Tri-fold, bi-fold, z-fold, gate fold, and every panel count in between, printed full color on coated or uncoated stock and folded to spec. Shipped to all 50 states, mailed for you, or picked up in Lakeland, Florida.
Digital ads disappear when the tab closes. A brochure stays: 79 percent of consumers read the brochures they pick up, 67 percent recall the brand afterward, and the average piece lives on a desk or kitchen counter for 17 days. Printed material earns roughly four times the engagement of a digital ad, which is why the folded sheet remains the workhorse of trade shows, waiting rooms, sales calls, and rack displays. The sections below walk through the folds, the stocks, the design rules, and the ordering process, so the quote you request is the one your project actually needs.
Every fold is scored before it folds, which is the difference between a crisp crease and a cracked white line through your brand color. That holds even on heavy coated cover stock, where unscored folds fail first.
Our production team can build the brochure from scratch or optimize the files you send. Either way you review a digital proof showing layout, colors, and fold positions, and changes are free at the proof stage.
MPA is a Veteran-Owned Small Business, SOC 2 Type 2 certified, and HIPAA-compliant, with 5.0 stars across 100+ verified Google reviews. Those controls cover every job we run, including a box of 250 tri-folds.
Part of the brochure's staying power is social: it gets passed along. A prospect flips through it, hands it to a colleague, leaves it on a desk, or tucks it into a folder for later, and every one of those moments presents the brand again at no additional effort. Research cited by the Direct Marketing Association credits physical marketing with higher recall, deeper engagement, and stronger emotional response than screen-based content, and the format gives you room a banner ad never will: the full story of services, credentials, and differentiators in a piece that feels substantial enough to keep.
Brochures also slot into the rest of the marketing machine instead of competing with it. They ride along in direct mail campaigns, stack on trade show tables, wait in reception racks, and pack into fulfillment kits beside welcome letters and samples. A tri-fold mailed alongside a postcard or letter adds depth to the offer that a single card cannot carry on its own, which is exactly how high-response campaigns tend to be built.
A brochure is one flat sheet folded into panels, and the fold decides how the reader meets your message: all at once, panel by panel, or behind a pair of doors. Six folds cover most projects; the specialty patterns below them cover the rest.
6 panels · 8.5" x 11" flat
The most popular and cost-effective brochure there is. Two folds turn a letter sheet into six panels, it fits a #10 envelope, sits cleanly in a literature rack, and doubles as a self-mailer.
Best for: service overviews, menus, general marketing, handouts.
4 panels · 8.5" x 11" or 11" x 17" flat
One center fold, four generous panels. The 11" x 17" version opens to a full spread, which is why presenters and event planners reach for it when the content deserves room.
Best for: programs, presentations, event guides.
6 panels · 8.5" x 11" flat
Folded into a zig-zag instead of a wrap, so the panels read in strict sequence, one, two, three. When the order of information is the point, the z-fold enforces it.
Best for: step-by-step guides, maps, timelines.
4 to 6 panels · custom flat sizes
Two outer panels swing open like doors onto one wide center reveal. The most theatrical fold in the lineup, built for the moment the reader opens it.
Best for: product launches, high-impact reveals.
8+ panels · custom flat sizes
Back-and-forth pleats that stack eight or more panels into one pocketable piece. Opens flat in one pull, so a long process or portfolio reads as a single run.
Best for: portfolios, process overviews, mini catalogs.
8 panels · custom flat sizes
Panels roll inward, each one wrapping the next, so the reader unrolls the message one panel at a time. Eight panels of room without ever feeling bulky.
Best for: multi-service listings, feature breakdowns.
Those six are the staples, not the limit. Specialty patterns include the double gate fold, where the doors themselves fold once more; the French fold, a sheet folded in half twice for four thick quadrant panels; and the double parallel fold, two folds in the same direction that produce a slim eight-panel piece sized for an envelope. Custom fold configurations and non-standard flat sizes are welcome: if you can sketch it on a napkin, it can be quoted.
Whatever the pattern, every fold is scored before folding, so the crease lands exactly on the panel line with no cracking, even on heavy coated stock. That matters more than it sounds: an unscored fold across a solid ink area shows a ragged white fracture line, and it is the single most visible quality difference between a professional brochure and an office-printer one.
Choosing comes down to content volume and reading style. Count your sections honestly: a service list with three offerings fits a tri-fold, a program with a schedule wants the bi-fold's four big panels, a sequence of steps belongs on a z-fold, and a single dramatic announcement earns the gate fold. When the sections outgrow eight panels, you have left brochure territory, and a bound piece will serve the content better; the comparison block further down this page sorts that out in thirty seconds.
Not sure which fold to choose? Tell us what the piece needs to do and we'll recommend one with the quote.
Get a Brochure Quote →A heavy gloss sheet makes photography pop. A soft matte invites a longer look. An uncoated stock feels organic and takes a pen. Pick the surface for the job the brochure does, then add a coating only if the piece needs the durability or the drama.
80lb, 100lb, 120lb text & cover
A smooth, sealed surface that produces the sharpest images and the most vibrant color. The default for photo-heavy pieces where the pictures carry the sale.
Best for: real estate, product, and travel brochures.
80lb, 100lb text & cover
The same clean print surface with the shine dialed down. Reduced glare keeps long copy readable under any lighting, and the look reads as quietly elegant.
Best for: professional services, healthcare, text-forward pieces.
70lb & 80lb offset, 80lb & 100lb linen, cotton
Natural texture and a writable surface, with linen and premium cotton sheets when the paper itself should feel like part of the brand.
Best for: nonprofits, reply devices, tactile brand pieces.
full-sheet protection
A laminate film over the whole sheet for brochures that get handled hard: passed around showrooms, displayed in racks, or sent through the mail. Shrugs off fingerprints and moisture.
Best for: rack brochures, mailed pieces, heavy-use handouts.
velvet matte feel
A velvety, almost suede-like surface that makes people want to keep holding the piece. The finish you choose when the brochure is the brand experience.
Best for: premium services, flagship pieces, lookbook-style brochures.
available finishes
Spot UV coating is available when a logo or headline should carry a selective gloss highlight against a matte field. Aqueous coating adds overall scuff resistance to the sheet.
Best for: accent moments and extra sheet protection.
Two practical rules from thousands of brochure runs. First, match weight to use: a rack brochure stands up straighter on 100lb, a mailed self-mailer keeps postage friendlier on text weight, and a leave-behind for a high-ticket sale earns its cover stock. Second, coated and uncoated print differently: color sits brighter on coated sheets and softer on uncoated ones, so if your brand color is sacred, say so and we will advise on the right surface before the proof.
If the piece will be handled frequently, displayed in racks, or mailed, lamination is the cheap insurance. If the piece includes a form, a reply panel, or anything someone writes on, keep that panel uncoated. And if you want to feel the difference instead of reading about it, ask for paper samples with your quote.
One caution from the proof room: finishes photograph differently than they read in hand, so never pick one from a screenshot. Gloss amplifies saturated photography but can throw glare across dense copy, matte flatters long text and skin tones, and uncoated mutes color slightly in exchange for warmth. The digital proof exists to settle exactly these calls before the run starts, which is a far cheaper place to discover them than after it ends.
Torn between two stocks? Request paper samples with your quote and decide by hand, not by adjective.
Get a Brochure Quote →A brochure is not a flat page; it is a sequence of reveals. The layouts that work are designed panel by panel, in the order the reader actually opens them. Three habits separate brochures that get read from brochures that get refolded.
The cover earns the open with a headline and a promise, nothing more. Inside panels carry the detail: services, proof, photos. The back panel closes with the action, contact, and address block. When one panel tries to do two jobs, the reader does neither.
Keep text and logos at least a quarter inch inside the trim and clear of every crease. On a tri-fold, the panel that folds in runs a sixteenth of an inch narrower than the others, so panel widths are not equal thirds. Build on the right fold template and nothing lands on a crease.
Readers meet a tri-fold cover first, then the inside flap, then the full three-panel spread. A z-fold reads strictly in sequence; a gate fold saves everything for the center reveal. Put your strongest proof where the eye lands at full open, and the offer where the unfold ends.
File setup, in one paragraph. Build the document at the flat, unfolded size, which for a standard tri-fold is typically 11 x 8.5 inches, and export a print-ready PDF. Extend backgrounds 0.125 inch past the trim on all sides as bleed so no white sliver shows after cutting. Keep images at 300 DPI at final size, design in CMYK rather than RGB so colors do not shift on press, and embed or outline every font. Body text holds up at 8pt and larger; headlines start earning attention at 18pt.
None of that is homework you have to pass. Every order gets a free file check before anything prints, and the digital proof shows the layout, the colors, and the exact fold positions so you can catch a crease-crossing headline while it is still free to fix. Want a machine to check first? Run the free file check tool and it reads DPI, bleed, color mode, and font embedding in about 30 seconds.
Brochure pricing moves on four levers: quantity, paper, fold, and finish. Every quote is itemized line by line so you can see each lever, and it usually comes back within one business day.
the biggest lever
Setup is the fixed part of any run, so the unit cost steps down as the count climbs. A trade show season ordered as one run beats three small reprints every time.
Price moves with: how many pieces run together.
weight, surface, size
Text versus cover weight, coated versus uncoated, standard versus oversize flat sheet. The sheet is the raw material, and heavier or specialty sheets carry more of the quote.
Price moves with: the sheet you build on.
panels & passes
A half fold is one pass; a roll fold is several, each scored and registered. More panels and tighter patterns mean more finishing work per piece.
Price moves with: how the sheet folds down.
the optional layer
Lamination, soft-touch, spot UV, and aqueous coating each add a step. Most brochures need none of them; the ones that do are buying durability or shelf presence on purpose.
Price moves with: which finishes you specify.
How to read the quote. Every brochure quote arrives itemized: one line for the press run at your quantity, one for the stock, one for folding, one for any coating or lamination, and, if the job mails, separate lines for addressing, postage, and entry. Nothing hides inside a bundle, which means you can tune the quote yourself. Move from cover to text weight, drop a coating, or split the quantity across two versions, and the line items show exactly what each decision is worth.
Why a quote instead of a price grid? Because brochures have more combinations than any grid can hold, and the cheapest version of your job is usually one substitution away. A photo-heavy piece quoted on uncoated stock gets a better suggestion. A 6,000-piece handout split across three offices gets quoted as one run with three ship-tos. The quote desk catches those, and it still answers within one business day.
Mailing changes the math more often than you would think. A self-mailer skips the envelope and the inserting step entirely, which is why high-volume brochure programs so often tab and address the piece itself. When a job mails, postage shows up as its own line at the class the piece qualifies for, addressing and presort sit itemized beside it, and the print specification stays untouched. Ask for the shipped version and the mailed version of the same quote and compare them side by side; seeing both costs you nothing but the asking.
Itemized by quantity, stock, fold, and finish. Usually back within one business day.
Four steps from first email to brochures in hand, or in mailboxes.
Tell us the fold, stock, quantity, finishing, and timeline. Itemized quotes usually come back within one business day.
Send print-ready PDFs for a free pre-flight check on bleed, resolution, color, and panel sizing. The digital proof shows fold positions, and changes are free at this stage.
Printed full color, scored, and folded to spec. Simple tri-folds and bi-folds run 3 to 5 business days from proof approval; standard jobs run 5 to 7. Rush is available.
Boxed and shipped anywhere in the US, picked up in Lakeland, or addressed and entered with USPS when the brochure is the mailer.
Brochures travel through the mail two ways. A self-mailer is folded, sealed with wafer tabs, and addressed directly on the piece, which keeps the budget down by skipping the envelope and the inserting step. An envelope mailing puts the brochure inside a #10 or 6 x 9 carrier, often with a personalized letter and a reply card, and reads as personal mail when it lands. The tri-fold was practically engineered for both: it fits a #10 envelope and tabs cleanly as a self-mailer.
The mailing workflow covers the unglamorous parts that decide whether the piece arrives: NCOA address updates, CASS certification, deduplication, presort, and USPS entry. Saturation campaigns can pair the brochure with EDDM to reach every address on selected carrier routes without a mailing list. If you need the list itself, the List Builder tool is the place to start, and the mailing services team handles the rest, from data file to postal drop.
One scheduling note: mailed jobs add the postal calendar to the print calendar. If the brochure supports an event, work backward from the in-home date, not the print date, and say so in the quote request. Timelines get committed before anything runs, so the date is planned rather than hoped for.
Repeat programs get easier with every cycle. Once a fold template, stock, and layout are settled, the next run is a content swap into a known-good shell: the panel widths are already right, the crease positions are already proven, and the proof review focuses on the new copy instead of the mechanics. Quarterly program brochures and enrollment-season pieces are built for that rhythm, and recurring work can be planned as a calendar at the front of the program rather than quoted one surprise at a time.
Sales collateral is the common thread: six kinds of buyers we print brochures for, and what each one hands out.
Patient education brochures, service line overviews, wellness program guides, and new patient welcome packets, produced under HIPAA-compliant workflows when the job touches protected information. Matte stocks keep clinical copy readable in waiting room light.
Fundraising brochures, program guides, and donor stewardship pieces, often on uncoated stock that feels personal and takes a handwritten note. Pieces that mail can ride the nonprofit postal rates the organization already qualifies for.
Benefits enrollment guides, plan comparison brochures, and AEP and OEP campaign materials. Variable data printing personalizes plan information per recipient, so one run can speak to a thousand different policies.
Property brochures, neighborhood guides, and open house handouts. Gloss stock is the natural choice here because high-quality photo reproduction is what makes a listing piece work, and a bi-fold gives the hero shot a full panel.
Enrollment guides, campus maps, program brochures, and event guides. Bi-folds carry programs and presentations; z-folds turn a campus map or schedule into a piece that reads in order, gate by gate, building by building.
Public information brochures, voter guides, community program materials, and compliance notices, frequently in large quantities with presort mailing attached so the postage line works as hard as the print line.
Brochures multiply inside a campaign. The same piece that sits in the lobby rack can ride a direct mail drop, tuck into a fulfillment kit, and restock the sales team's bags for a trade show. Because postcards, letters, and brochures quote through the same desk, one message can hit the mailbox, the front desk, and the show floor in the same week, on one invoice.
The names blur together; the products do not. The shortest version: a brochure folds, a booklet binds, and a catalog is a booklet with a product line inside. Buy by what the piece has to do.
One sheet, four to eight panels, no staples, no spine. Fast to produce, light to mail, easy to rack. The right call when the message fits a single unfolding sequence: this page.
You are here: folded flat sheets, tri-fold to roll fold.
Multiple sheets on a spine, saddle stitched, coil bound, or perfect bound, read by turning pages. The moment your content needs page numbers, a contents list, or a cover that opens like a book, it stopped being a brochure.
Go to: Booklet Printing →
A bound piece built around products: SKUs, photos, specs, and prices, designed as a reference your buyer keeps. If the piece exists so someone can browse and order from it, it is a catalog job.
Go to: Catalog Printing →
Still on the fence? Check the spine: staples or glue mean booklet, and a single sheet that opens flat means brochure. And if your search started with a city name, the Lakeland brochure printing page covers the local side of this same service.
The eight questions the quote desk hears most, with the same answers we give on the phone.
Brochures rarely travel alone: a catalog for the heavy lifting, a postcard for the follow-up, a mailing program to carry all of it. Start here.
Bound, multi-page product catalogs when the line is too big for panels.
Saddle-stitched, coil, and perfect bound pieces with covers and page counts.
The short-message companion piece, printed, addressed, and entered with USPS.
The local-service side of this page for Central Florida projects and pickups.
The service hub for recurring programs: formats, postal classes, and timelines.
Data hygiene, presort, and USPS entry for self-mailer and envelope campaigns.
Since 1989. Veteran-owned. HIPAA-compliant and SOC 2 certified. Quote within one business day.
Tell us the fold, the stock, the quantity, and whether it mails. No artwork yet? Mention design help with your quote request and the proof comes built to the fold template.