Certificate Printing

Certificates You Can Order Two Of

Most printers won't touch a certificate order under fifty. Which is no use to a school that needs two awards for Friday's assembly, or a club handing out three trophies at the end of the season.

We print these in twos, so two is the minimum. Order exactly what you need rather than a box of blanks you'll never get through.

A4 on 350gsm uncoated board, printed in 1 working day.

Multiple Designs, No Extra Charge

This is the part worth knowing about.

Most print pricing assumes one design repeated. Certificates rarely work that way — a school year might need thirty different awards, a training provider runs six courses, a sports club hands out different categories at presentation night.

Upload as many designs as you like in a single order at no extra cost. Thirty different certificates is one order, one delivery, one price.

Why Uncoated Board

350gsm uncoated is the right stock for a certificate for one specific reason: you can write on it.

A coated or laminated surface beads ink and smudges when touched, which is a problem on something that needs a name, a date and a signature added by hand. Uncoated absorbs ink cleanly — pen, fountain pen, and stamps all sit properly on the surface without feathering or wiping off.

At 350gsm it also has genuine weight. A certificate on 120gsm paper feels like a letter; this feels like something worth keeping, and it stands up in a frame without buckling.

Printed Names or Handwritten?

Both work, and it's worth deciding before you send artwork.

Handwritten — print the certificate design with a blank line for the name, and fill them in on the day. Flexible if numbers change, and a handwritten name reads as personal. This is why the uncoated stock matters.

Printed names — supply each certificate as its own artwork with the name already set. Neater and consistent, and since multiple designs cost no extra, printing thirty individually named certificates costs the same as thirty blanks.

Plenty of people do both — printed name, handwritten signature and date.

Who Uses Them

• Schools and nurseries — attendance, reading awards, end of year, sports day, star of the week.
• Training providers — course completion, CPD, attendance records.
• Sports clubs — presentation night, player of the season, tournament placings.
• Workplaces — long service, employee recognition, internal training, health and safety.
• Dance schools, martial arts and music teachers — grading, belts, exam passes.
• Events and competitions — participation, placings, judging.
• Charities and community groups — volunteer recognition, fundraising milestones.

Designing a Certificate

Leave proper room for handwriting. The most common mistake is a design that looks balanced on screen but leaves a name line barely deep enough to write in. Allow more space than you think — a full name in adult handwriting takes more room than a typeset one.

Same for signatures. If two people are signing, they need two clearly separated lines, not one shared space.

Watch the background under the writing areas. A dark or heavily patterned background makes handwritten text hard to read. Keep name and signature areas light.

Consider the frame. Certificates often end up framed, and a standard A4 frame will cover a few millimetres of the edge. Keep borders clear of the very edge if that matters.

Artwork Requirements

• Finished size: A4, 210 x 297mm
• Bleed: 2mm all round
• Safe zone: 3mm
• Resolution: 300 dpi minimum
• Format: PDF
• Colour: CMYK
• Fonts: outlined or embedded
• Printed sides: single sided

Note the 2mm bleed — that's specific to this product and differs from our usual 3mm.

Adobe templates are available. If you're supplying multiple designs, name the files clearly so it's obvious which is which.

Every file is checked by a real person before printing, so obvious problems get flagged. We don't make changes or fixes to artwork — files should be supplied print-ready.

Turnaround & Delivery

Production takes 1 working day from receipt of artwork. Turnaround covers production only — delivery is on top of that.

UK delivery is £5.50 per order. Collection from our Burnley production facility is also available.

Also worth a look: letterheads and compliment slips on matching uncoated stock, and presentation folders for certificates handed over as part of a pack.

FAQs

What's the minimum order?
Two. We print these in twos, so that's as low as it goes.

Can I order several different designs together?
Yes, at no extra charge. Upload as many artworks as you need in one order — useful for named certificates or different award categories.

Can I write on them?
Yes. That's why they're printed on uncoated board — pen, fountain pen and stamps all work cleanly without smudging.

What size are they?
A4, 210 x 297mm.

Can I have names printed on?
Yes. Supply each certificate as its own artwork with the name already set. Since multiple designs cost no extra, individually named certificates cost the same as blanks.

Are they thick enough to present?
Yes. 350gsm has real weight in the hand and won't buckle in a frame.

Can I have them laminated?
Not on this product — lamination would remove the writable surface, which is the point of the uncoated stock.

What bleed do you need?
2mm all round on this product.

How long does it take?
1 working day production from receipt of artwork, with delivery on top.

How much is delivery?
£5.50 per order. Collection from Burnley is also available.