Funeral Program Printing: Home, Print Shop or Church

You can print funeral programs at home, at a print shop or at the church office, often the same day. What matters is the file, the paper and three printer settings. Get those right and the pages come out in the right order, with nothing cut off.

The file

A folded program needs its pages placed on the sheet in fold order. On a 4-page bifold, the front of the sheet holds page 4 on the left and page 1 on the right; the back holds pages 2 and 3. When you fold it, the pages read 1, 2, 3, 4. This is called an imposed or print-ready file. If you print a normal page-by-page PDF double-sided, the pages come out in the wrong order, which is one of the most common complaints families have.

The funeral program template gives you both files: the print-ready one in fold order with small fold marks, and a page-by-page one for a print shop that wants to impose it themselves.

The paper

• 28 to 32 lb text paper (about 105 to 120 gsm): feels noticeably better than copy paper and goes through every home printer.
• 65 lb cover stock (about 175 gsm): the classic program weight. Most inkjets take it from the manual feed tray.
• 80 to 110 lb cardstock: for prayer cards and thank-you cards.
• White or cream. Cream looks warmer and hides small color differences in old photos.

The three settings

1. Actual size (or Scale 100%), never “Fit to page”. Fit to page shrinks everything and the fold lands in the wrong place.
2. Double-sided, flip on short edge for a program printed on a landscape sheet. “Flip on long edge” prints the back upside down.
3. Best quality or photo quality, so the photos do not band.

Print one test sheet first. Our set includes one with a 1 inch square to measure and a dashed line a quarter inch from every edge. If the square measures 1 inch and you can see the whole dashed line, your printer will print the program right.

At home

A home inkjet prints a 4-page program in about a minute. For 100 programs, plan an evening, a second ink cartridge and a stack of paper. If your printer cannot print double-sided by itself, print all the fronts, put the stack back in, and print the backs; check the orientation with one sheet first.

At a print shop

FedEx Office, Staples, Office Depot and local print shops usually print and fold a few hundred programs the same day. Call ahead, email or bring the print-ready PDF on a USB stick, and say:

“Double-sided, flip on short edge, actual size, on 65 lb cover stock, folded in half.”

Ask for one proof copy before they run the rest, and check the photos and the page order.

At the church office

Most church offices have a copier that prints double-sided and many that fold. The same file and the same words work. Ask the office how much notice they need, especially near a weekend.

How many to print

Count the guests you expect and add about one in five. Families keep a few for relatives who could not come, and some guests take two. Running out at the door is worse than having a stack left.

Prayer cards, thank-you cards and the poster

• Prayer cards: cardstock, double-sided, flip on long edge, then cut on the marks. See the prayer cards guide.
• Thank-you cards: the same way, two to a sheet.
• Photo poster: an 18 by 24 inch poster print at a print shop or a pharmacy photo counter, mounted on foam board if you want it on an easel.