01
Printed by people, not machines
Envelopes are the one printed item where a design mistake can stop the mail being delivered. There are areas the postal service needs left clear, and artwork that drifts into them causes problems no automated printer will warn you about. A dedicated Print Concierge checks your layout for exactly that: return address positioning, clearance around the address block, and whether a dark background will interfere with automated sorting. If something is going to cause trouble at the post office, we tell you before we print a thousand.
02
Why a printed envelope changes the open rate
The envelope is the only part of a mailing that gets a decision made about it. Someone standing over a bin decides in about a second whether to open it or not, based entirely on the outside. A blank white envelope with a typed address looks like a bill. One carrying your logo and a return address looks like it came from a business the recipient recognises, and it goes in the "open" pile. If you already send invoices, proposals or statements by post, this is the cheapest change available to how many of them get read.
03
What to put on it, and what to leave off
Restraint works better here than anywhere else we print.
- Top left: logo and return address. This is the area that does the work.
- Centre: leave completely clear for the recipient address, whether you are printing it or writing it.
- Bottom right: keep clear. Postal automation reads this area.
- The back: optional, but a short line or a subtle pattern is a nice touch on proposals.
A teaser line along the left edge can lift open rates on marketing mail, but keep it well away from the address block.
04
Getting your artwork print-ready
Send a print-ready PDF at 300 DPI in CMYK, laid out at #10 envelope size, 9.5 x 4.125 inches. Include 0.125 inch bleed only if your design runs to the edge; most envelope designs do not need it.
- Keep everything at least 0.25 inch inside the trim.
- Convert type to outlines or embed your fonts.
- If you are matching existing letterhead, send that file too and we will match colour across both.
05
Need envelopes designed?
Choose Design it for me and our professional design team will build your envelope for $75, laid out to postal requirements, and hand back a print-ready file you own outright. Envelopes are almost always ordered with letterhead and business cards, and we will match colour across all three so they read as one identity.
06
Printing and delivery
Our press runs seven days a week and we ship nationwide from Florida. Order by 3PM ET and production starts the same day, with the arrival estimate at the top of this page updating live as you configure. Shipping is free over $120 and a flat $15 below that. Ordering envelopes together with letterhead is the usual way people clear the free-shipping line.
