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How to design a T-shirt: from idea to print-ready file
How to design a T-shirt from scratch: brief, idea, print size and placement, colors for the print method, and a file the print shop accepts without surprises.
- How to turn an idea into a print that reads on fabric
- How screen printing and DTG printing differ
- How to prepare the file: format, resolution, color profile
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Five steps to a T-shirt design
- 1
Step 1
Write a brief, even if the client is you
- 2
Step 2
Find the idea and sketch
- 3
Step 3
Choose size, placement and software
- 4
Step 4
Colors for the print method
- 5
Step 5
Prepare the file and show the design
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This guide is for you if you are
Making merch for the first time
You need a T-shirt for an event, a team or a club, and you want the print to look as planned, not just as it did on screen.
Learning graphic design
You want a practical task with real constraints: fabric, number of colors, size, print method.
Building a portfolio
You want to show not just a picture but decisions: why this print, these colors and this file.
In short
- Start with a brief: who the T-shirt is for, where it will be worn and what the print should say.
- One strong idea beats five small ones: people see a print in passing and from a distance.
- The print method shapes the design: in screen printing each color is a separate screen; DTG handles gradients and photos well.
- Colors on screen and on fabric differ: bright and neon shades often print duller.
- File requirements differ between print shops: check size, resolution, format and profile before you start.
Five steps to a T-shirt design
- 1
Step 1
Write a brief, even if the client is you
A T-shirt design isn't just a nice picture. It's something people will wear, and the print has to work for a specific event or community. So before the first sketch, answer a few questions in writing:
- who will wear it: runners in a race, a hackathon team, a board game club, students on a course;
- where it will be seen: on stage, on the street, in event photos, in everyday life afterwards;
- what the print should say: the event name, an inside joke, a community symbol, a date;
- what the constraints are: fabric color, print budget, number of shirts, whether a logo is required.
💡 No real client? Invent an event, such as merch for a school graduation or your favorite community, and write the brief as if a client sent it. Practice with constraints teaches more than drawing "just because".
- 2
Step 2
Find the idea and sketch
People see a T-shirt print in passing, in motion, often from a few meters away. So one clear idea works, not a collage of ten. Collect references: T-shirts you'd wear yourself, posters, labels, street signs. Work out what they have in common: how many elements, how many colors, how text and image are combined. Then make a series of quick pencil sketches:
- text-only options, where the lettering is the idea;
- options with a symbol or illustration and no text;
- combinations: a mark plus a short phrase;
- different print shapes: a square, a circle, a vertical strip, a small chest mark.
💡 Don't fall in love with the first sketch. Pick the three strongest and only take those into software, so you have something to compare.
Show the print before printing
Fixing a mistake in a mockup is free; fixing it in a print run isn't. Share your print with the brief in the community and ask what people notice first from a distance. It's free.
Get feedback on my printFree. 1,504 designers are already in the community.
- 3
Step 3
Choose size, placement and software
Decide where the print goes: on the chest, large on the back, a small mark by the shoulder. Set the print size in centimeters or inches, not by eye: the real size decides whether small text will be readable. The print shop gives the exact print area for a specific shirt. For example, every Printful product page has a File guidelines tab where you can download a template with dimensions, the print area and safe zones.
- logos, lettering and clean marks are best made as vectors in Illustrator, Inkscape or Figma, so they scale without losing quality;
- textured illustrations and photos are raster: prepare them at print size from the start in Photoshop, Procreate or Krita;
- check for seams, pockets or zips in the print area: Printful advises taking them into account while designing, and ribbed fabric is printed unstretched, so gaps can show in the print when it's worn.
💡 Print the sketch at real size on plain paper and hold it against a T-shirt in front of a mirror. You'll see at once whether the print is too small and whether the text reads from a distance.
- 4
Step 4
Colors for the print method
The print method isn't a technical detail; it's part of the brief. Here's how Printful describes two common methods in its comparison:
- screen printing: each color in the design needs its own screen, so a three-color logo needs three. Ink is mixed to a recipe, so a specific Pantone color can be matched exactly. Making the screens costs time and money and pays off on large runs, so it's worth limiting the number of colors;
- DTG (direct-to-garment) printing: prints straight onto fabric with CMYK inks, with no screens and no order minimum. It suits photos, gradients and fine color transitions better;
- colors look different on fabric than on screen: a screen emits light, while ink reflects it. Bright, neon and very saturated colors often print duller;
- in DTG the fabric affects the result: according to Printful, 100% cotton gives the most opaque color, while on blends the print looks faded, "vintage".
💡 Look at the design on a shirt of the color you'll print on. Dark text on black fabric is a classic mistake. For text, the WCAG standard is a useful reference: at least 4.5:1 contrast with the background for normal text. It's a rule for screens, but extra contrast doesn't hurt on fabric either.
T-shirt print not working? Show it to the community → - 5
Step 5
Prepare the file and show the design
Before exporting, check your print shop's requirements: they vary. As an example, here's what Printful recommends for DTG printing:
- PNG with a transparent background: JPG doesn't support transparency, and the design may print with a white rectangle around it;
- the sRGB IEC61966-2.1 color profile: the print shop converts the file to CMYK itself;
- at least 150 DPI at print size for most apparel, and 300 DPI for some products;
- the file at print size from the start: if you enlarge a 5×5-inch image at 100 DPI to 10×10 inches, the resolution halves to 50 DPI;
- don't export with Photoshop's Save for Web: it optimizes the file for screens and often reduces it to 72 DPI, which makes the print grainy.
💡 Before printing a run, show the design in the community along with the brief, and ask specific questions: what's visible first from a distance, whether the text reads, whether there are too many colors for screen printing. If you can, order a single sample: Printful also recommends seeing the product in person first.
You're not alone with these questions
We counted what people ask about most in our community. Learning and portfolios come first. A T-shirt design is a good learning task for both.
Messages by topic in Spaceberry Community, July 2024 — November 2026. Keyword search.
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Questions and answers
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Which software should I use to design a T-shirt?
It depends on the print. Lettering, logos and clean marks are easiest in vector software such as Illustrator, Inkscape or Figma. Textured illustrations and photos belong in raster software: Photoshop, Procreate, Krita. The key is to work at print size from the start and in the format the print shop accepts.
Screen printing vs DTG: which should I choose?
Screen printing needs a separate screen for each color and pays off on large runs, but gives solid color and exact Pantone matches. DTG prints without screens and without an order minimum, and handles photos and gradients better. For a learning project or a few shirts, digital printing usually fits better, but make the final call with your print shop.
Why don't the colors on the shirt match the screen?
A screen emits light, while ink on fabric reflects it, so colors always differ a little. Bright, neon and very saturated colors often print duller, and on blended fabrics a print can look faded. The most reliable check is to order one sample before the run. Before printing, also view the layout on the fabric color and leave extra contrast for text: dark text on a black shirt is a classic mistake.
Can I print a favorite character or a brand logo on a T-shirt?
Other people's characters, logos, photos and fonts are protected by copyright or trademark law, and you shouldn't use them without the owner's permission, especially if the shirts will be given away or sold. For learning, it's better to create your own mark: you get more practice and can show it in your portfolio without caveats.
Is the Spaceberry community paid?
No. Spaceberry Community is free: it's supported by Spaceberry Foundation, a non-profit public organization. All you need to join is a Telegram account. The community has 1,504 designers who share prints and merch for feedback before printing, ask about colors and files and take part in design games with the same brief and a deadline. A mistake spotted in the chat costs less than reprinting the run. Most conversations are in Ukrainian.
Get feedback on your print
Join 1,504 designers who learn, share their work and play design games. Show your T-shirt design and find out what to improve before printing. The community talks in Ukrainian.
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