Screen Printing vs DTF vs DTG: How to Choose the Right Method

Screen printing: best for bold designs at volume

Screen printing pushes ink through a mesh stencil, one screen per colour. Setup takes time and cost, but once the screens are burned the per-unit price drops fast — which makes it the cheapest option at higher quantities.

It gives the most durable, vibrant result on cotton, and unlocks speciality finishes like puff, high-density, metallic, and discharge printing that the digital methods cannot match.

• Best for: 1–4 colour designs, orders of 50+ pieces, speciality inks
• Strengths: lowest cost at volume, best durability, speciality finishes
• Watch-outs: per-colour setup cost makes small runs and photo-realistic art expensive

DTF: flexible, low-MOQ, works on almost any fabric

DTF prints your artwork onto a film, then heat-presses it onto the garment. Because there are no screens, there is effectively no setup cost — so full-colour and photo-realistic designs are affordable even at low quantities.

It also bonds to blends, polyester, and nylon that DTG struggles with, which is why it has become the default for mixed-fabric and small-batch programs.

• Best for: full-colour or photographic art, low MOQs, mixed fabrics
• Strengths: no setup cost, unlimited colours, works on blends and synthetics
• Watch-outs: a slight hand-feel on top of the fabric; large solid prints can feel heavier

DTG: photo-realistic detail on cotton

DTG sprays water-based ink directly into the fibres of the garment, like an inkjet printer for fabric. The result is a soft, breathable print with fine gradients — ideal for detailed artwork on 100% cotton.

Like DTF there is no per-colour setup, so it suits one-offs and small runs, but it performs best on cotton and lighter designs.

• Best for: detailed, multi-colour art on 100% cotton, small runs
• Strengths: softest hand-feel, photographic detail, no setup cost
• Watch-outs: cotton-first, less vivid on dark synthetics, higher per-unit cost at volume

A quick way to decide

Start with two questions: how many pieces, and how many colours? A simple 1–2 colour logo on 300+ tees is almost always screen printing. A detailed, full-colour graphic on 50 mixed-fabric pieces is DTF. A photographic design on premium cotton in a small run is DTG.

If you are unsure, send us the artwork and quantities — we run all of these in-house and will recommend the method that gives the best result for your budget, with strike-offs for approval before bulk.