What is aqueous coating vs UV coating?
Aqueous coating is a clear, water-based coating applied over a printed sheet to protect it from scuffs and fingerprints; UV coating is a thicker, glossier liquid coating hardened instantly by ultraviolet light.
What it means for your file
Both go on after the ink, usually in gloss, satin or matte, and cost less than lamination. Aqueous coating dries fast and is common on coated stock. UV coating is shinier and harder, but it can crack along folds and is hard to write on.
For a tougher film that also adds stiffness, see lamination; for gloss on chosen areas only, see spot UV.
An example
Postcards printed on gloss stock are often aqueous coated so they survive the mail without scuffing. A high-gloss UV coating on the picture side only makes photos look deeper and leaves the back uncoated for writing. A varnish, by contrast, is applied by the press like an ink, and spot UV covers only chosen areas.
A common mistake
Asking for UV coating on a piece that folds or will be written on. The hard coating can crack along a fold, especially on heavy card with dark colors, and ink from a pen smudges on it. Ask the printer whether the folds will be scored, and keep the coating off anything meant for handwriting.
All print terms in the glossary, or run your file through the free print-ready checker.
Free download
The print-ready file checklist
The seven checks every file goes through before it leaves us. Useful whether or not you ever send us a job.
Your print-ready checklist.
We’ve emailed you a copy too. If it isn’t there in a minute, look in promotions.
Not sure what your file needs?
Ask a question or send the file in the chat. A designer usually answers within minutes with a fixed price, and nothing starts until you say yes.