Each day, more and more entrepreneurs and graphic designers are starting print-on-demand businesses. There are lots of reasons for this, as POD is a low-risk model to start a business.
As such, entrepreneurs that are eager to start working for themselves flock to it. The same is true for talented graphic designers looking for a way to profit off their work.
To find success with a print-on-demand business, you need the correct application.
If you run a Shopify store, the two most common apps for POD are Printful and Printify. That’s why we’re here to pit Printful Vs. Printify to see who comes out as the winner. That way, you can make the best choice for the needs of your online business.
So please read on to see our comparison between Printful and Printify. Along the way, we’ll educate you on the pros and cons of each platform.
An Introduction to Print-On-Demand
First, we’ll take a brief look at the print-on-demand business model. If you weren’t aware, it’s a model to manage an online store with original graphic designs. You then sell merchandise that you print your designs on, such as t-shirts.
Instead of going to the expense of buying and printing merch, you use a third-party service.
The third-party print-on-demand company works like this:
- They keep a large stock of blank products available such as t-shirts and coffee mugs
- As you receive product orders, they will print your designs on the merch and ship them to the customer
- They only ever print your design on something if you get an order, hence the name print-on-demand
It’s a win-win for both parties. The print-on-demand company can accommodate thousands of clients this way. All you have to do is send them your original designs. That way, they will have your work on file to print whenever you get an order.
It’s a very attractive business model for budding entrepreneurs for this reason. There isn’t much risk involved in getting started. All you have to do is set up a Shopify store and then sign up for Printful or Printify. From there, you can start making money selling t-shirts and other printable merchandise.
Now that you know more about what a POD business is, let’s dive into Printful and Printify. They’re both apps that you can download from the Shopify App Store. They each boast high ratings and lots of users, so let’s find out which is truly the best.
Using Printify for Print-On-Demand
First, we’ll take an in-depth look at Printify and all its features. The application is all about simplifying the order automation process. They use a mockup generator to make creating sample designs a total breeze.
You use a drag-and-drop editor to see what your designs will look like on their merchandise. You can preview your designs on t-shirts, coffee mugs, bags, and so much more.
You’ll be able to create a fully 3D mockup of your products, complete with lots of color options.
Printify works with brands and print designers that have the latest cutting-edge technology. You can view print designers based on:
- Location
- Bestsellers
- Pricing
It’s a helpful feature, as selecting the proper print designer is crucial. They will be the ones that fulfill your product orders, so it’s wise to choose carefully. So being able to handpick your supplier is a plus for Printify.
You can also request direct samples of the products. Let’s say that you want to print your designs on hoodies.
Well, how do you know if the hoodie you select is suitable for your design? How do you know if it’s comfortable and high-quality?
By requesting product samples, you can answer all those questions for yourself. You’ll receive a sample hoodie in the mail to inspect. That way, you can make the most informed decision on which products are best for your designs.
Printify will take care of the fulfillment process for you. For each sale, you’ll be able to track it from the warehouse to the front door of your customer. That will enable you to ensure quality control at all times.
Printify’s Pricing Plans
Next, let’s take a look at Printify’s pricing. Their plans are as follows:
- Free Plan. At $0 a month, you can enjoy their free plan. You get five stores per account, and you have unlimited product designs. It’s the plan you should select if your e-commerce business is in its earliest stages.
- Premium. If you’re starting to grow your sales a bit, you can upgrade to the premium plan at $29 per month. You get ten stores per account and unlimited product designs.
- Enterprise. If you’re fulfilling more than 10,000 orders a day, you can qualify for their enterprise plan. It has custom pricing, and it allows you unlimited stores and unlimited designs.
The most popular option is their premium plan. There’s a good reason for this beyond being ideal for smaller businesses. When you sign up for the premium plan, you enjoy a 20% discount on all ordered products.
Using Printful for Print-On-Demand
Now it’s time to take a look at Printful and what it has to offer. Printful is a massive POD service that has production houses in Mexico, the USA, and Europe. Since they have such a wide geographical presence, they boast quick shipping times.
To use Printful, you download the app and integrate it with your Shopify store. Signing up is a quick and easy process. Once the integration is done, you can start using its mockup generator.
Much like Printify, you’ll get to use a drag-and-drop editor to preview your designs on products.
Printful has a massive inventory of products that you can use for your designs. There are over 200 unique products, including:
- Hoodies
- T-shirts
- Coffee mugs
- Polo shirts
- Blankets
- Pillows
- Posters
- Canvas prints
- Bean bags
- Beachwear
- Laptop cases
- Backpacks
- Drawstring bags
- Much, much more
As you can see, there’s a whopping variety of products on Printful. Of course, you can preview each one using the mockup generator. You’ll also enjoy a massive volume of custom branding options for products.
Once your mockups are done, you can import all your designs into your store. There, you can show them off to your customers. Also, they will remain in Printful’s library, so they’re ready to print whenever you make a sale.
Printful will print your designs, pack the products, and ship them to your customers. All you need to do is pay the fulfillment costs once the order is completed.
Printful excels at making their process incredibly simple. Setting prices is easy, and you’ll have a good idea of what to charge, thanks to Printful taking care of shipping. The app will spare you the headache of constantly calculating shipping costs.
Printful’s Pricing Plans
If you plan on selling white-label products, Printful is the way to go. They feature very modest prices for their entire inventory. You can also request inside labels for any product that you sell.
An inside label will include:
- Garment size
- Material information
- Manufacturer tag/logo
Printful takes things a step further with the ability to display your brand on the tag. That means your customers will get to see your logo whenever they check the inside label. That’s an extra touch of professionalism and will help you build recognition for your brand.
Printful also has an entirely free sign-up. There is a premium plan, but it’s optional.
So if you don’t want to spend too much money, you’ll get more value out of the free version of Printful. When you combine that with their affordable prices for products, it’s a winning formula.
With Printful, you can accept a wide variety of currencies as well. So if you want your online store to have a global presence, you need to use Printful. Here’s a list of the currencies you can use with the app:
- USD
- EUR
- JPY
- GBP
- AUD
- CAD
- CHF
- DKK
- NZD
- SEK
- NOK
- SGD
- PLN
- MXN
- BRL
- HKD
- KRW
With Printify, you can only accept USD. So that’s a significant limitation to that app. If you plan on selling your products globally, your customers will appreciate using their currency.
Printful Vs. Printify: Head-to-Head Comparison
Now that you know more about each app let’s compare them both directly. That way, we can declare the ultimate winner. Both platforms are successful and make print-on-demand a viable option for anyone. Yet, there can only be one winner in this matchup.
Intuitive Tools
For any app to find success, it needs to be easy to use. Both Printful and Printify boast intuitive mockup generators. They make previewing your designs on products a breeze. But what other tools do they have? Here’s a closer look:
Printify
- Product mockup generator
- Embroidery mockup generator
- Text tool
Printful
- Product mockup generator
- Embroidery mockup generator
- Text tool
- Clipart tool
- Product personalization tool
Winner: Printful
As you can see, Printful has more tools to help you personalize your products. In addition to the mockup generators, Printful has clipart and product personalization tools. These allow you to place extra little touches to make your product more recognizable.
Integrations
Next, we’ll see which platforms each app works with the best. Of course, we tend to stick to Shopify on this blog. Yet, they’re not the only e-commerce platform out there by a long shot. So which e-commerce platforms work with Printful and Printify? Let’s find out.
Printful
- Shopify
- WooCommerce
- Wix
- Squarespace
- BigCommerce
- Ecwid
- Weebly
- Prestashop
- Gumroad
- Magento
- Big Cartel
- 3DCart
- Launch Cart
- Webflow
Printify
- Shopify
- Wix
- WooCommerce
- Prestashop
- Bigcommerce
Winner: Printful
As you can see, Printful wins again. The app works with far more e-commerce platforms than Printify. So if you’re using a platform other than Shopify, then the chances are it will work with Printful.
Warehousing
Another significant factor in POD is warehousing and shipping. Your supplier must have ample warehouse space to keep products in supply. The last thing that you want is for your supplier to run out of t-shirts or hoodies. That will bring your POD business to a screeching halt. So which app handles warehousing better?
Printful
- Full warehousing services
- 24-hour fulfillment
- Fulfillment locations in the USA, Mexico, Latvia, Spain, Japan, Australia, Canada
Printify
- No warehousing
- No 24-hour fulfillment
- Fulfillment locations in the USA, Europe, UK, Australia, Canada
Winner: Printful
Printful takes the cake here due to their excellent warehousing. They boast 24-hour fulfillment services and have more locations around the globe. That will translate to quicker shipping times for your customers, which is a huge plus.
Branding Options
Finally, we’ll compare each application’s branding options head-to-head. For your POD business, you’ll want to reinforce your brand as much as possible. That means adding your logo and branded images to your products in a variety of ways. Here are the branded options for Printful and Printify:
Printful
- Front print, back print, outside labels, sleeve printing, inside labels
- White-label packaging, pack-ins, custom packing slip, brand logo
Printify
- Front print, back print, sleeve print, outside and inside neck labels
- White-label packaging, shipping labels
Winner: Printful
If you want to get the most out of your branding, then you need to use Printful. It not only has more branding options for clothing but also for packaging. You can include fun pack-ins, custom packaging slips for customers, and more. You’ll enjoy more robust branding features from Printful by far.
Printful Vs. Printify: An In-Depth Comparison ( quick video )
Printful Vs. Printify: The Final Verdict
Okay, so it’s been an extended comparison, but a clear winner has emerged from the shadows.
Winner: Printful
In nearly every category, Printful comes out on top. Printful features more branding options, quicker shipping, more currencies, and so much more. That’s not to say that Printify doesn’t have anything going for it. Quite the opposite, it’s still a fantastic POD app. The ability to handpick a supplier and request sample products are enormous benefits.
Yet, Printful simply outclasses Printify in every other category. It’s easier to use, has more tools, is more affordable, and accepts many currencies. So if you want to get the most out of starting a print-on-demand business, we recommend using Printful. It’s also the app that integrates with far more e-commerce platforms as well. We hope that you’re able to use Printful to find great success with a POD business. If you interested in trying out Printful follow this link.
For more great content to help you develop your Shopify strategies, check out the rest of the merchant posts on the site.
