Print-Ready File Checker

Use the print ready checker to inspect a PDF or image before sending it into a print workflow. Choose a print-size preset or enter custom dimensions, then review PDF trim dimensions, declared bleed and font-embedding findings, or an image’s effective resolution at that output size. Text-margin warnings are estimates. The print ready checker does not certify PDF/X, inspect every visual element or guarantee a printer’s acceptance; it helps you identify measurements and potential problems that need a closer source-file review.

Set the print ready checker to your job

Print suitability depends on the intended physical size and receiving printer, not just whether a file opens. A 1,800-pixel image may be adequate for a small card but insufficient for a large poster. A PDF can have the right displayed size while its trim box, declared bleed or embedded fonts need attention.

Enter the final width and height in millimeters, target DPI, bleed and margin estimates. The Print size preset control supplies convenient starting dimensions, including A4 and selected print-on-demand sizes. They are editable estimates, not an up-to-date certification for a platform. Confirm the specification for the particular product, printer, binding and page count you intend to order.

Inspect a PDF or image

1. Choose a preset or enter custom width, height, DPI, bleed and margin values.
2. Select Choose file for a PDF, PNG, JPEG or TIFF. Processing starts locally with the current settings.
3. If you change settings, select Process files to rebuild the results.
4. Review every PDF page’s measurements and font table, or the image’s pixel dimensions and effective DPI.
5. Return to the source artwork to correct a problem, re-export and check again.

This is an inspection tool, not a PDF editor. It does not embed a missing font, resize the artwork, generate a corrected print file or offer a certification download. Keep a copy of the observations if your print workflow needs a record, and use the original design application for corrective edits.

Image example: stored DPI versus effective DPI

A 1,800 by 2,700 pixel image placed at 152.4 by 228.6 millimeters, equivalent to 6 by 9 inches, has an effective resolution of 300 pixels per inch in both directions when bleed is zero. The same pixels printed at twice those dimensions give 150 pixels per inch. Changing only the image’s stored DPI label does not create more detail.

Adding bleed to the selected output size increases the area covered by those pixels, so the effective resolution can fall below the target. The print ready checker reports readable resolution metadata separately from its calculated effective DPI. If a density tag is missing, stored DPI can remain unknown while the pixel-based calculation is still useful.

PDF fonts, trim boxes and declared bleed

The PDF path lists inspected font resources and whether an embedded font program was found, including resources inside supported form objects. It also compares trim dimensions with the selected size and estimates available bleed from the declared trim and bleed boxes. A font flagged as not embedded should be investigated in the source export; the print ready checker cannot add its missing font data.

Declared boxes do not prove that artwork actually extends into the bleed area. A document can contain generous boxes and still place a white edge where color should extend. Similarly, outlined text is artwork rather than a font resource, so a font list is not a complete inventory of every visible letter.

Margins and platform presets need human review

Margin warnings inspect approximate text positions. They do not comprehensively measure rotated text, vector graphics, placed images, binding allowance, safe zones or every edge of a text bounding box. Review the rendered artwork and your printer’s template rather than treating zero text warnings as a safe-margin certificate.

KDP interior bleed is not a universal symmetric-border rule, and margins vary with the book’s requirements. The preset’s generic geometry cannot replace current KDP trim, bleed and margin guidance. Check the exported page dimensions and the platform’s own previewer before submission.

What a preflight result cannot guarantee

The image path reports color mode where readable, but this tool does not perform complete PDF color-separation, ink coverage, transparency or overprint analysis. It does not certify PDF/A or PDF/X, assess image sharpness perceptually, or establish that a font license allows embedding. PDF processing is bounded at 2,000 pages and requires an inspectable file.

For product photography intended for a marketplace rather than print, Amazon image preflight checks a different pixel-based profile. For a digital book package, EPUB structure validation checks archive and reading-order issues instead of physical print dimensions. Use this print ready checker to find specific concerns, then verify the final design in the receiving workflow.

Common print ready checker errors and how to fix them

When the print ready checker cannot use a file, it stops with one clear message instead of producing a half-finished download. These are the problems people run into most often, with the fix for each:

• The file does not match the expected format or has invalid structure. The PDF or image is damaged or not what its extension says. A truncated download is a common cause.
• The file ends unexpectedly. It may be truncated or corrupt. An image file stops partway through its data.
• Enter valid positive print dimensions and DPI. A custom preset has a zero, negative or empty value.
• Fonts not embedded or no bleed declared These are warnings to fix in the design application before export.

Privacy: the print ready checker runs in your browser

Print ready checker processing happens with JavaScript in a background worker on this page. Your file is not uploaded to a FileFix server, and the results are shown only on this page. Unpublished manuscripts, designs and product data stay on your computer. When you finish on a shared computer, clear the selection or close the tab.

Sources

• Amazon KDP: Set trim size, bleed and margins

Questions about this tool