What Are The Differences Between Screen Printing And Printing In Terms Of Technology?
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- Oct 11,2025
Summary
There are notable technological differences between screen printing and digital printing.Screen printing, a traditional stencil method, needs a dedicated screen. High-viscosity ink is transferred via squeegee extrusion, ideal for mass production. It adapts well to substrates (metals, glass, etc.), with strong ink adhesion and durability, but moderate precision, average color reproduction, and low small-batch efficiency. Digital printing, based on digital tech, requires no screen.
Silk screen printing differs significantly from more common printing technologies (such as inkjet, laser, and digital printing) in terms of process principles, applicable scenarios, and performance characteristics. These core differences lie in four key dimensions: platemaking, ink/consumables characteristics, the printing process, and the final product. The following systematically compares the key differences between the two, focusing on process details:
Core Process Principles: “Plate making and Printing” vs. “Plate less/Digital Imaging”
This is the most essential difference between the two, which directly determines the differences in all subsequent links.
1. Silkscreen (screen printing): "Physical plate making + extrusion transfer"
Silk screen printing is a traditional stencil printing technology. Its core is to achieve ink transfer by "making a dedicated screen". The process is fixed and has the attribute of "customized plate making":
( 1 ) Plate making (core pre-step):
A. Use nylon, polyester or stainless steel wire to weave into a "wire mesh" and stretch it tightly on an aluminum mesh frame;
B. Make a "graphic template" on the screen using photosensitive adhesive (or directly applying film) - the area to be printed (the graphic part) has transparent mesh, while the area not to be printed (the blank part) has mesh blocked by photosensitive adhesive;
C. After the plate is made, the screen must correspond to a specific pattern, and each pattern corresponds to a dedicated screen (if the pattern needs to be changed, the plate must be remade).
(2) Printing process:
A. Fix the screen on the printing press so that there is a small gap between the screen and the substrate (such as plastic, metal, cloth) (or it fits closely, depending on the flatness of the substrate);
B. Pour ink onto one end of the screen and use a rubber scraper to scrape the ink at a certain force and angle. The ink will pass through the "transparent mesh" on the screen and be squeezed onto the surface of the substrate below.
C. Finally, the ink is fixed on the substrate through natural drying, high temperature baking or UV curing.
2. Printing (taking mainstream digital printing as an example): "Digital signal + direct imaging"
Printing (especially inkjet, laser, and digital printing) is a plateless/digital printing technology. The core is to control the ejection/transfer of consumables through "digital signals", without the need for pre-plate making, and the process is flexible.
( 1) No plate-making process:
Edit images and texts directly through computer software (such as PS, Word) and transmit digital signals to the printer;
After the printer receives the signal, it can directly achieve "instant imaging" through internal components (such as inkjet head and laser drum) without making a physical template.
( 2) Printing process (taking two mainstream technologies as examples):
Inkjet printing: piezoelectric crystals or heating elements in the printer head spray ink (or ink) in the form of tiny "ink droplets" onto the surface of the substrate. The ink droplets spread and penetrate the surface before drying and setting;
Laser printing: A laser beam is scanned on a photosensitive drum to form an electrostatic latent image, which absorbs toner (carbon powder). The toner is then hot-pressed onto the paper by a high-pressure roller to fix it.
Comparison of key process parameters: from consumables to substrates
| Comparison Dimension | Silkscreen (screen printing) | Printing (represented by inkjet/laser) |
| Plate making requirements | Plate making is required, with one pattern corresponding to one screen; plate making has costs (time/materials), and is suitable for mass production | No need for plate making, directly driven by digital signals, suitable for small batch/personalized production |
| Ink/Consumables | The ink has high viscosity (such as silk screen printing paste, glass ink), strong covering power, and can be superimposed in multiple layers (such as three-dimensional patterns); the consumables cost is low and suitable for large-area printing | Ink/toner has low viscosity (such as water-based ink and laser toner), weak covering power, and easy blurring when multiple layers are stacked; consumables are expensive, and large-area printing is not economical. |
| Substrate adaptability | Extremely strong, can print "non-flat / special-shaped / different materials" substrates: such as metal plates, glass, ceramics, cloth, plastic shells, wood, curved products (such as cups) | Weak, preferably suitable for "flat, smooth, ink-absorbent/stable thermal conductivity" substrates: such as paper, some plastic films, smooth metal sheets; difficult to adapt to curved surfaces, rough surfaces (such as cloth, wood) |
Printing accuracy | Medium accuracy (usually 300-600 DPI), limited by the mesh count (screen density); small text (such as less than 1mm) is easy to blur | High precision (inkjet can reach 1200-4800 DPI, laser can reach 600-2400 DPI); high reproduction of small text, gradient colors, and high-definition images |
Color performance | Suitable for monochrome and spot color printing (such as specific PANTONE colors for LOGO); color printing requires the production of multi-color screens (CMYK four-color screens), and color gradients are prone to "screening" and the degree of reproduction is average. | Suitable for color printing, through the CMYK four-color (or multi-color) ink/toner mixing, it can achieve delicate gradients and high-definition color images; the color reproduction is close to the digital original |
Production efficiency | High efficiency in mass production (after the screen is fixed, a single scraping can complete a product, suitable for batches of more than 1,000 pieces); low efficiency in small batches (such as less than 10 pieces) (plate making is time-consuming) | High efficiency for small batches/single pieces (printing is immediate, no waiting required); low efficiency for large batches (inkjet requires drop-by-drop spraying, laser requires page-by-page heating, slower than silk screen printing) |
Finished product adhesion/
Durability | The ink is tightly bonded to the substrate (some need to be baked and cured), and is wear-resistant, scratch-resistant, and weather-resistant (such as outdoor advertising and electrical appliance housing screen printing). | Poor adhesion (ink easily falls off due to friction, and toner is easily scratched); additional lamination/coating is required to improve durability, otherwise it is not suitable for outdoor or high-frequency contact scenarios |
Differences in Application Scenarios: “Mass Industrial” vs. “Personalized Small Orders”
1. Core application scenarios of silk screen printing
Industrial manufacturing: electrical appliance shell logos (such as mobile phone and computer brand logos), glass panel silk screen printing (such as microwave oven panels), metal nameplates;
Outdoor advertising: large light boxes, road signs, and vehicle body advertising (large area, high weather resistance requirements);
Special material printing: T-shirt patterns (screen printing paste), ceramic cup patterns (overglaze screen printing), circuit board pads (conductive ink screen printing);
Bulk customization: gifts over 1,000 pieces (e.g. custom mugs, canvas bags).
2. Core application scenarios of printing
Office/Personal: document printing, photo output (inkjet printing), contract/report (laser printing);
Personalized small orders: small quantities of customized posters (digital printing), personal photo books, customized mobile phone cases (small batches of less than 10 pieces);
High-definition images: brochures, magazine pages (digital printing), product manuals (laser printing).
Summary: How to choose?
1. If the demand is large -scale, special materials (such as metal/cloth), high durability, large-area single-color/spot-color printing (such as 1,000 T-shirts, outdoor advertising), choose silk screen printing;
2. If the demand is for small batches, flat materials (such as paper), high-definition color/gradient, and personalized customization (such as 10 posters or personal photos), choose Printer.
In short, silk screen printing is an "industrial process born for mass production" and printing is a "digital process born for flexibility". There is no absolute advantage or disadvantage between the two, they are just adapted to different demand scenarios.