Comparing print-on-demand platforms: Gelato vs Printful

Gelato’s product catalog

Gelato offers a somewhat modest product selection featuring 250+ items, including:

• Men’s and women’s clothing (t-shirts, hoodies)
• Kids’ clothing
• Wall art
• Phone cases
• Mugs
• Photo books
• Calendars

This variety lets businesses explore different niches with personalized apparel, home decor, and gifts. Gelato’s emphasis on products with local production helps reduce shipping costs and delivery time, making it an attractive option for sellers aiming to reach customers quickly and sustainably.

Printful’s product catalog

Printful’s catalog is larger, featuring 370+ items in categories such as:

• Women’s and men’s clothing (t-shirts, hoodies, bottoms, swimwear)
• Kids’ and youth clothing
• Hats
• Accessories
• Home and living

Printful’s broad selection lets brands diversify their offerings, whether focusing on fashion or extending into lifestyle and home decoration items.

Gelato’s customization options

Gelato uses multiple printing methods like direct-to-garment (DTG), direct-to-film (DTF), and flat embroidery, offering businesses flexibility in their print-on-demand approach. The platform also offers several design options.

• Design tools: Gelato’s platform lets users upload their own artwork or choose from free graphics and paid options via Shutterstock. Users can also set different layouts, create patterns, and adjust colors for personalized products.
• Font selection: Many fonts are available but require a Gelato+ subscription.
• Personalization studio: Gelato offers automated personalized order fulfillment through its Personalization Studio for merchants on Etsy and Shopify. Subscription plans range from $0 to $749 per month, depending on order volume.

Branding options include:

• Branded labels: Available for certain products, helping elevate visibility.
• Packaging inserts: Custom packaging options for businesses seeking a personalized customer experience. These are only available to paid subscribers.

Printful’s customization options

Printful offers many customization features, including embroidery, DTG, all-over print (AOP), and DTF, which are suitable for businesses creating everything from apparel to home decoration items. 

Their design maker lets users upload graphics or use free clipart. Printful also provides access to paid images from Getty. The tool lets you adjust colors, create patterns, layer designs, and add text from a library of over 791 fonts. 

Branding options offered by Printful include:

• Neck labels: Essential for establishing your company identity on apparel.
• Packaging inserts: Gives a personal touch to each order. 
• Custom packaging: Full control over packaging design for a professional and cohesive brand experience.

These expansive features make Printful a great choice for those who want to customize their products extensively and add their branding.

How is Gelato’s quality?

Gelato prioritizes consistent print quality for custom designs by collaborating with leading printing companies across its global network. Every partner must follow the Gelato Standard, a set of guidelines and print machine settings developed to ensure uniformity and excellence in output no matter where the item is produced.

How is Printful’s quality?

Printful emphasizes strict quality control throughout its production process. Each item undergoes a thorough check after printing and before shipping to guarantee it meets their standards. Since they have their own printing facilities, they have much more control over quality. 

Using advanced printing technologies, Printful ensures that products display vibrant, sharp details. By investing in state-of-the-art machines and processes, Printful offers customers a reliable option for premium products with superior printing outcomes.

Shipping and fulfillment with Gelato

Gelato focuses on local production and partners with over 40 delivery services globally, ensuring faster delivery times and reducing the carbon footprint. By selecting the most suitable delivery service based on the production country, destination, and shipping method, Gelato optimizes its global network for efficiency.

Typical delivery for Gelato’s Standard/Economy rate takes two to four business days, including production, fulfillment, and shipping. For businesses that need quicker turnarounds, Gelato also offers Express Shipping, which prioritizes faster delivery for higher customer satisfaction.

Shipping and fulfillment with Printful

Printful supports its customers with a global fulfillment network, operating print-on-demand facilities in North America, South America, Europe, Japan, and Australia. Orders are generally fulfilled within two to five business days.

Shipping times vary based on destination and the selected shipping method, with US deliveries typically arriving within two to six business days. Printful provides multiple shipping tiers, from Standard to Express, letting businesses choose options that best align with their customers’ preferences.

Cost of Gelato

Gelato provides several subscription tiers:

• Gelato+: $25/month or $249/year, offering up to 20% product discounts. This tier also includes access to a premium mockup generator, custom branding options, and other exclusive key features.
• Gelato Gold: $129/month or $1,285/year, including up to 25% off all products and 30% off packing inserts. This plan is ideal for those scaling their print-on-demand businesses.
• Gelato Platinum: Custom pricing tailored to specific business needs, including special product discounts and additional perks like a dedicated Customer Success Manager. 

Cost of Printful

Printful offers a free plan with no hidden costs and two paid plans: Growth and Business

• Growth: Costs $24.99/month and includes up to 30% product discounts, additional discounts on branding options, free design digitization for sample orders, and unlimited stores per account. 
• Business: To qualify for this plan, you must have made at least $60,000 in sales in the last 12 months. Perks include up to 33% product discounts, 9% off branding options, 25% off sample orders, priority support, and more. As a bonus, once you meet the criteria for this plan, there’s no monthly fee! 

Printful’s free plan covers essential features like automatic order fulfillment, customer support, and access to their mockup generator. 

For businesses seeking to scale or further enhance their offerings, the Growth membership provides cost savings on product pricing and enhanced branding options.

Using Gelato

Gelato offers robust customer support through email and live chat, ensuring merchants receive prompt assistance. Their extensive knowledge base is also valuable for troubleshooting and learning about platform features. 

Gelato’s user-friendly interface simplifies managing your print-on-demand business. It provides design tools and an efficient order management system, making it easy for both new and experienced users to navigate the platform and launch custom products.

Using Printful

Printful is also recognized for its responsive customer support, which is available via email and live chat and offers timely assistance to its customers. This print-on-demand platform provides an extensive library of resources, including tutorials and guides, which help users familiarize themselves with Printful’s features and tools. 

Their interface is intuitive, and they integrate with all major eCommerce platforms. Their powerful design tools make it simple to set up products, manage orders, and run an online store effectively. This comprehensive approach ensures a smooth experience for businesses of all sizes.