Julia’s Print Clinic

Cutlines & Drill Holes: How to Set Up Print-Ready Artwork

Practical artwork advice from Graphic Warehouse to help trade printers, sign makers, design agencies, print brokers and copy shops supply files that are ready for production.

In this guide, Julia explains how to set up cutlines and drill holes correctly for large format print, shaped boards, stickers, contour-cut graphics and rigid signage.

Meet Julia

Your Artwork Advice Expert

Julia is part of the Graphic Warehouse Customer Service team and helps customers prepare artwork for production every day.

“Most artwork problems are easy to avoid once you know what our production team needs.”

In Julia’s Print Clinic, she shares practical tips to help trade printers, sign makers, copy shops and designers get artwork right first time.

In Julia’s Clinic Today

Cutlines & Drill Holes

Cutlines tell our finishing equipment where your printed product should be cut. Drill hole cutlines tell us where fixing holes should be placed.

When You Don’t Need a Cutline

If your product is a standard square or rectangle, such as many posters, banners or rigid boards, you usually do not need to supply a cutline.

Standard rectangular artwork example showing no cutline required — Example 1: Standard rectangle — no cutline required.

Our workflow automatically creates the finished-size cutline for standard rectangular products.

When You Do Need a Cutline

If your product is cut to shape, you need to supply one continuous vector cutline.

Cut to shape artwork example showing a continuous vector cutline — Example 2: Cut-to-shape artwork with one continuous cutline.

This cutline represents the finished size and shape of your printed product.

Internal Cut-Outs

Some designs require internal cut-outs, windows or holes.

Cut to shape artwork with internal cut out and separate cutlines — Example 3: Outer cutline plus internal cut-out cutline.

Supply an outer cutline for the finished shape and a separate cutline for each internal cut-out. Both should be placed on the CUT layer.

Adding Drill Holes

Drill holes should be created as vector circles on the CUT layer.

Rectangle artwork example with four drill hole cutlines — Example 4: Rectangle with four drill hole cutlines.

These circles tell our finishing equipment exactly where to drill. You still need to supply the outer finish-size cutline as well.

Combining Cutlines and Drill Holes

Some artwork needs everything together: an outer cutline, internal cut-outs and drill holes.

Cut to shape artwork with drill holes and internal cutline — Example 5: Cut-to-shape product with drill holes.

Once you understand this setup, you can prepare almost any cut-to-shape product with confidence.

The Cutline Key

Use this simple colour guide when checking your artwork:

Pink: Cutline
Orange: Bleed
Blue/artwork area: Printed design

Julia’s Common Cutline Mistakes

These are the artwork issues we see most often when customers supply cutlines and drill holes. Avoiding them will help prevent production delays.

Common cutline artwork mistakes including open paths and bitmap cutlines — Common mistakes to avoid when supplying cutlines.

Missing Finish Size Cutline

Drill holes alone are not enough. We still need an outer cutline to define the finished size.

Cutlines on a Separate Page

Cutlines should be on a separate CUT layer, not on a second page within the PDF.

Open Paths

Cutlines must be closed vector paths. Gaps or broken paths can cause cutting issues.

Multiple Finish Cutlines

Only one outer finish-size cutline should be supplied.

Bitmap or Raster Cutlines

Cutlines must be vector paths. JPEG, PNG or pixel-based lines cannot be used for cutting.

Julia’s Final Artwork Checklist

Artwork built at final size
Correct bleed added
Separate CUT layer created
One continuous vector cutline supplied
Drill holes added if required
Guides removed before saving
File supplied as a PDF

Julia’s Pro Tip

If you zoom in and your cutline looks pixelated, it isn’t a vector. Our cutters can only follow vector paths.

Need Help Setting Up Your Artwork?

If you’re unsure about your artwork setup, our team is here to help. Graphic Warehouse offers an artwork setup service from just £15, helping you avoid delays and get your files production-ready.

Ask Julia’s Team

Next Time in Julia’s Print Clinic

Why Do My Colours Look Different?

Julia explains RGB vs CMYK in plain English and shares practical tips to help you get better, more consistent colour results in print.