Learn How To Make Printables To Sell, For Personal and For Professional Use

There are lots of free printables available online, but sometimes a customized printable is needed for your home project or business. Learn to make printables below including a review of graphics programs, the best printers and recommended paper supplies.

STEP 1: Picking Which Program To Use

Will you be creating a text based printable (such as a handout for school) or a digital art piece that will be framed on your wall?

online resources for text based printables

Microsoft Word is the perfect starting point for simple text based documents that only need a couple graphics. I learned how to create printables in Word because it was a familiar platform. Most people have access to Office at home, school or work making Office an easy option for creating printables. If you don’t have Microsoft Office already on your home computer, you could check out the free 30 day trial of Microsoft Office 365 here. 

If you want a little more graphic control, another application to consider is Microsoft Publisher also available for Office 365 members. In Publisher you can easily drag and drop images without having to deal with technical formatting issues that may arise like in Microsoft Office. The downside to Publisher is that table settings are more difficult to use and it’s not the ideal program for text heavy documents. You can also try Microsoft Publisher free for 30 days to compare these two text based programs.

online resources for graphic based printables

Below is a brief description of Canva vs PicMonkey which are the best graphics programs to create printables online. If you would like an in-depth comparison, I go into detail about how to make printables with Picmonkey and Canva here.

If you are designing digital art, a free program you can explore is Canva. Canva enables you to create printables for free using their templates, stock images, fonts and background options. If you don’t have any images and don’t like the free options available on Canva, there are plenty of stock photos to use for $1 per image. The best part about Canva is that it’s easy if you need to make a quick flyer for a party or an image for social media. Also, there are plenty of ready made templates available to guide your project. Canva is always free but if you would like access to more free images and templates, checkout the trial version of Canva here.

Another online program similar to Canva is PicMonkey. The features on PicMonkey are similar to Canva, except you have more advanced editing options for graphics. In PicMonkey there are more options to customize stock images, the ability to change an image size, advanced editing features and a lower membership fee. Unlike Canva’s free option, you must sign up for PicMonkey to have access to this online program. You can also try the 7 day free trial by clicking here.

One word of caution is to read over the licensing rules. Stock images are okay for personal and commercial use, however these graphic design programs do not allow creating watermarks or brand logos.

professional graphic software

Read my review of the best software to create printables!

For truly custom digital art and if you want to learn to make printables to sell, you will need a program such as Adobe Illustrator or Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop’s purpose is to enhance photos as well as create custom graphics. Since this program is intended for photo editing, it is not ideal for creating single graphics and brush lettering. If you are creating a single graphic element in Photoshop, be sure you are selecting the correct image size early on to avoid adjusting later.

Adobe Illustrator is the go-to choice for professionals. In Illustrator, you can create vector images for projects such as custom fonts, svg files and single graphic elements. There are also more advanced editing features geared toward creating single graphic elements. If you plan to sell graphics, I recommend Adobe Illustrator.

Both programs take time to learn, but there are a ton of Youtube videos out there to teach you the basics. You could learn how to make printables in Photoshop and Illustrator with the 30 day free trial of the Adobe Cloud. This will give you enough time to learn the basics between the two. After comparing both programs, there are several options for purchasing the programs:

If you like Photoshop you could buy Photoshop CC in a monthly subscription, or buy Photoshop Elements outright. I recommend purchasing Photoshop Elements outright. Photoshop Elements is cheaper and it’s all you need to get your graphics business up and running.

If you like Adobe Illustrator you could purchase a monthly subscription here. Unfortunately, they stopped selling the program outright.

Step 2: Picking the Right Printer

Read my review of the best printers with printer recommendations!

Ink jet vs laser jet – which is the right option? First, think about what your needs will be. Both ink jet and laser jet are perfect for personal or professional projects and they both have high quality options that cost in the $100 range.

If you would like a printable with vibrant colors then go with an inkjet. This printer is ideal for home projects and small projects. Cartridges are cheaper on inkjet printers, however they will need to be replaced more often.

If you would like to make printables to sell or are using a printer for printing bulk flyers and handouts, then go with the laserjet. These printers are better for high volume printing and have a lower cost per page. Since these printers use lasers for creating images, they often produce printables with a higher dpi than inkjet printers. Keep in mind that laser printing does not produce the same blended color quality as a high end ink jet printer. If you are selling printables, review the quality of the laserjet images before investing.

Step 3: Picking Your Paper

Read the review on the best printer paper for your project (and important things to consider before buying paper).

Your paper will ultimately depend on your project. For my home projects I like to keep things simple and use computer paper for all of my projects.

For Happy Planner projects this 65# cardstock is perfect for selling pages. What’s nice about 65# cardstock is that it doesn’t bleed when you’re writing with a Sharpie. Also, it feels similar to the Happy Planner paper used by Mambi.

For home art that you want to withstand the test of time, this acid free paper will leave your printables with a longer lasting vibrancy than an acid based paper.

I hope these steps help you choose the right options for your custom printables! Now that you have your printables ready, it’s time to start monetizing your designs! Also, check out how much money you can make selling printables!