Book Cover Calculator
Exact cover sizes for self-publishing authors. Download a free, editable template with bleed, spine and safe margins marked.
- Full cover
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- Pixels at 300 dpi
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- Spine width
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- Bleed
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- Safe margin
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- Spine text
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Designing with the template
Download
Pick PDF for Canva, Illustrator, Affinity or InDesign, SVG for Inkscape or Figma, or PNG to lay over your artwork in any image editor.
Design
Run background art into the pink edge, keep titles, names and faces inside the green safe lines, and leave the barcode box clear.
Remove the guides
Hide or delete the guide layers, then export one PDF at exactly the full cover size shown above.
Cover calculator questions
How is the full cover size calculated?
A full print cover is one image: back cover, spine and front cover side by side, plus the edge that is trimmed off on a paperback or wrapped round the boards on a hardcover. Width is edge + trim width + spine + trim width + edge, and height is edge + trim height + edge. The spine depends on the page count, so every size here is fetched live for the exact book you enter.
Can I edit the template in Canva?
Yes. Download the PDF and upload it to Canva: every guide line and label comes in as its own element you can move or delete. The template already includes the bleed, so keep Canva's Show print bleed setting off. You can also lay the transparent PNG over your design as a guide.
Which programs open the templates?
The PDF opens in Canva, Adobe Illustrator, Affinity Designer and Publisher, InDesign and most PDF editors, with the guides on their own layers. The SVG opens in Inkscape, Figma, Illustrator and Affinity with named layers. The PNG works in any image editor.
Why is the spine wider than on another platform's calculator?
Each printer measures its own paper and cover board, so spine widths differ slightly between print services. These templates match BooksOasis print exactly. Artwork kept inside the safe lines moves easily to another service; only the canvas width changes.
When can my book have spine text?
Spine text needs more than 80 pages and a spine of at least 0.375 inches, and it stays 0.125 inches clear of both spine folds. The calculator tells you whether your book qualifies and marks the text lane on the template.
What is the safe area?
Printing and trimming can shift by a fraction of an inch, so titles, author names and faces stay inside the green safe lines: 0.25 inches from the trim on a paperback and 0.75 inches on a hardcover, where the cover also wraps round the boards. Background art should run all the way into the pink edge.
Does the interior type change the cover size?
Black and white, standard color and premium color interiors on white or cream paper print at the same thickness, so the spine width is the same for the same page count. The template still records your choice, so you always know which book it was made for.
What size should an ebook cover be?
1600 x 2560 pixels (a 1:1.6 ratio) in RGB, saved as JPG or PNG. Choose Ebook as the binding type to download a front cover template with the safe area marked.
More on print books: spine width · trim sizes · print margins · ebook cover size