Digital Point (Graphic Design) – 1/72”               Physical Point (Paper Thickness) – 1/1000”

When it comes to the printing world, there are several instances where you might hear or see this term. When written, it is generally shortened to pt.

In this post, we will cover the two most common references of pt in regards to graphic design and paper thickness, then we will talk about the importance of font sizes that you use.

• The first usage of the term pt lives on the digital side of printing; graphic design. When designing a print file, you use a point when defining the size, spacing, etc. of a font, or the thickness of line. A point in this context equals 1/72 of an inch (0.353 mm)

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• The second way pt is used is to indicate the thickness of paper. If you have ever been shopping for business cards or postcards you have probably had to choose between 14pt or 16pt card stock. When used like this, each point equals 1/1000 of an inch (.0254 mm) of thickness.

Once you have your main design figured out and you begin writing the copy for the product, it is important to remember the smallest font size that is legible is 8pt. Anything smaller than this will potentially be blurry on the final print.