// // If you’ve ordered printed shirts with us, there’s a good chance we’ve asked you for a “vector file” of your logo. It’s one of the most common questions we get: I’ve already sent you my logo — why do you need another file? Here’s the short answer, in plain English, and what to do if you’re not sure what you’ve got.
The Short Version
The logo you have on your phone, website or email signature is usually a picture made of tiny squares (pixels). That’s fine on a screen, but when we blow it up to print across the front or back of a shirt, those squares get stretched and the edges go blurry and jagged.
A vector file is different. Instead of pixels, it’s made of shapes and lines described mathematically, so it stays perfectly sharp at any size — a 3cm pocket logo or a 30cm back print. That’s what lets us print your logo with clean, crisp edges.
Pixels vs Vectors: What’s the Difference?
- Raster (pixel) files — JPG, PNG, GIF, screenshots, logos saved from a website or social media. They have a fixed number of pixels, so they lose quality when enlarged.
- Vector files — AI (Adobe Illustrator), EPS, SVG, and some PDFs. They’re built from shapes, so they can be scaled up or down with no loss of quality, and every colour is a separate, editable element.
A simple way to picture it: a raster logo is a photo of your logo. A vector logo is the original drawing of it.
Why It Matters So Much for Garment Printing
Printing on fabric is less forgiving than printing on paper, and a few things make a vector file important:
- Size. Most logos people send us are small — often just a few hundred pixels wide. Printed at shirt size, that’s nowhere near enough detail.
- Clean edges. Fabric shows every fuzzy edge and stray pixel. A vector file gives us sharp outlines and smooth curves.
- Separate colours. For screen printing, each colour in your logo is printed separately with its own screen. A vector file lets us separate the colours precisely; a flat picture doesn’t.
- No background box. Logos saved as JPGs often have a white box behind them. With a vector file there’s nothing to clean up, so the background of the shirt shows through exactly as it should.
The result is a print that looks professional and matches your brand — not a blurry, slightly-off version of it.
How to Tell If Your File Is a Vector
Check the file name ending first:
- .ai, .eps or .svg — almost always vector.
- .pdf — might be vector. If it came from your designer, it usually is. If someone just saved a picture as a PDF, it isn’t.
- .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .webp — not vector.
A quick test: open the file and zoom in as far as you can on an edge of the logo. If it stays crisp and smooth, it’s probably vector. If it turns into blurry squares, it’s a pixel image.
Not sure? Just send us what you have and we’ll tell you.
Where to Find Your Vector Logo
Most businesses do have a vector version of their logo — it’s just sitting in someone’s inbox. Try:
- Whoever designed your logo — ask for the “original” or “vector” files (AI, EPS or PDF).
- Your sign writer — vehicle and shop signage is made from vector files, so they’ll almost certainly have one.
- Your website developer or marketing agency.
- Whoever printed your business cards or brochures.
- Old emails — search your inbox for “logo” with attachments ending in .ai, .eps or .pdf.
What If You Don’t Have One?
That’s okay — it happens all the time, and it won’t stop your order. We can redraw (vectorise) your logo from a PNG or JPG so it prints sharply. For printing, setup is free when you supply a vector file. If we need to redraw it from a PNG or JPG, it’s from $50 per logo, depending on how complex it is. Our bundle deals include free logo setup, and we’ll always confirm any fee before we start.
Once your logo is set up, we keep it on file, so reorders are quick and every print matches. The final artwork is yours to keep and reuse. Every order also comes with a free visual mockup, so you can see exactly how your logo will look on your garment before anything is printed.
Find out more on our logo design and artwork page.
What About Embroidery?
Embroidery works a little differently. We convert your logo into a stitch file (called digitising), which is a standard part of every embroidery order. Digitising is $50 per logo (free on our bundle deals), and it’s a one-off: we keep the stitch file for reorders. A vector file still gives us the cleanest starting point, but we can digitise from a good-quality PNG or JPG too. If you’re deciding between the two methods, see our Embroidery vs Screen Printing guide.
FAQ
Can’t you just make my JPG bigger?
We can, but it won’t add detail that isn’t there — it just makes the blurry squares bigger. That’s why we redraw it as a vector instead.
Is a PDF a vector file?
Sometimes. A PDF exported from design software usually is; a picture saved as a PDF isn’t. Send it through and we’ll check.
My logo looks fine on my website. Why isn’t it good enough?
Website logos are made small so pages load fast. On a screen they look sharp, but they don’t have enough detail to print at shirt size.
Do I need a vector file for every order?
No — once we’ve set up your logo, it’s kept on file for future orders.
What’s the best file to send?
An AI, EPS or vector PDF of your logo. If you don’t have one, send the largest, clearest version you’ve got and we’ll take it from there.
Ready to get your logo printed? Request a quote and send through whatever file you have — we’ll let you know if it’s print-ready.