What Is DTG Printing?
DTG stands for direct-to-garment. The printer sprays water-based ink straight into the fibres of the shirt, the way an office inkjet sprays onto paper. There are no screens, no films and no transfers in between.
Because nothing has to be set up first, one shirt costs the same to produce as the first shirt of a hundred. That is the whole reason DTG exists: it makes small orders possible at a sane price.
How DTG Actually Works
The shirt is pre-treated with a clear solution and pressed flat, which stops the ink sinking in and going dull. On dark garments this step also lays down the base the white ink needs.
The garment goes onto a platen and under the print head. The printer lays white ink first on dark fabric, then colour on top. On white and light shirts it goes straight to colour.
The print is then cured with heat, which bonds the ink to the fibres. From there it is washable like any other shirt.
What DTG Is Good At
Photographs and artwork with many colours. Screen printing charges per colour because each one needs its own screen; DTG does not care whether your design has three colours or three hundred.
Small orders. One shirt, four shirts, eleven shirts — all workable with no setup cost.
Soft feel. The ink sits in the fabric rather than on top of it, so there is no thick plasticky layer and nothing to crack when the shirt is stretched.
Fine detail. Thin lines, small text and gradients hold where a screen would lose them.
Where DTG Is the Wrong Choice
Large runs of a simple design. At 72 shirts with a one-colour logo, screen printing costs less per shirt than DTG, because the setup is paid once and spread across the run.
Polyester and performance fabrics. DTG bonds to cotton. On polyester, nylon and many blends it will not hold properly — that is what DTF transfers are for.
Caps and structured items. Those go to embroidery, which also holds up far better on workwear.
Neon and metallic colours. Water-based ink cannot reproduce them. Vinyl can.
Any print shop that tells you DTG is best for everything is selling you the machine they own.
What DTG Printing Costs
At King DTG, one shirt is $32. The price falls with quantity down to $6 per shirt on large runs. No minimum and no setup fee.
Sizes above XL add $3 per piece. Prints larger than 14 by 16 inches cost extra.
For comparison: screen printing starts at 12 pieces, $12 to $15 each at that quantity, dropping to $4 to $6 at 72 and up, with a setup fee per colour. If your order is large and your design simple, we will tell you to use screen printing instead — it costs you less and it is not our job to talk you out of that.
DTG Printing in Miami
We print DTG in house at 1301 NE Miami Gardens Drive, Suite 103, Miami Gardens.
Standard turnaround is two to five business days; same-day is available Monday to Friday on jobs confirmed before noon, with a rush fee quoted in advance.
Send your design and quantity and you will have a real price within the hour, any day of the week. If DTG is not the right method for your job, we will say so and quote the one that is.
