Ask a printer what it costs to print your book and you’ll usually get a list of questions back. How many pages? What size? Colour or black and white? Which binding? How many copies? It can feel like they’re dodging the answer. They aren’t. Each of those details changes the price, sometimes by a lot.
In short, the cost of printing a book in India comes down to seven things: how many copies you order, the number of pages, black and white or colour, the book size, the paper, the binding and the cover finish. Ordering more copies brings the price per copy down. A colour interior costs noticeably more than black and white, and every extra page adds a little. GST and shipping usually come on top. The quickest way to get an exact figure is to put your details into an online calculator, which shows the price per copy and the total straight away.
The rest of this piece goes through each of those seven factors, so you can make choices that fit your budget.
What decides the price
Quantity
This has the biggest effect on what each copy costs. Every print job involves some fixed work, like preparing the files, setting up the machines and finishing, and that cost gets shared across however many copies you order. Order more and each copy carries less of it.
That’s why 100 copies doesn’t cost twice as much as 50. It’s also why it’s tempting to order more than you need. A lower price per copy only saves you money if the books actually get sold or used. On FastBookPrint you can order from 50 up to 1,000 copies and compare prices at different quantities before you decide.
Page count
More pages means more paper, more printing and a thicker spine. It’s worth knowing that page count isn’t fixed by your word count alone. A 300-page novel at A5 can often come down to around 220 pages with careful changes to the font size, line spacing and margins, and that saving shows up directly in the price.
Black and white or colour
A full-colour interior costs a good deal more than black and white. If your book is mostly text with a few photos, you could print the inside in black and white and keep the colour for the cover, or group the colour pictures onto fewer pages. If colour is the whole point, as with a children’s picture book, a cookbook or a photo book, it’s money well spent.
Book size
Bigger pages use more paper, so an A4 book costs more than an A5 book with the same number of pages. We print four sizes:
| Size | Dimensions | Often used for |
|---|---|---|
| A5 | 148 × 210 mm | Novels, memoirs, poetry, non-fiction |
| Half Letter | 140 × 216 mm | Novels and non-fiction |
| A4 | 210 × 297 mm | Workbooks, manuals, reports, illustrated books |
| Letter | 216 × 279 mm | Workbooks and documents set up at US Letter size |
Bear in mind that changing the size changes the page count too. The same text moved from A4 to A5 runs to roughly twice as many pages.
Paper
Heavier paper generally costs more and makes the book thicker. For text-heavy books, uncoated maplitho is the usual choice, and we offer it in 70 GSM and 80 GSM. 70 GSM keeps the cost and the thickness down. 80 GSM feels a little more solid and cuts down show-through, which is when you can faintly see the text from the next page.
Binding
Perfect binding glues the pages into a flat spine. It’s the standard paperback look, it suits books with more pages, and the title can go on the spine. Saddle stitching staples folded sheets through the middle. It works well for slimmer books, booklets and short poetry collections, and the page count needs to be a multiple of four. For a slim book, saddle stitching is often the cheaper option. If the book needs to sit on a shelf with its title showing, go for perfect binding.
Cover finish
You can choose matte or gloss lamination. Both protect the cover. Matte looks softer and doesn’t show fingerprints as much, while gloss makes colours look brighter. The price difference is small next to everything else, so pick whichever suits your design.
What isn’t included in the printing price
When you compare quotes from different printers, check what each one covers.
GST is the first thing to look at. Our calculator shows prices without GST, and the tax is added at checkout, so make sure you’re comparing like with like. Shipping is worked out at checkout based on your order and delivery address. Within India, delivery generally takes 3 to 7 business days after dispatch.
Design and typesetting are separate too. Printing assumes you’re supplying print-ready files, so if you need help with the cover or the layout, that’s an extra cost wherever you print. And if you’re publishing in India, remember that you’re required to send copies to four public libraries. Add those to your quantity.
Example prices
These are prices from our calculator for a few common types of book. They don’t include GST or shipping.
Prices checked on October 2026. Your own price will depend on your files and the options you choose.
For your exact figure, get an instant quote from your specifications. There’s no sign-up and nobody will call you.
Ways to bring the cost down
- Order what you can realistically use, and reprint later. Your specifications are saved, so reordering is straightforward.
- Tighten the layout. Small changes to font size, line spacing and margins can take dozens of pages out without making the book harder to read.
- Keep colour for where it matters. A colour cover with a black and white interior works for most text-led books.
- Choose a size that suits the content. For text-heavy books, A5 usually works out cheaper than A4.
- Use 70 GSM for long, text-only books. It saves on both cost and thickness.
- Look at saddle stitching for slim books.
- Compare before you commit. The calculator shows prices side by side for different sizes, print types, papers, bindings and finishes, so you can see what each change does.
Getting an exact price
Open the FastBookPrint calculator and either upload your cover and interior PDFs, or choose “Get instant quote” if the files aren’t ready. Pick your size, print type, paper, binding, cover finish, page count and quantity. You’ll see the price per book and the order total before GST, with shipping added at checkout. Preview the book, and order online when you’re happy with it.
Questions authors often ask
What’s the minimum number of copies I can print? 50 copies.
Why is each copy cheaper when I order more? Every print job has some fixed setup work. Spread across more copies, it adds less to each one.
How much more does colour cost than black and white? It depends on the book, but colour interiors cost noticeably more. The calculator’s comparison table will show you the difference for your exact book.
Does the price include GST and shipping? No. Calculator prices are before GST, and shipping is added at checkout.
How can I make my book cheaper to print? Order a sensible quantity, tighten the layout to save pages, use black and white for text-led books, and pick a size and binding that suit the page count.
Can I order more copies later? Yes. Your specifications are saved, so you can reorder whenever you need to.
Know your number before you decide
Once you know what moves the price, book printing costs stop being a mystery. Be realistic about quantity, choose options that suit the content, and compare a couple of combinations before you order.
Get your instant quote from your specifications, or upload your PDF for a price based on your actual files.