There are multitudes of possible folding formats, but the vast majority of printed pieces use one of the dozen most common folds. Given the ubiquity of these folds, it’s surprising how many of us in the industry don’t know their names. It certainly makes it harder to specify a Double Parallel Fold when we don’t know what to call it.

Just as important is knowing how much space you have to allow for panels that fold inside other panels. On every panel folded inside another panel, you’ll generally lose 1/16^th of an inch in order to allow for an easy fit. If you do a barrel fold, panel sizes will quickly diminish.

Since designers layout their projects in the context of the flat page on the screen, it’s common to get overly-tight margins between the cut and graphic elements printed on the panel. It’s always a good idea to create a dummy from a printed laser while designing a project that has more than one fold. To help setup your margins, we’ve created a guide to the most common folds and their folding allowances.

Single Fold No allowances necessary.	Letter Fold Two outside panels: full size. Inside panel: 1/16 inch narrower.	Z-Fold No allowances necessary.	Accordian Fold No allowances necessary.
Map Fold Inside panel should be 1/16 inch narrower than the other full size, Z-Folded panels.	Double Parallel Fold Two outside panels: Full size. Two inside panels: 1/16 inch narrower.	Barrel or Roll Fold Two outside panels: Full size. Each successive panel should be 1/16 inch narrower than the previous one.	10-Page Parallel Fold Two outside panels: Full size. Middle panel: 1/16 inch narrower. Two inside panels: 1/8 inch narrower than full size.
Short Fold No allowances necessary.	Right Angle or French Fold No allowances necessary.	Right Angle with Short Fold No allowances necessary.	Gate Fold Outside panels: Full size. Inside panels: 1/16 inch narrower.