Paper formats
DIN formats/US formats/newspaper formats/old paper
formatsThe German DIN paper formats have been defined since 1922. They became established very quickly and are now also used in many other countries. But (fortunately) not everything is standardized yet, so you can find many other formats here:
DIN formats | US formats | Newspaper formats | Old paper formats
DIN paper formats
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The DIN formats are a little boring, but very practical. The formats are logically structured: all the others can be derived from one format:
Starting from the standard A0 format, which has an area of exactly one square meter, all other formats are derived by halving the paper area or the longer section in each case. The ratio of width to length always remains the same (1 : 1.414).
There is the A series (paper formats) and the corresponding B and C series (for envelopes for A series). The D series is rarely used and is not listed here. Here is the table (all dimensions in mm, width × height):
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DIN No.
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DIN A series
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Designation
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DIN B series
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DIN C Series
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Remark
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O
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841 × 1.189
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Quadruple sheet
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1.410 × 1.000
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1.297 × 917
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1
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594 × 841
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Double sheet
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707 × 1.000
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648 × 917
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2
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420 × 594
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Sheet
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500 × 707
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458 × 648
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3
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297 × 420
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Half sheet
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353 × 500
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324 × 458
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4
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210 × 297
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Letter (quarter sheet)
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250 × 353
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229 × 324
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A4 is our normal sheet (letter/copier)
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5
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148 × 210
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Sheet (eighth sheet)
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176 × 250
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162 × 229
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6
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105 × 148
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Postcard (half sheet)
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125 × 176
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115 × 162
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C6: Standard envelope
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7
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74 × 105
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Quarter sheet
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81 × 115
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8
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52 × 74
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Eighth leaf
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9
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37 × 52
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10
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26 × 37
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DIN long envelope |
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220 × 110
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Standard envelope
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US-American paper formats (often found in the DTP sector)
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Designation
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in inches
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in mm
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Remark
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| Tabloid Extra |
12 × 18 |
304,8 × 457,2
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| Tabloid/Ledger |
11 × 17 |
279,4 × 431,8
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| Legal |
8,5 × 14 |
215,9 × 355,6
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| Legal 13 " |
8,5 × 13 |
215,9 × 330,2
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| Letter |
8,5 × 11 |
215,9 × 279,4
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standard stationery
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| Executive |
7,25 × 10,5 |
184,2 × 266,7
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Statement/half letter
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5,5 × 8,5
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139,7 × 215,9
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Commercial #10
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4,125 × 9,5
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104,8 × 241,3
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Envelope
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Monarch
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3,875 × 7,5
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98,4 × 190,5
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Envelope
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5 x 7 Card
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5 × 7
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127,0 × 177,8
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Postcard
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4 x 6 Card
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4 × 6
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101,6 × 152,4
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Postcard
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Newspaper formats
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| Newspaper formats are not all standardized. But there are some standard sizes. |
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Designation
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Size (mm)
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Remarks
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| Nordic format |
400 × 570 |
z. E.g. Die Zeit
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| Rhenish format |
360 × 530 |
z. E.g. Rheinische Post
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| Berlin format |
315 × 470 |
z. E.g. Volksblatt
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| The World |
500 × 705 |
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Old German paper formats (from the pre-DIN era) and book formats
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The list of old paper formats below illustrates the advantages of the uniform DIN standard since 1922. These old paper formats should not be confused with the partially identical book format sizes, which are to be understood as follows:
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No exact size is given, but rather an approximate value indicating the height of the book spine. The width results from the specified proportion, or from the initial format of the printed sheet and the number of folds. In the earlier paper formats, the ratio of width to height for a printed sheet was approximately 3 : 4, but the folds applied then caused the ratio to change between 2 : 3 and then 3 : 4 again. This is a significant difference to our current DIN formats, where the ratio always remains the same (1 : 1.414).
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Name
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Height
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(mm)
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Explanation
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Proportion |
Remark
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Small octavo
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< 8°
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100 - 185
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z. E.g. paperback
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Octavo
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8°
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185 - 225
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3x folded sheet (=8 sheets)
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2 : 3 |
z. E.g. paperback, bound books
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Large octavo
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> 8°
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225 - 250
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z. E.g. encyclopedias, illustrated books
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Quarto
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4°
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250 - 350
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2x folded sheet (=4 sheets)
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3 : 4 |
z. E.g. atlases
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Folio
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2°
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350 - 450
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1x folded sheet (=2 sheets)
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2 : 3 |
z. E.g. large atlases and other "folios"
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Large folio
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> 2°
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> 450
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Designation
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Dimensions (mm)
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Remarks
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| Folio |
210 × 330 |
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| Quarto |
225 × 285 |
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| Octavo |
225 × 1425 |
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| Letter |
270 × 420 |
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| Chancery |
330 × 420
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| Propatria |
340 × 430 |
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| Large Patria |
360 × 450 |
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| Bishop |
380 × 480 |
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| Lions |
400 × 500 |
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| Median I |
420 × 530 |
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| Small median |
440 × 560 |
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| Post |
460 × 560 |
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| Median II |
460 × 590 |
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| Small Royal |
480 × 640 |
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| Lexicon |
500 × 650 |
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| Super Royal |
500 × 680 |
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| Imperial |
570 × 780 |
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| Olifant |
675 × 1082 |
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All information is carefully researched, but without guarantee. Many thanks in advance for any reported errors or additions!
Published: 20.3.2017
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