Design For Print - ISO Paper Size Research

ISO PAPER SIZE:


A SERIES:


Table of Paper Sizes From 4A0 to A10

A Series Paper Sizes Chart.

Image courtesy of Office 365.

Size	Height x Width (mm)	Height x Width (in)
4A0	2378 x 1682 mm	93.6 x 66.2 in
2A0	1682 x 1189 mm	66.2 x 46.8 in
A0	1189 x 841 mm	46.8 x 33.1 in
A1	841 x 594 mm	33.1 x 23.4 in
A2	594 x 420 mm	23.4 x 16.5 in
A3	420 x 297 mm	16.5 x 11.7 in
A4	297 x 210 mm	11.7 x 8.3 in
A5	210 x 148 mm	8.3 x 5.8 in
A6	148 x 105 mm	5.8 x 4.1 in
A7	105 x 74 mm	4.1 x. 2.9 in
A8	74 x 52 mm	2.9 x 2.0 in
A9	52 x 37 mm	2.0 x 1.5 in
A10	37 x 26 mm	1.5 x 1.0 in

ISO 216
The international paper size standard, ISO 216, is based on sheets with the ratio of the sides being 1 : √2 approximately 1:1.4142.

The base size, A0, is 841 mm by 1189mm thus giving an area of one square metre. If a sheet of paper based on the ISO 216 standard is folded in half parallel to its shorter side then the sides of the halves will also have the same ratio of 1:1.4142 and obviously be half the same area.

Folding an A0 sheet in half will produce two sheets of A1 paper, which folded in half will produce four sheets of A2 paper. Folding these sheets of A2 paper in half will produce eight sheets of A3 – and so on: see the diagram at the right.

Paper Weights
The weight of paper is usually expressed in grammes per square metre (gsm) thus an A0 sheet of 80 gsm paper will weigh 80 grammes and the successive sizes of the same paper weight will have weights half that of the size above.

The usefulness of this standard is seen when we note that A4 sheets can be folded in half to make A5 brochures and when an A4 document is enlarged on a photocopier it produces an A3 document – and if reduced it produces an A5 document. Weights are also easy to calculate – when using 80 gms paper each sheet of A4 will weigh 5 grammes – one 16th of 80 grammes – the weight of an A0 sheet of 80 gms paper.

Application examples:

The ISO standard paper size system covers a wide range of formats, but not all of them are widely used in practice. Among all formats, A4 is clearly the most important one for daily office use. Some main applications of the most popular formats can be summarized as:

A0, A1	technical drawings, posters
A1, A2	flip charts
A2, A3	drawings, diagrams, large tables
A4	letters, magazines, forms, catalogs, laser printer and copying machine output
A5	note pads
A6	postcards
B5, A5, B6, A6	books
C4, C5, C6	envelopes for A4 letters: unfolded (C4), folded once (C5), folded twice (C6)
B4, A3	newspapers, supported by most copying machines in addition to A4
B8, A8	playing cards

B SERIES:


Table of Paper Sizes From B0 to B10|

B Series Paper Sizes Chart.

Size	Height x Width (mm)	Height x Width (in)
B0	1414 x 1000 mm	55.7 x 39.4 in
B1	1000 x 707 mm	39.4 x 27.8 in
B2	707 x 500 mm	27.8 x 19.7 in
B3	500 x 353 mm	19.7 x 13.9 in
B4	353 x 250 mm	13.9 x 9.8 in
B5	250 x 176 mm	9.8 x 6.9 in
B6	176 x 125 mm	6.9 x 4.9 in
B7	125 x 88 mm	4.9 x. 3.5 in
B8	88 x 62 mm	3.5 x 2.4 in
B9	62 x 44 mm	2.4 x 1.7 in
B10	44 x 31 mm	1.7 x 1.2 in

B Series Paper Size Tolerances

ISO 216 specifies tolerances for the production of B series paper sizes in the same way as for A series paper sizes, the specific details of which are as follows:

• ±1.5 mm (0.06 in) for dimensions up to 150 mm (5.9 in)
• ±2 mm (0.08 in) for lengths in the range 150 to 600 mm (5.9 to 23.6 in)
• ±3 mm (0.12 in) for any dimension above 600 mm (23.6 in)

B Series Paper Sizes Definition

The B series paper sizes are defined in ISO 216 in the following way.

The B series paper sizes were created in order to provide paper sizes that weren't covered by the A series, but also use an aspect ratio of 1:root2. B sizes are defined as size B(n) being the geometric mean of size A(n) and size A(n-1). The Geometric Means of 2 numbers being the square root of the product of the two numbers.

Table of Envelope Sizes From C0 to C10

C Series Envelope Sizes Chart.

Size	Height x Width (mm)	Height x Width (in)
C0	1297 x 917 mm	51.5 x 36.1 in
C1	917 x 648 mm	36.1 x 25.5 in
C2	648 x 458 mm	25.5 x 18.0 in
C3	458 x 324 mm	18.0 x 12.8 in
C4	324 x 229 mm	12.8 x 9.0 in
C5	229 x 162 mm	9.0 x 6.4 in
C6	162 x 114 mm	6.4 x 4.5 in
C7	114 x 81 mm	4.5 x. 3.2 in
C8	81 x 57 mm	3.2 x 2.2 in
C9	57 x 40 mm	2.2 x 1.6 in
C10	40 x 28 mm	1.6 x 1.1 in

C Series Envelope Size Tolerances

Tolerances specified in ISO 216 for the C series envelope sizes are the same as for A & B series paper sizes and are as follows:

• ±1.5 mm (0.06 in) for dimensions up to 150 mm (5.9 in)
• ±2 mm (0.08 in) for lengths in the range 150 to 600 mm (5.9 to 23.6 in)
• ±3 mm (0.12 in) for any dimension above 600 mm (23.6 in)

C Series Envelope Size Definitions

C envelopes sizes are defined as the geometric mean of the A and B sizes with the same number i.e. C4 dimensions are the geometric mean of A4 and B4. This produces a size between the two that makes an envelope that will neatly hold the A series paper of the same size, thus a C4 envelope is perfect for an A4 sheet of paper unfolded.

It should be noted that C format envelopes also have an aspect ratio of 1:root2 and because of this an A4 sheet folded parallel to its shortest sides will fit in a C5 envelope and folded twice will fit a C6 envelope.

The ISO 217:1995 standard defines the RA (raw format A) and SRA (supplementary raw format A) formats for untrimmed raw paper. These formats are only slightly larger than the corresponding A formats. Sheets in these formats are cut to the final size format after printing and binding.

ISO press sheet RA sizes

ISO press sheet SRA sizes