Print & finish3 min readUpdated Nov 13, 2026

Spot UV

Spot UV makes part of your design shine and leaves the rest as it is. Next to a flat, matte surface the glossy part catches the light and draws the eye to what matters.

What it does

The gloss is a UV coatUV coating A liquid coat that UV light hardens in a moment. The toughest of the liquid coats and the highest gloss, but it can crack on folds., hardened by UV light right after it goes on. Most often it sits exactly on top of part of your print, so the brand name shines while the rest stays quiet. It works best where the contrast is strong: the usual pairing is a matte or soft touchSoft touch A matte coat or film with a velvety feel and no glare. Made to be touched, it suits gift and beauty boxes. surface over the whole box with spot UV on top. On a glossy box the gloss on gloss hardly shows.

The gloss doesn't have to follow the print, either. It can draw a pattern of its own on a plain dark area. Ask your printer about raised spot UVRaised spot UV A thicker spot UV coat that stands up from the surface, so you can feel it with a finger. too: a thicker coat that stands up from the surface, so you can feel it with a finger.

Which board takes it

Spot UV needs a smooth, closed surface to sit on. Coated board, such as the white face of SBS, takes it well, and so does a laminatedLamination A thin plastic film bonded over the print, gloss, matte or soft touch. It protects better than any liquid coat. surface. Uncoated paper and board drink the coat in, and the shine is lost. Raised spot UV is the fussiest of all, so ask your printer which of their boards suit it.

Draw the mask

The printer can't guess where the gloss goes. You draw it, as a mask: solid shapes that mark every glossy area, apart from your artwork.

• Put the mask on a layer of its own, or in a separate file if your printer prefers. Our PDF has no layer for it, so add yours next to your artwork layer and leave the dieline layers in.
• Fill the shapes solid, with no tints or gradients: usually 100% black, or a spot colourSpot colour An ink mixed to one exact shade before printing, often named by its Pantone number. For brand colours that must match every run. named the way your printer asks.
• Keep the shapes as vectors and in exactly the same place as the print they cover. Copy and paste in place, so nothing shifts.

Keep it off the folds and the glue

UV is a hard coat, and a hard coat can crack where the board folds. Stop the mask short of the green dashed creases on your dieline. Leave the glued areas clear too, because glue holds poorly on the gloss. Some of our dielines mark them in grey, with GLUE written in them; on the others, ask your printer which flaps get glue.

A glossy logo follows the same rule as any logo: keep it clear of the cut edge and the creases. Where a dieline draws a blue dashed safe line (bags, pouches, the paper bag), stay inside it. If the gloss runs across a background, ask your printer whether it may reach the cut edge or should stop short of it.

Check it before the run

The 3D view in the editor puts one finish on the whole pack, so it won't show spot UV. Ask your printer for a proof or a printed sample, and check the mask against the print on it.

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