Philadelphia has a deep bench of screen printers, from small one-person studios to big production shops that ship nationwide. The right one depends on your quantity, your ink and garment choices, and how much hand-holding your artwork needs.
I design merch and apparel for brands, artists and businesses, and the handoff to the printer is where a lot of good designs get messed up. This guide covers Philly shops worth knowing, how to pick one, and what to send so your shirts come out the way you designed them.
Philadelphia screen printers and merch shops
Every shop below is listed with the services it describes on its own website. No rankings here, just a starting list. Visit, ask questions and compare.
Top Banana USA: 4047 Cresson Street. Lists direct-to-garment (DTG) printing, screen printing, embroidery, and print-on-demand fulfillment that connects to online stores. Its screen printing page says it prints with plastisol inks.
Awesome Dudes Printing: South Philadelphia, at 6th and Reed. A screen print shop that says it has been printing shirts and posters since 2007. The site has an online catalog and an ink color chart.
Absurd Printworks: A one-woman print shop in South Philadelphia. Lists custom screen printing, apparel and accessory sourcing, screen burning and graphic design, with a focus on artists, musicians and small businesses.
Print Natural: 2386 Orthodox Street. Screen prints sustainable apparel (organic, hemp, bamboo and recycled options) with organic water-based inks, and also lists hat embroidery, custom labeling and preorder fulfillment. Its site says it doesn't use plastisol, discharge or DTF, and doesn't do print-on-demand.
Phresh Prints Ink: 3251 Fox Street. Lists screen printing, embroidery and graphic design, plus DTG, sublimation, digital printing, online stores and team uniforms.
Tee Vision Printing: 920 E Hunting Park Avenue. Lists screen printing, DTG and embroidery, with DTF as an option on its quote form.
JP Tees: 2930 Richmond Street. Describes itself as a union screen printing and embroidery source for tees, sweats, hats, jackets, bags and sports uniforms.
RushOrderTees: Headquartered in Philadelphia, with ordering online. Lists screen printing, embroidery (including tackle twill and monogramming) and direct-to-film (DTF) printing.
A quick note: shop details change. Services, addresses, hours and equipment get updated all the time, so confirm everything directly with the shop before you plan a drop around it.
How to choose a screen printer
Minimums
Screen printing has setup on every job: each color is printed separately, with its own screen. That's why many shops set a minimum per design. If you only need a handful of pieces, ask about DTG or other digital methods, which skip the screens.
Ink types
This is the choice that most changes how your shirt looks and feels.
Plastisol. Ryonet, a major screen printing supplier, describes plastisol as essentially liquid plastic. It doesn't air dry, it has to be heat-cured, and it's highly opaque. It sits on top of the fabric with a thicker, more rigid feel, which gives bold graphics punch.
Water-based. Lays down a thinner, softer, more flexible layer. The tradeoff is on the shop side: it can dry in the screen and takes more care to cure.
Discharge. A water-based ink with an activator that removes the garment's dye and replaces it with pigment, so the print feels like part of the shirt. It works best on 100% cotton or high-cotton garments with reactive dyes. Polyester and rayon may not discharge evenly, results vary from blank to blank, and that same source says it isn't suited to kids' apparel. Good printers test each new garment first.
Ask which inks a shop runs. Some specialize, and some (like Print Natural) won't use certain inks at all.
Garment blanks
The blank is half the product. Ask which brands and styles the shop carries, whether you can see or order samples, and whether they'll print on garments you supply. Fabric content matters too: as above, discharge needs the right cotton, and some inks behave differently on blends.
Turnaround
Ask for the standard turnaround from art approval, not from your first email, and whether they do rush jobs. Then work backward from your launch date and leave room for a reprint if something goes wrong.
Proofs
A good shop sends a proof or mockup showing print size, placement and ink colors before anything goes on press. Read it closely. Once you approve it, that's what you're getting.
What to send your printer
Clean files save time, money and reprints.
Vector artwork. AI, EPS, PDF or SVG with outlined fonts. Top Banana, for example, requires vector art for screen printing. If your art is raster (like a painted illustration), send a high-resolution file at actual print size and ask how the shop wants it.
Pantone colors. Spec every ink color as a Pantone spot color so the printer can match it. Don't rely on how a color looks on your screen. Many shops also have stock ink colors, so ask for their chart.
Size and placement mockups. Show each print on the actual blank with the dimensions in inches: front, back, left chest, sleeve, neck. Note the garment color and style.
Print-ready separations. Screen printing prints each color separately in succession, so each color needs its own layer. Bright colors on dark shirts often need a white underbase: a white layer printed first so the colors on top stay true. Ask if the shop wants you to supply separations or if their art team handles them.
A short spec sheet. Quantities by size, garment brand and color, ink type, deadline and delivery address. One page, no guessing.
Designing for the press, not just the screen
Design choices drive the print job. Fewer colors means fewer screens. Very thin lines and tiny type can lose detail depending on the ink and fabric, so ask your printer what's safe. Gradients and photos need halftones or a digital method.
I go deeper on concept, placement and print methods in my merch design guide.
Merch I've designed
For Defiant Origins, I built the streetwear brand's foundation: logo, badges, colors, apparel, animated social graphics and a studio shoot. For Triple Eight Auto, the identity carried through to tees, bumper stickers and vinyl shop signage. In both cases, the apparel was designed as part of the brand system, not added at the end.
If you're an artist or event, my music and culture work covers merch, cover art, posters and event branding.
FAQ
What's the difference between screen printing and DTG?
Screen printing pushes ink through a separate screen for each color, which makes it efficient for larger runs of simpler designs. DTG prints the design digitally onto the garment, which skips screen setup. Top Banana, for example, pitches DTG for small runs and high color counts.
Which ink is best for streetwear?
It depends on the look. Plastisol gives bold, opaque graphics, while water-based and discharge give a softer feel that's more part of the fabric. Ask your printer for samples of each on the blank you plan to use.
Do I need vector files for screen printing?
Many shops require them, and clean vector art with outlined fonts and Pantone colors makes the job faster and more accurate. If your art is a painting or photo, talk to the shop about the best way to separate it.
How far ahead should I order merch for a launch?
Ask your shop for its standard turnaround from art approval, then add time for proofs, shipping and a possible reprint. Don't book a shop for a hard date without confirming they can hit it.
Can a designer handle the printer for me?
Yes. I design the graphics and prep print-ready files and mockups, so your printer gets everything they need to match the design.
Need merch that prints right the first time?
I design apparel graphics and full merch drops, then prep the files your printer actually needs. Philadelphia-based, working with brands and artists everywhere.