Giclée printing produces top-grade fine art prints that are equally popular among artists and art collectors. Using an online printing service is usually cheaper than going to the print shop near you. That’s why I’ve sorted out the best fine art printing services for Giclee that allow you to place your order online and offer the highest quality Giclee prints on photographic paper or canvas!
Giclée prints on fine art paper are the way to go for many artists. Why? Because they are an easy way to sell high-quality reproductions of artwork.
Back in the day, it was only possible to sell a painting once. And when that piece of art was sold, that was it.
Now, with all the technology at our fingertips, both traditional and digital artists can offer an unlimited number of copies of their creations.
As a result, artists are able to showcase and sell their art to a wider audience. And in return, more people are able to afford having an art print of their favorite artist in their home.
You see, fine art printing is a win-win for everyone!
Giclee prints are offered either on photographic paper or canvas. When printing Giclee on photographic paper, you usually need to choose finish and framing options. Popular photographic finishes are matte and glossy, with matte being the better option for framing.
Not every artist has a fine art printing service near them. But luckily, nowadays it’s no problem to have your fine art printed online.
Online printing services for artists tend to offer cheaper prices, while providing the same top-grade quality!
In this post, I’ve sorted out 5 of the best Giclee printing services on the web and checked what they're good for so you don't have to.
Here’s my rundown:
5 Best Fine Art Printing Services For Giclee: Table of Contents
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What is Giclee printing?
Giclee printing creates the highest quality prints available in the market. That’s why Giclee prints are so popular among artists and art collectors.
The name ‘Giclee’ comes from French; that’s why you sometimes also find it written ‘Giclée’ (with an accent on the e). It is pronounced ‘gee-klay’ and was coined in 1991 by printmaker Jack Duganne.
Giclee printing is done with inkjet printers on archival media, which can be either photographic paper or canvas.
What is the difference between a Giclee and a print?
The difference between a Giclee and a regular print is basically the method of production and the materials used.
Not all prints are Giclee prints, even when created with an inkjet printer.
There are certain criteria that a print needs to meet to be considered a Giclee.
First of all, the inkjet printer must use a set of 8 to 12 pigment-based inks. Traditional printers use a combination of 4 inks: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black (K) – also known as CMYK.
Pigment-based inks are more enduring than regular inks and achieve a wider color gamut and smoother gradient transitions. That’s why Giclee prints look so vibrant and rich.
Next, Giclee papers must be archival quality. That means the photographic paper or canvas must be acid-free, with a pH value of 7.0 or higher.
This is very important because any acid in the paper will mix with the inks, making them fade and grow dull. The very best art printing papers consist of cotton rag or wood cellulose, or a combination of the two.
To learn more about the different papers, check out the Best Paper For Printing Digital Art.
What resolution should a Giclee print be?
To create a high-quality Giclée print, the image you use to make that print needs to have a high resolution. The minimum resolution should be 300 dots per inch (DPI, or PPI for pixels per inch). The higher, the better.
Why? Because the DPI accounts for the detail in the print.
In order to make your Giclée print look good, you need to increase the number of dots that make up your image.
To learn more about saving your work for print, check out the Best File Format For Printing Digital Art.
What are the best fine art printing services for Giclee?
Since not all online printing services for artists offer Giclee prints, I’ve taken a good look at the fine art printing services available in the market and sorted out the five best Giclee printing services!
I’ve made sure that the fine art printing providers focus on Giclee printing and also offer print-on-demand services that are easy to integrate into your art store on Pixpa, Squarespace, Etsy, or your own artist website.
So, let’s go!
5 Best Fine Art Printing Services For Giclee
1. Gelato
Gelato is one of the largest print-on-demand companies for artists and photographers. The company works with a network of local print partners in over 30 countries to fulfill orders as close to the customer as possible and reduce shipping times and costs.
All Giclee prints are produced using the highest quality inkjet printers, pigment inks, and premium archival papers. That’s why Gelato prints are of museum-quality.
The platform is beginner-friendly and integrates well with platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce, meaning you can sell directly through your art shop while Gelato automatically handles the production, packaging, and shipping for you.
2. Printerpix
Printerpix is another star among the best fine art printing services for Giclee. The company features a large selection of prints, including canvas prints, acrylic prints, mural prints, metal prints, wood prints, and photo prints.
Once you’ve created a free account on the website, you can upload your artwork and select a product. You can choose from a wide array of custom sizes, and you can be assured that your Giclee prints will last 200+ years. You can set your own prices, and once a customer orders your product, Printerpix will drop-ship it to the buyer.
Printerpix ships to most countries in Europe and North America, and you can easily customize your drop-shipping orders by adding a package insert, like a thank-you card or a personal message to the buyer.
» You can check out Printerpix’s fine art printing range here.
3. Printify
Printify is a print-on-demand provider for fine art giclee prints with worldwide production facilities. The company offers some of the most affordable prices in the market; it has printing partners in multiple countries, minimizing shipping costs and customs fees for international customers.
Printify’s giclée prints are made on acid-free museum-grade paper, with fade-resistant, pigmented archival inks. You can currently get prints in 14 size variations, with framed and unframed options.
For artists looking to sell affordable prints, Printify is a great option. It offers seamless e-commerce integrations with platforms like Squarespace, Shopify, and WooCommerce—this allows you to automate order fulfillment and focus on creating instead of shipping your prints yourself!
» Printify has a forever free plan you can sign up for here.
4. Printful
Printful is one of the biggest print-on-demand providers in the market. They offer a wide range of customizable products, including Giclee prints on photographic paper or canvas.
As a PoD provider, Printful handles everything for you – from manufacturing, to order fulfillment and delivery. It is easy to integrate into your existing online store, for example on Etsy or Squarespace, or your WooCommerce artist website. The company ships internationally at very attractive rates. There are no minimum order requirements or subscription fees on the basic plan.
If you want to get more advanced features or use Printful on a professional basis, there’s the Pro Plan for $49 a month. The free plan is totally enough for printing art occasionally. If you are selling large numbers of prints every month, you can start a free 14-day trial of Printful’s Pro Plan to see if it’s a fit for you!
» You can check out Printful’s fine art printing range here.
5. CanvasChamp
CanvasChamp is a high-quality fine art printing service backed by years of expertise. They specialize in long-lasting Giclee prints on premium fine art and photographic papers, ensuring that your artwork and photos look stunning for years to come.
Besides classic rectangular prints in a variety of sizes, you can also find unique editions like round, triangle, or heart-shaped canvases. CanvasChamp ships all of their products internationally to most countries in the world. Their next-day shipping service for all print sizes in the U.S. makes sure your order gets delivered as quickly as possible.
One of the standout perks of CanvasChamp is their lowest price guarantee in the U.S. on over 100 of their custom photo products. Plus, if you’re ordering in bulk, you’ll enjoy generous discounts—just contact them for a custom offer according to your needs!
» Get an additional 10% off on orders above $49 with code CC10.
