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Printing, Display & Output

Paper Weight

The mass of a paper per unit area, used as a rough indication of its substance and rigidity.

Measured in g/m²

In depth

Weight correlates loosely with thickness but not reliably, since fibre and coating densities differ — two papers at 310 g/m² can vary noticeably in calliper. Heavier stocks feel more substantial and resist cockling from ink, but every printer has a maximum thickness it can feed, particularly through a curved path.

Examples in practice

A 310 g/m² cotton rag must be fed through the printer's straight rear path rather than the curved cassette.