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Offset or digital printing? Which is cheaper at which quantity

One customer wants 500 brochures, another wants 5,000. Running both on the same press is often the wrong call. Offset and digital costs are made of different items; as the quantity grows, one gets cheaper while the other stays almost the same. Which one is cheaper should be calculated from those items, not guessed.

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What offset costs

Offset has a fixed cost before the run starts: one plate per colour, make-ready, and the waste sheets spent while setting up. That cost is the same at 500 copies and at 5,000.

Once the run starts, each extra sheet costs little: paper, ink and impressions. That is why the unit price in offset falls quickly as the quantity rises. On a short run the fixed cost is spread over a few hundred pieces and the unit price comes out high.

What digital costs

Digital has no plates and almost no make-ready. Most of the cost is the click charge: a fixed amount paid for every side the press prints. Paper is added on top.

The click charge does not change with quantity. Fifty sheets and two thousand sheets print at the same unit price. That makes digital very attractive on short runs and expensive on long ones.

The break-even quantity

The two cost lines cross at some point. Below that quantity digital is cheaper; above it, offset is. To find it, run both calculations side by side for the same job:

  • Offset: plates × plate price + make-ready + waste paper + (sheets × paper and impression unit cost).
  • Digital: sheets × (click charge × sides + paper unit cost).
  • Compare the two totals at different quantities; the point where digital starts to cost more is the break-even.
  • The number of colours matters: a one-colour job has a low fixed offset cost, a four-colour job a high one, and the break-even shifts accordingly.

Sheet size changes the sums

In offset, how many copies fit on one sheet decides how many sheets and plates you need. Digital sheets are usually smaller and have a non-printable strip around the edge, so the same job may fit fewer times per sheet.

When comparing the two methods, calculate each with its own sheet and its own layout. Applying one layout to both makes the comparison misleading.

Differences beyond cost

Price is not the only measure. Offset offers spot colours and a wide choice of stock, and it is more consistent on large flat colour areas. Digital is fast, can print a different name or number on every piece, and is ideal for proofs.

Short deadline, small quantity and variable content usually point to digital; high quantity, critical colour and special stock usually point to offset.

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