How to print graph paper at the correct size

Graph paper is only useful for scale drawings if the squares are the size they claim to be. The PDFs on this site are drawn to exact dimensions; the only thing that can change them is scaling in the print dialog.

Quick steps

  1. Open the PDF. Download the graph paper PDF or click “Open & print” to open it in your browser's PDF viewer.
  2. Turn off scaling. In the print dialog choose Actual size, 100% or Scale: 100. Do not use Fit to page or Shrink oversized pages.
  3. Match the paper size. Make sure the printer paper (Letter or A4) matches the PDF page size.
  4. Check with a ruler. After printing, measure ten squares. 1/4 inch squares should span 2.5 inches; 5 mm squares should span 5 cm.

Why squares come out too small

Most printers cannot print to the very edge of the sheet, so PDF viewers offer to shrink the page into the printable area. “Fit to page” typically reduces the page by 3–6%. On 1/4 inch paper that turns 32 squares (8 inches) into about 7.6 inches—enough to throw off a floor plan. The generator already leaves a margin (1/4 inch by default) so nothing needs to be shrunk.

The second cause is a page-size mismatch. An A4 PDF printed on US Letter paper must be shrunk by about 6% to fit, and a Letter PDF on A4 is shrunk slightly too. Always generate the PDF in the size of the paper in your printer.

Settings by program

Chrome and Edge

Open the PDF, press Ctrl+P (⌘P on Mac), open More settings and set Scale to Default or Custom 100. Avoid Fit to printable area.

Safari and macOS Preview

In the print dialog set Scale to 100% and untick Scale to fit (Preview may call it Auto rotate and Scale to Fit; select Scale: 100%).

Firefox

In the print preview set Scale to 100 instead of Fit to page width.

Adobe Acrobat Reader

Under Page Sizing & Handling choose Actual size. Do not use Fit or Shrink oversized pages.

Phones and tablets

iOS and Android print at 100% when the paper size matches the PDF. If the printer offers “Fit to paper”, turn it off in the printer options.

Checking the result

Measure across ten squares, not one—errors add up and become easy to see. Ten 1/4 inch squares are 2.5 inches (63.5 mm); ten 5 mm squares are 50 mm; ten 1 cm squares are 10 cm. If the measurement is 2–6% short, scaling was on. If one direction is right and the other is off, the printer's paper feed may be slipping; try a different paper tray.

Getting crisp lines

Our PDFs are vector files, so lines are sharp at any printer resolution. If thin lines look broken or faint, increase the line weight to 0.4–0.5 pt or pick a darker color in the generator. Printing in “draft” or “toner save” mode can drop the lightest lines.