Stand design
Reading distance and type size on stand graphics
Uğur Yılmaz · Brand & Visual Communications Manager · 2 min read · Last updated:
Short answer
What type size should stand graphics use?
Type size is not one number but three levels. The layer read from across the aisle carries only the company name and a single line saying what you do; its letter height follows the viewing distance in metres and it sits above eye level. The layer read at the edge of the stand lists product groups. The layer at the table carries technical detail. Put all three on one surface and none of them get read.
The across-the-aisle layer
A visitor sees your stand for the first time from the aisle opposite, and sees it while walking. This layer has one job: the company name and what you do. Two lines. Both need to sit high, above eye level and above the crowd in front of them.
Type size follows distance. A name read across a seven metre aisle cannot be the same size as a heading inside the stand. There is a simple test: before printing, put the artwork on screen at real scale, walk away from the screen, and see whether it still reads.
Contrast matters more than size. White type on a pale grey ground will not read from a distance however large it is. Light letters on a dark ground, or the reverse; no middle tones.
At the edge and at the table
The second layer is for the visitor standing at the edge, deciding whether to step in. It carries product groups, applications or service headings. Short phrases, not sentences. Put more than three up and none of them stick.
The third layer lives at the table: technical data, certificates, catalogues, screens. This information does not get printed on a wall. Printed, it adds noise from a distance and forces a full reprint whenever the range changes.
The practical way to separate the layers is to divide the height: name in the top band, product groups in the middle band, the products themselves at the bottom. That division belongs to the stand design stage, not the printing stage.
Print files and materials
On large format work, file resolution follows viewing distance; a wall seen from across the aisle does not need many times screen resolution. But a vector logo always goes out as vector. An enlarged raster mark gives itself away at the edges.
Material choice affects legibility directly. Gloss print reflects under spotlights and swallows the text. Matt fabric or matt lamination is the safer option under fair lighting.
The last check is colour. A corporate colour does not come off a digital press the way it looks on screen. Asking for a small proof beforehand costs far less than a ten metre wall printed in the wrong tone.
Should we put our slogan on the wall?
If the slogan does not say what you do, it takes up space. On the long-distance line, a concrete description of the work beats an abstract phrase.
How early should artwork be sent?
It depends on the production schedule, but printing must be finished before build-up. On late artwork jobs, the thing usually lost is the final check.