What it means
Trim size is the final page dimension of a printed book, stated width × height. Books are printed on larger sheets and then trimmed on three sides, which is why the size is named for the cut and why bleed exists.
The common North American trade trims are 5 × 8, 5.5 × 8.5 and 6 × 9 in for novels and nonfiction, 8.5 × 11 in for workbooks and manuals, and squares such as 8.5 × 8.5 in for picture books and photo books. UK and European trade sizes are B-format (129 × 198 mm), A-format (110 × 178 mm), demy (135 × 216 mm) and royal (156 × 234 mm).
Trim size is the first typesetting decision because everything else depends on it: a 90,000-word novel is about 340 pages at 5.5 × 8.5 in and nearer 300 at 6 × 9 in, which changes the spine width, the printing cost and the price.
In Bindery
Bindery’s 21 print presets cover the standard trade trims — 6 × 9, 5.5 × 8.5 and 8.5 × 11 in among them, plus 8.5 × 8.5 in square for picture books — and the spine is sized from the page count at that trim.
Make the book, not the checklist
Describe a book or upload a manuscript. Bindery writes with you, typesets in LaTeX, sizes the spine from the real page count and produces printer-validated files — the watermarked proof is always free.
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