UV Coating: Gloss & Matte
A clear, hard-wearing finish for your covers and cover-stock prints — applied in-house in Phoenix on our Duplo Ultra 200 UV coater. UV coating makes a printed piece look and feel professional, and protects it from scuffs, moisture, and handling, including the trip through the mail.
verified Available on booklet, catalog, book, and coil covers — just choose Gloss or Matte UV in the quote tool.
How UV Coating Works
UV coating is applied after printing, as a separate step on our Duplo Ultra 200.
Printed
Your cover is printed on a coated cover stock.
Coated
Rollers lay a thin, even layer of liquid UV coating across the whole sheet.
Cured
The sheet rides a conveyor through a shielded UV tunnel, where a high-energy lamp turns the liquid into a hard, clear plastic in seconds.
Protected
The finish is fully cured and dry the moment it comes out — ready to bind, trim, and ship.
Why there’s no photo of the UV tunnel: the curing lamp is a 3–4 kilowatt ultraviolet bulb. It’s fully shielded inside the machine, because that much UV light would damage your eyes and skin in seconds. What you can see is the result: a finish that’s cured and dry the instant it leaves the machine.
You may hear UV coating called a “liquid laminate.” It’s a handy description, but it isn’t a laminate — there’s no film. The coating itself cures into the protective plastic layer.
UV Coating vs. Aqueous Coating
Many printers use aqueous coating because it’s cheaper to run. Most of an aqueous coating is water that evaporates, so only a thin film is left behind. With UV, nearly everything we apply stays on the sheet — which is why it protects so much better.
Gloss or Matte?
Gloss UV makes colors pop with a glassy shine. Its one real drawback is fingerprints. If your cover has a dark or solid black background, think of holding a piece of black glass: no matter what, you’re going to leave a fingerprint. On a busy, light, or white background it still leaves fingerprints — you just don’t see them.
Matte UV is the same clear coating with a matting agent added — microscopic, transparent particles (think ultra-fine clear sand) that break up the surface. Instead of reflecting light like a mirror, the surface scatters it, so there’s no glare and fingerprints disappear. It also gives matte its signature feel: a subtle, fine texture you notice the moment you pick the piece up — and most people who touch it love it. That makes matte the safer choice for dark or solid covers.
Our rule of thumb: dark or solid-color cover → matte. Bright, busy, or light cover → gloss, if you want the shine.
What Can Be UV Coated
Yes
- Coated cover stocks — our gloss and matte covers and 14 pt board
- Covers for saddle stitch booklets, perfect bound books, and coil bound books
- Cover-stock flyers and brochures
No
- Uncoated (opaque) papers — UV needs a coated surface to cure on
- Text-weight papers — inside pages and lightweight sheets
- Don’t worry about getting it wrong: the quote tool only offers UV where it works.
UV Coating Questions
What is UV coating?
A clear liquid coating applied to a printed sheet and instantly cured by high-energy ultraviolet light into a hard, protective plastic layer. It adds a gloss or matte finish and guards against scuffs, moisture, and handling.
Is UV coating better than aqueous coating?
For protection, yes. Aqueous coating is mostly water that evaporates and leaves a thin film. With UV, nearly all of the coating stays on the sheet, so the finish is significantly tougher.
Should I choose gloss or matte UV?
Gloss adds shine but shows fingerprints, especially on dark or solid backgrounds. Matte has no glare, hides fingerprints, and has a subtle, fine texture most people love. For dark covers choose matte; for bright, busy, or light covers gloss works well.
Why does matte UV feel different?
Matte UV contains a matting agent — microscopic, transparent particles that give the cured surface a very fine texture. That texture scatters light (no glare, fingerprints hidden) and gives matte a distinctive feel. It isn’t the same as “soft-touch” coating; matte UV is harder-wearing, with a fine, subtle grain rather than a rubbery feel.
Is UV coating the same as lamination?
No. It’s sometimes called a “liquid laminate,” but lamination bonds a plastic film to the sheet. UV coating is a liquid that cures into the protective layer itself.
Do you offer spot UV or satin UV?
We offer full-coverage UV in gloss or matte. We don’t offer spot UV or satin.
Can UV go on any paper?
Only on coated cover stocks. Uncoated papers and text-weight pages can’t be UV coated. The quote tool only offers UV where it applies.
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call 480.629.5162 | mail info@shortrunprinting.com
Why Short Run Printing?
All-inclusive pricing — print, bindery, and shipping are all included in your quote. No setup fees, no file upload fees, no surprises at checkout.
Quality guaranteed — we use only premium, ream-wrapped papers specifically engineered for digital printing. 2400 DPI full-color output on every job.
Fast turnaround — most jobs ship within 3–5 business days, with rush options available.
