punched holes. Its decisive advantage: the document opens flat and pages fold right back. You can write on it without holding it down.

Best for: dissertations, training material, recipe books, worksheets. Up to about 300 pages.

Its drawback: no printable spine, so it is invisible on a shelf.

Perfect binding

Pages are glued into a cover, like a paperback. The tidiest finish, with a printable square spine: the title reads on the edge.

Best for: theses, annual reports, catalogues — anything that should look like a book. From about thirty pages up; below that the spine is too thin to hold.

Its drawback: it does not open flat.

The decision table

One practical tip

Use a cover of at least 250 gsm, and add a blank page at the start and the end. They take the handling marks instead of your first page.

Configure a binding →