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Book Cover Maker
Design a professional-looking cover for your ebook or paperback. Pick a trim size and genre style, add a photo, title and author, and the tool calculates the spine width from your page count and paper, adds 0.125 in bleed and exports a print-ready PDF or PNG.
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How to use the Book Cover Maker
- Choose ebook or print. For print, pick the trim size, enter the page count and select the paper type; the spine width and full cover size appear instantly.
- Pick a genre style to set fonts, colours and layout, then type the title, subtitle and author name.
- Add a cover photo (optional). Use zoom, drag on the cover to position it, and darken it so the title stays readable.
- Fine-tune the title size and position, colours, fonts and the back cover blurb. Keep text inside the dashed safe lines.
- Download a PDF for your print-on-demand upload, or a PNG/JPG for an ebook store or social media.
Book cover size formula
A paperback cover is one flat image that wraps around the book: back cover, spine and front cover side by side, with bleed around the outside edge that is trimmed off after printing.
- Spine width = page count × paper thickness per page
- Full cover width = 0.125 in bleed + trim width + spine width + trim width + 0.125 in bleed
- Full cover height = 0.125 in bleed + trim height + 0.125 in bleed
| Paper | Inches per page | Spine for 200 pages | Spine for 400 pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| White, black ink | 0.002252 | 0.450 in (11.4 mm) | 0.901 in (22.9 mm) |
| Cream, black ink | 0.0025 | 0.500 in (12.7 mm) | 1.000 in (25.4 mm) |
| Standard colour | 0.002252 | 0.450 in (11.4 mm) | 0.901 in (22.9 mm) |
| Premium colour | 0.002347 | 0.469 in (11.9 mm) | 0.939 in (23.8 mm) |
The per-page values are the ones Amazon KDP publishes for its paperbacks. Other printers such as IngramSpark use their own paper stocks, so always compare the spine width with your printer's cover template before uploading.
Common trim sizes
| Trim size | Typical genre | Front cover at 300 DPI (with bleed) |
|---|---|---|
| 5 × 8 in | Fiction, poetry, novellas | 1538 × 2475 px |
| 5.5 × 8.5 in | Fiction, memoir, self-help | 1688 × 2625 px |
| 6 × 9 in | Most popular for fiction and non-fiction | 1838 × 2775 px |
| 7 × 10 in | Textbooks, workbooks | 2138 × 3075 px |
| 8.5 × 11 in | Workbooks, activity and colouring books | 2588 × 3375 px |
Cover design tips that sell
- Design for the thumbnail. Most readers first see your cover at about 100–200 px wide in a store listing. The title should still be readable at that size, so prefer a big, short title and high contrast.
- Follow your genre. Readers recognise genres by their covers: dark backgrounds and bold capitals for thrillers, script fonts and warm colours for romance, ornaments and serif capitals for fantasy.
- Keep text in the safe zone. Printers trim with a small tolerance, so keep titles and author names at least 0.125 in inside the trim line and well away from the spine fold.
- Use high-resolution photos. For a 6 × 9 in front cover at 300 DPI you need roughly 1800 × 2700 pixels.
Frequently asked questions
How is the spine width calculated?
Spine width = page count × paper thickness per page. This tool uses the per-page values published by Amazon KDP: 0.002252 in for white paper, 0.0025 in for cream, 0.002252 in for standard colour and 0.002347 in for premium colour. A 300-page book on white paper has a spine of 0.6756 in.
How big is a full paperback cover?
Width = bleed + back cover + spine + front cover + bleed, and height = bleed + trim height + bleed, with 0.125 in bleed on each outer edge. For a 6 × 9 in book with 300 white pages that is 0.125 + 6 + 0.676 + 6 + 0.125 = 12.926 in wide and 9.25 in tall.
What size should an ebook cover be?
Amazon KDP recommends a height-to-width ratio of 1.6:1, ideally 2560 × 1600 pixels. Other stores accept similar portrait covers; 2:3 covers such as 1800 × 2700 px also work well.
Why can't I put text on the spine of a thin book?
Amazon KDP only allows spine text on books with more than 79 pages, because thinner spines are too narrow for text to be printed reliably. The tool turns off spine text below 80 pages.
Where does the barcode go?
On the back cover, bottom right. KDP adds a 2 × 1.2 in barcode there if you do not supply one, so keep that area free of important text. The guide shows the area but it is not printed in your file.
Does the PDF meet print requirements?
The PDF page is exactly the full cover size with bleed and the artwork is rendered at 300 DPI. Always check the spine width against your printer's own cover calculator, because paper stocks differ between printers.
Are my images uploaded?
No. The cover is drawn in your browser and your photo never leaves your device.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.
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