Home › Screen Printing › Screen Printing Ink › Best Screen Printing Ink: Which Ink to Use for Each Job
| Job | Best ink type | Our picks |
|---|---|---|
| Beginners, light shirts, 100% cotton & 50/50 | All-purpose plastisol | All-purpose plastisol · Wilflex Epic Rio |
| Dark shirts | High-opacity plastisol over a white underbase | High-opacity inks · white plastisol |
| White underbase / white ink | Fast-flashing, high-opacity white | WM Plastics Brite White · Wilflex Epic Quick White |
| Polyester, athletic & performance wear | Low-bleed, low-cure plastisol | Wilflex Epic Rival · low-bleed poly inks · WM Plastics Brute White |
| Brand / team colors | Pantone-matched plastisol | Pantone-matched ink |
| Photo-realistic prints | 4-color process inks | 4-color process ink |
| Special effects | Metallic, glow, puff, glitter | metallic · glow in the dark · puff · all effects |
WM Plastics — all-purpose, high-opacity, low-bleed poly, low-cure Brute White and a full range of special effects, non-phthalate (Midori series). Shop WM Plastics inks.
Wilflex (Avient) — Epic Rio ready-for-use colors, Epic Rival low-cure polyester inks and Epic whites. Shop Wilflex inks or read about the brand on Wilflex ink.
Not sure which white to buy? What is the best white plastisol ink? New to plastisol? Plastisol ink guide.
For fabric, use a textile ink made for garments — plastisol or water-based — not poster, paper or acrylic craft ink, which can crack and wash out. Plastisol is the most common screen printing ink for T-shirts and hoodies because it is opaque, durable and easy to cure; it bonds best to cotton and 50/50, and with low-bleed versions to polyester. Always cure fabric ink to its full cure temperature so it survives washing.
Start with an all-purpose plastisol in white and black, printed on 100% cotton light shirts through a 156–160 mesh. Plastisol will not dry in the screen while you learn, and it cures with a flash unit or conveyor dryer. Add colors once your prints are consistent. A complete starter list is on our screen printing kit page.
Unopened, unused ink can be returned within 30 days; opened ink and custom/Pantone-mixed colors cannot (see returns).
Use a textile ink made for garments — plastisol or water-based screen printing ink — and cure it fully. Paper, poster and craft inks are not made to survive washing.
For most T-shirts, plastisol is the best all-round ink: all-purpose plastisol for cotton and 50/50, high-opacity ink over a white underbase for dark shirts, and low-bleed, low-cure ink for polyester.
The best plastisol depends on the job. We stock WM Plastics and Wilflex: all-purpose and Epic Rio colors for cotton, Brite White and Epic Quick White for underbase, and Epic Rival or Low-Bleed Poly for polyester.
Plastisol for opacity and ease of use, or water-based ink for the softest feel on cotton. Silk screen and screen printing are the same process.
An all-purpose plastisol in white and black. It does not dry in the screen and is easy to cure.
A low-bleed, low-cure plastisol such as Wilflex Epic Rival or WM Plastics Low-Bleed Poly, cured at the lowest temperature the ink allows.
Buckets of Ink in Tempe, AZ stocks WM Plastics and Wilflex plastisol in quarts, gallons and 5-gallon pails for same-day pickup or shipping. Call 480-229-7806.
Related guides: Plastisol ink guide · Best ink for polyester · Best white plastisol ink · Metallic ink · Glow in the dark ink · All screen printing ink
