Should I be looking outside the U.S. to print my black-and-white book?

Generally the answer is no. Paper, plates, and inks—the main materials in the printing process—cost the same here as they do anywhere else in the world. Printing presses and other related equipment cost the same no matter where you go and must be maintained the same way worldwide. We in the United States actually pay less for uncoated book paper than most foreign consumers because the raw materials and paper mills are right here.

Many foreign countries do have an advantage in labor rates, but it generally is not a factor in single color trade book printing. Let’s say that the unit cost of a book is $4, and $3 of that represents the cost of materials. That leaves only $1 that can be discounted. If the foreign labor rate is one-fourth that of the U.S., there is a savings of 75 cents per book, but they still must be shipped. In the end, the total savings amounts to pennies, if that. When you factor in the time needed for your books to reach the U.S. by boat, foreign printing looks even less attractive.

The possible exception to this is Canada, where they have plenty of raw materials and a favorable exchange rate with the U.S.; and they can deliver books on a timely basis using regular ground shipping. In the US we can buy a Canadian dollar for about 70 cents. Sounds good, until you take into consideration the fact that everything is more expensive in Canada. In the end, if there is any actual savings, it’s minimal. Canadian printers are generally only used where shipping is an advantage. An example would be if the printer is in Montreal and the final delivery is somewhere in Maine. One major thing to keep in mind with dealing in Canada is as much as we might like to think of them as suburbs of the US, they are not. Other than a common language (sometimes), many aspects of the process are just like dealing with a European or the Far Eastern manufacturer.

In contrast to the above, a full color hardcover children’s picture book is about 75% labor and 25% materials making the overall savings dealing overseas significant. If you are considering such a project you might want to visit www.RJCom.com

If you have a question pertaining to the publishing production process, please feel free to contact me at ron@rjcom.com.

Last 5 posts by Ron Pramschufer

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