GSM (grams per square metre) is the weight of one square metre of paper, and it is the single number that decides whether your printed piece feels disposable or expensive. In the UAE market the working answer is short: 100–135 GSM for flyers you hand out in volume, 170 GSM for flyers and brochures you want people to keep, 350 GSM as the absolute floor for business cards, and 400 GSM (or 760-micron board) when the card has to feel heavy in the hand. Everything else — glossy or wood-free stock, matt or gloss lamination, spot UV — is a second-order decision that sits on top of the GSM you pick first.
This guide walks the full ladder, explains what each weight band is actually used for in Dubai, and gives you the live online prices from maxprint.ae so you can budget before you brief a designer. All prices are in AED, VAT inclusive, for 2-sided full-colour printing unless stated otherwise.
What GSM measures — and what it doesn't
GSM is mass per square metre, not thickness. A square metre of 170 GSM paper weighs 170 grams. That matters because two sheets at the same GSM can feel slightly different depending on how the stock is made: an uncoated wood-free sheet is bulkier and softer than a coated glossy sheet of identical weight, because the coating adds mass without adding volume.
This is exactly why 100 GSM wood-free feels closer to a letterhead and 115 GSM glossy feels closer to a magazine page, even though there are only 15 grams between them. When the difference really matters — thick business cards, plastic-laminated cards — the trade moves to microns instead, which measures actual caliper. A 760-micron card is roughly 0.76 mm thick, about the thickness of ten sheets of office paper stacked together.
Two practical rules follow from this:
- Compare GSM only within the same stock type. 135 GSM glossy against 135 GSM wood-free is a fair comparison; 135 GSM glossy against a 760-micron board is not.
- Above roughly 250 GSM, you are buying board, not paper. It won't fold cleanly without creasing, and it will need a die or a crease line rather than a simple fold.
The GSM ladder: what each weight is for
80–100 GSM — internal documents and high-volume drops
This is office and letterhead territory. Standard printer paper is 80 GSM; 100 GSM wood-free is the step up that most UAE companies use for letterheads, invoice sets and leaflet drops where the piece will be read once and binned. It is the cheapest way to put ink in someone's hand, and for a 20,000-piece residential drop in JLT or Business Bay, it is usually the right call. What you give up: it shows fingerprints, it curls in humidity, and photographs look flat because uncoated stock absorbs ink.
115–135 GSM — the everyday flyer sweet spot
If you are printing a menu insert, an event flyer, a mall handout or a gym promotion, this is where most Dubai orders land. 115 GSM glossy has enough coating to make photography and brand colours pop; 135 GSM glossy adds noticeable stiffness so the flyer doesn't flop when someone takes it from a rack. The price gap between the two is small enough that 135 GSM is worth it in almost every case — at 5,000 A5 flyers, the difference is AED 20 in total.
170 GSM — premium flyers, brochures and folded pieces
170 GSM is the weight people describe as "proper". It stands up on its own in a display holder, it survives being carried around an exhibition all day, and it is the standard for real estate flyers, hotel in-room collateral and any single-sheet piece that doubles as a mini-brochure. It also folds well, which makes it the default for A4 brochures folded to DL or A5.
250–300 GSM — postcards, tags, loyalty cards
Now you are into card. Appointment cards, hang tags, table talkers and loyalty stamp cards live here. It is thick enough to feel like an object rather than a page, but still thin enough to punch, string and stack economically.
350 GSM — the business card baseline
Do not print a business card below 350 GSM. A 300 GSM card bends in a wallet within a week and telegraphs "printed at the last minute". 350 GSM with matt lamination is the volume standard across the UAE and, at AED 119 for 1,000 cards, it costs almost nothing to get right.
400 GSM and 760 microns — cards that get remembered
400 GSM is where a card starts to feel deliberately premium, and it is the base weight for finishes like spot UV, gold foil and embossing — those effects need board underneath them to read properly. Above that, 760-micron velvet-laminated stock is the "thick card" tier: soft to the touch, rigid, and impossible to bend casually. It is the weight most law firms, private clinics and luxury real estate brokers in Dubai specify.
Real prices by GSM: A5 flyers
The clearest way to see what GSM costs is to hold everything else constant. Below is the same A5 flyer, same 2-sided full-colour print, at four different paper weights:
| Paper (A5, 2 sides) | 500 pcs | 1,000 pcs | 2,000 pcs | 5,000 pcs | 10,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 GSM wood-free | AED 105 | AED 145 | AED 190 | AED 305 | AED 465 |
| 115 GSM glossy | AED 120 | AED 150 | AED 195 | AED 325 | AED 515 |
| 135 GSM glossy | AED 120 | AED 155 | AED 205 | AED 345 | AED 555 |
| 170 GSM glossy | AED 220 | AED 270 | AED 540 | AED 840 | AED 1,360 |
Read that table twice, because it contains the single most useful budgeting fact in this article: moving from 100 GSM to 135 GSM costs about 13% more at 5,000 pieces; moving from 135 GSM to 170 GSM costs about 143% more. The first upgrade is nearly free and always worth taking. The second is a genuine decision — take it when the flyer needs to survive, skip it when the flyer needs to be everywhere.
Real prices by GSM: A4 brochures
Same logic applied to a folded A4 brochure, where the stiffness difference is more visible because the piece has to hold a fold:
| Paper (A4 brochure) | 1,000 pcs | 2,000 pcs | 5,000 pcs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 GSM wood-free | AED 475 | AED 590 | AED 735 |
| 115 GSM glossy | AED 525 | AED 690 | AED 840 |
| 135 GSM glossy | AED 580 | AED 710 | AED 990 |
| 170 GSM glossy | AED 610 | AED 750 | AED 1,100 |
Note how the gaps compress here: at 1,000 brochures the whole range from lightest to heaviest is AED 135. For a corporate profile or a property brochure, spending that AED 135 is not a real decision — go to 170 GSM.
Real prices by board weight: business cards
| Card specification | Quantity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Art paper, no lamination | 1,000 | AED 89 |
| 350 GSM, matt laminated | 500 | AED 99 |
| 350 GSM, matt laminated | 1,000 | AED 119 |
| 400 GSM, rounded corner, glossy lamination | 1,000 | AED 290 |
| 400 GSM, matt laminated, custom shape | 1,000 | AED 225 |
| 400 GSM, gold foil + spot UV, matt lamination | 1,000 | AED 359 |
| 760 micron, velvet lamination + spot UV, rounded corner | 1,000 | AED 420 |
The jump from AED 119 to AED 420 sounds dramatic until you divide it: the thick velvet card costs 42 fils each against 12 fils for the standard card. For a sales director who hands out 300 cards a year, the total difference is under AED 100. Browse the full range in business card printing.
Glossy vs wood-free at the same GSM
Coating changes the job as much as weight does. Choose by what has to happen to the sheet after it is printed:
- Glossy (coated art paper) — sharp photographs, deep blacks, saturated brand colours. Cannot be written on with a ballpoint. Correct for menus, product flyers, property listings.
- Wood-free (uncoated) — matte, natural feel, takes pen and stamps. Colours print roughly 10–15% duller because the ink sinks in. Correct for letterheads, forms, order pads, anything staff will write on.
A common and expensive mistake: printing a delivery note or a booking slip on glossy stock. The driver cannot sign it.
When higher GSM is a waste of money
Three situations where paying up returns nothing:
- Short-life handouts. A one-day event leaflet, a Ramadan iftar menu insert, a supermarket promotion — the piece is read and discarded within an hour. 115 GSM is enough.
- Anything going inside an envelope in bulk. Heavier paper increases courier and postage weight across the whole run.
- Pieces that must fold twice. Above 170 GSM, a double fold will crack along the spine unless it is scored first, which adds a process step. Lighter stock folds cleaner.
How to order the right GSM
- Pick the size first, then the GSM. Size drives cost far more than weight — an A4 flyer is roughly double an A5 at the same GSM and quantity.
- Choose the quantity honestly. Print runs get dramatically cheaper per piece as they grow: A5 flyers at 135 GSM are 31 fils each at 500 pieces and 6 fils each at 10,000.
- Select the paper on the product page. GSM is a variant option, so the price updates live before you check out — no quotation wait.
- Upload print-ready artwork, or use the free design service and send the idea instead of the file.
- Confirm delivery. Standard turnaround across Dubai is same-week, with delivery to Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and the Northern Emirates on the following days.
The full ordering process, including artwork formats and payment, is set out on the how to order page.
Frequently asked questions
What GSM is a standard business card?
350 GSM with matt lamination is the UAE standard and the lowest weight worth using — AED 119 for 1,000 cards. 400 GSM is the premium tier and the minimum base for foiling, spot UV or embossing. Anything below 350 GSM bends in a wallet.
Is 170 GSM too thick for a flyer?
No, but it is often more than the job needs. 170 GSM is right when the flyer sits in a rack, gets carried around an exhibition, or represents a high-value product such as property or hospitality. For handouts and door drops, 135 GSM gives you 90% of the perceived quality at roughly 40% of the cost.
What is the difference between GSM and microns?
GSM measures weight per square metre; microns measure actual thickness. Coated and laminated cards are quoted in microns because lamination adds thickness without adding much weight. A 760-micron card is around 0.76 mm — noticeably thicker than a 400 GSM card.
Does higher GSM mean better print quality?
Not directly. Image sharpness and colour come from the coating and the press, not the weight. A 115 GSM glossy sheet will reproduce a photograph better than a 170 GSM uncoated sheet. GSM controls how the piece feels and how long it survives.
Which GSM should I use for a folded brochure?
135–170 GSM for a single fold. Above 200 GSM the fold needs to be creased mechanically first, which is standard for covers but unnecessary for a simple bi-fold or tri-fold leaflet.
Can I mix GSM in one order?
Yes. A common combination is a 300–350 GSM cover with a 135 GSM inner text block for booklets and catalogues — see the booklet and catalogue guide for binding options and prices.
Get the specification right before you print
If you are unsure which weight suits your job, send the artwork or just describe the piece — we will tell you the GSM we would run it on and what it costs, usually within the same working day. Call 0522100909 or message us on WhatsApp +971 52 210 0909.
Ready to order? Start with flyer printing for handouts and leaflets, or brochure printing for folded corporate pieces — pick your paper on the page and the price updates instantly.
