CMYK colour fan for DTF: colour chart with 964 colour values

The DTF colour chart for textiles

• The DTF colour chart is a real printed DTF transfer with 964 colour swatches, each labelled with its CMYK value.
• Press it onto a black textile. Every DTF transfer is backed with white, so the colour impression is true against a black background.
• Judge the shade on the pressed print, not on screen.
• Keep the chart for later approvals and repeat orders.

The UV DTF colour chart for glass, metal and plastic

• The UV DTF colour chart is printed in UV DTF Standard. If you need it in matt or transparent, send us an email directly after your order, stating your order number and the version you want, to info@dtf-king.de.
• Place the chart directly on the material that will be printed later and look at it in daylight.

Both charts have the same swatches and values. Because the material is different, however, the same value can look slightly different on glass or metal than on textiles. That is why there is a separate colour chart for DTF and for UV DTF, and you always choose your shade from the chart for the process you are printing with.

Would you like to take a look first? The Sample Pack contains a mini colour chart, together with test prints of our products.

View the DTF colour chartView the UV DTF colour chart

CMYK colours explained briefly

Printing uses four colours: cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y) and black (K). Every shade on the colour chart is made from them, including every grey.

Each number in a CMYK value states the percentage of a colour that is printed, from 0 to 100. A CMYK value, often also called a colour code, therefore always consists of four numbers in a fixed order. “CMYK 6/32/100/24” means: 6 per cent cyan, 32 per cent magenta, 100 per cent yellow and 24 per cent black. On the colour chart, the same value is shown as “CMYK 6 32 100 24”. In your graphics program, you enter the numbers individually for C, M, Y and K.

Your screen, on the other hand, shows colours in RGB and mixes them from light. Printing ink absorbs light instead of glowing itself. That is why the CMYK colour space is smaller, and some colours that a screen can show cannot be achieved with printing ink. You can read more about this in RGB to CMYK: why colours look different in print.

DTF printing adds white: your design is printed in colour in CMYK and backed with opaque white. You set up white areas in your design as CMYK 0/0/0/0.

How to find the right CMYK value

1. On the colour chart, choose the swatch that matches the shade you want.
2. Note the CMYK value underneath the swatch.
3. Set up your file in the CMYK colour space with the ISO Coated v2 (ECI) colour profile, our standard for DTF and UV DTF transfers. How do I install an ICC profile? shows you how to set up the profile.
4. Enter the value exactly in your file. In Illustrator, you do this under Window > Color, in Photoshop in the Color Picker for C, M, Y and K.
5. Save your print file as a PDF. A PNG only knows RGB and is converted to CMYK for printing.

We do not change any colour values. If you always work with the value from the colour chart, the shade of a repeat order will turn out just like the first order, provided your print files are set up correctly, in CMYK and with the right colour profile.

Converting Pantone and HKS to CMYK

We print exclusively in CMYK. Spot colours such as Pantone or HKS lead to colour deviations, so do not set them up in your file. If you have a Pantone or HKS specification from a style guide, choose the swatch on the colour chart that comes closest to it and enter its CMYK value. You do the same for RAL colours.

Recreating gold, silver and neon in CMYK

We cannot print gold, silver or neon colours, because we print exclusively in CMYK. This applies to Standard DTF, Blockout DTF, all three versions of UV DTF and sublimation. Shades like these can only be recreated with CMYK. The metallic shine and the luminosity are not achieved.

These swatches from our colour chart are a good starting point. Check them on the colour chart before printing.

Gold and silver with a gradient

Metal gets its look from light and shadow. You can suggest this effect by setting up a colour gradient from the light value through the dark value and back to the light one, for example in lettering. You can use ordinary colour gradients in DTF printing. A gradient into full transparency, on the other hand, does not work because of the white underlayer.

Neon colours in CMYK

For neon shades, use the strongest swatches without any black, for example pure yellow or magenta. Expect them not to glow as much in print as on screen, because bright green, blue, orange and pink shades become duller in CMYK.

Setting up black, white and grey correctly

Grey tones in DTF printing explains why grey tones can shift in print and how to check them.

Bonus: all colour values as a PDF

So that you do not have to unroll the whole colour chart for every value, all 964 colour values are also available as a PDF. It contains the same swatches as the colour chart, sorted by colour family from yellow through red, blue and green to brown, grey and black. The PDF applies to DTF and UV DTF.

Use it conveniently on screen, for example to look up a value quickly or to pick out suitable swatches in advance. Only the colour chart is binding, however, and a print of the PDF does not replace it either.

Download the colour values as a PDF

Frequently asked questions

View the DTF colour chartView the UV DTF colour chartView the Sample PackColour values as a PDF

Also useful: Setting up print files correctly, Pro File Check and FAQ.

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Wishing you every success with your projects,

DTF-King Team