Screen Print vs DTG: Which Wins for Custom Tees?

Most people overpay for custom t-shirts because they pick the wrong print method before uploading a design. Screen printing is the cheaper option above roughly 24 shirts; DTG is better for small runs, one-offs, and photographic artwork with no colour limits.

Affiliate disclosure: some links in this post are affiliate links. TMK Tees earns a small commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you.

The choice between screen printing and direct-to-garment (DTG) printing affects every custom order. Band merch, streetwear drops, charity run shirts, sample packs: the decision changes price, turnaround, and durability in ways that compound once production is underway. Get it wrong and setup fees eat the budget before a single shirt ships. Get it right and the cost per unit falls significantly on bulk orders while print quality holds through dozens of washes.

What Screen Printing Actually Is

Screen printing forces ink through a mesh stencil stretched over a frame, directly onto fabric. Each colour in the design requires a separate screen, which is why printers charge a setup fee of roughly £15 to £30 per colour. That fee is fixed regardless of whether the run is 50 shirts or 500. Once the screens are made, the variable cost per additional unit is very low.

The ink sits on top of the fabric and cures under heat. Done correctly, a screen-printed design will survive 50 or more wash cycles without visible cracking or fade. Spot colours print with real intensity on both light and dark garments. The practical colour limit is six to eight inks per design, though most streetwear graphics use two or three. Clean vector artwork separates easily into colour layers. Gradients and photographic detail do not.

What DTG Printing Actually Is

Direct-to-garment printing works like a standard inkjet printer aimed at a t-shirt stretched on a platen. No screens. No setup fee. A single shirt costs as much to print as a batch of 20. That economics makes DTG the natural fit for samples, one-off gifts, and e-commerce stores fulfilling individual orders on demand.

DTG handles full-colour photographic artwork with ease. Gradients, fine line detail, and complex illustrations reproduce well on light-coloured fabric. On dark shirts, a white underbase must be laid down first, adding roughly £1 to £3 per unit and a slightly raised handfeel. The blank matters significantly for DTG quality. Popular choices include the Gildan 64000 Softstyle T-Shirt, a ring-spun cotton blank widely used in the industry because its smooth surface gives water-based pigment inks a consistent surface to adhere to.

The Cost Comparison

Numbers vary by printer, but the pattern is consistent across the UK market in 2026. At five shirts, DTG typically costs £9 to £14 per unit. Screen printing at the same quantity, with a two-colour design, lands closer to £22 to £30 each once screen setup is included. At 50 shirts the situation reverses. Screen printing drops to £5 to £8 per unit. DTG holds at roughly the same £9 to £14 it charged for five.

Colour Limits and Artwork Complexity

Screen printing requires clean, vector-based artwork with defined colour separations. A five-colour gradient that blends continuously needs five separate screens, and the cost adds up fast. Simple is cheaper. Two-colour logos, bold text, and block graphics are where screen printing delivers its best value for money.

DTG accepts any image file. A high-resolution JPEG photograph prints as easily as a solid-colour wordmark. That said, print size affects both methods: designs larger than approximately A4 (29 x 21 cm) usually incur a surcharge. Supply artwork at 300 DPI minimum for DTG and as a vector AI or EPS file for screen printing.

Fabric and Blank Compatibility

Screen printing works reliably on almost any fabric weight, including heavy fleece. For custom hoodies in bulk, it remains the industry standard. The Fruit of the Loom Classic Hooded Sweatshirt is a dependable budget blank for screen-printed custom hoodies, with a 280 g/m2 weight that holds ink cleanly without bleed-through on the inside of the shell.

DTG performs best on 100% cotton or at least an 80/20 cotton-polyester blend. Polyester-heavy fabrics cause the ink to sit unevenly and the finished print can look faded or patchy even when new. Always confirm the blank composition before ordering a DTG run. Ring-spun cotton with a smooth finish consistently produces the cleanest result.

Durability After Washing

Screen printing wins on longevity. Plastisol inks bond deeply and resist cracking when applied at the correct temperature. DTG inks are water-based pigment formulations, slightly more susceptible to fade if regularly washed at 40 degrees or tumble-dried on high heat. The gap narrows considerably with good care. Both methods benefit from cold washes and line drying, and advising end-customers to turn garments inside-out before washing is worth doing regardless of print type.

Which Method Should You Choose?

Under 20 shirts, or any order where designs vary from shirt to shirt, DTG is almost always the right choice. Zero setup cost makes small runs genuinely affordable. For a run of 30 or more identical shirts with a design using three or fewer colours, screen printing undercuts DTG on total cost by a meaningful margin.

For streetwear brands planning a seasonal drop of 50 to 200 units with a graphic logo, screen printing on a quality blank such as the Gildan Heavy Blend Hoodie 18500 is the standard approach. The 50/50 cotton-polyester construction gives the garment durability and a softer hand, and the weight holds well under plastisol ink. For an e-commerce store fulfilling single orders, DTG with a print-on-demand supplier removes the need to hold any stock at all.

Mixed approaches work too. Many studios use DTG for samples and small test runs, then move proven designs to screen printing once sales justify a larger production batch. That sequence reduces waste and keeps cash available until a design earns its place in inventory.

FAQ

What is the minimum order for screen printing custom t-shirts in the UK?

Most UK screen printers set a minimum of 12 to 24 shirts per design. Some specialist printers accept as few as 6, but the per-unit cost at that quantity is rarely competitive with DTG. Below 12 shirts, DTG is almost always the more cost-effective option.

Can DTG printing be used on dark-coloured t-shirts?

Yes, but a white underbase layer is required first to prevent the fabric colour from showing through the design. The underbase adds roughly £1 to £3 per shirt and gives the print a slightly raised feel. Colours on dark garments appear a little less vivid than they would on white or light-grey fabric.

How long does a DTG print last compared to screen printing?

A DTG print on 100% cotton, washed cold and dried on the line, should last 30 to 50 wash cycles before visible fading. Screen printing typically lasts 50 cycles or more under the same conditions. The gap narrows with careful garment care, but screen printing still has a durability advantage for workwear or any garment washed frequently at higher temperatures.

Is screen printing or DTG better for streetwear drops?

For drops of 50 or more units with bold graphic designs, screen printing is the industry standard in streetwear because it delivers vibrant, durable prints at a lower per-unit cost. DTG suits limited one-of-a-kind pieces, personalised orders, and test samples before a brand commits to a full screen-printed run.

What file format should you send to a screen printer?

Vector files (AI, EPS, or PDF) are preferred because they scale without quality loss and separate cleanly into individual colour layers. DTG printers accept high-resolution PNGs or TIFFs at 300 DPI minimum, with a transparent background. If you only have a JPEG, most printers will reformat it for a small artwork fee, usually £5 to £15.