How to Make Print Then Cut Stickers for Cricut Beginners

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Hi y’all. Heard about Print Then Cut and want to give it a try? This is a detailed guide designed for how to print then cut stickers for Cricut beginners and those who need a refresher. We’re going to go step-by-step through two ways to make stickers using Print Then Cut. Read through or follow along with some funky Day-of-the-Week stickers I made! As usual, personal use, please and thank you!

In Cricut Design Space, there are a couple of ways to work with images. The first is by using Cricut’s images in the application. These are available by purchase or through the Cricut Access subscription. The second method is to upload external images into Design Space.

All of Cricut’s Print Then Cut images are available in its Access Subscription plan. In order to use these images to make print then cut stickers, you will need a Cricut Access Subscription, or you can sign up for a 30-day free trial. If you’ve already decided that a Cricut Access Subscription isn’t for you, you will most likely upload your images into Cricut Design Space most of the time. If that’s the case, then the second method I discuss is most likely how you will use Print Then Cut.

I recommend looking at the two as you may use both at some point.

What does Print Then Cut Mean?

Bear with me, as this is for beginners. I like to think of it in old school terms. Back in kindergarten (or maybe now with kiddos) we used to color pictures with crayons, right?  Afterward, we might take a pair of scissors to the page and cut the picture out. Then our parents might proudly put it on the fridge.

Now, we have a machine that does the same thing with a bit of help. We have an image that’s going to be colored in. Our Cricut sends one or more of these pictures to the printer (to be colored in) and adds a bold mark around it. This bold is called a registration mark and works as the Cricut’s eyes, telling it where the boundaries are and where to begin to cut the images. After printing, we give our printout back to our Cricut for cutting with “scissors” and then we can paste our pictures on any “fridge” we want! And is how we make print then cut stickers!

What you will need to Print Then Cut stickers:

• Cricut Maker Series or Cricut Explore Series machine
• Inkjet Printer
• Cricut LightGrip Mat
• Printable Vinyl
• Sticker or sticker set to upload
• Cricut Access subscription or 30-Day free trial (optional)

How to make Print Then Cut stickers with Cricut Access Images

Note for Mac users: I’ll be referencing Windows commands.
I am using Cricut Design Space version 6.17.143 for Windows. Your version may be different upon reading.

Cricut Access has almost 12,000 Print Then Cut images, and most likely more while you’re reading this. In this first process, we will use a few of those images to create stickers, then print and cut those stickers out.

Open Cricut Design Space
Check in the drop down next to New Project and make sure the correct type of machine is selected.
Then select New Project.

On the project screen, select Images on the far left.
Under Operation type, select Print Then Cut.

Scroll through the images and select several. Note that thumbnails of the images selected collect in the bottom right hand of the screen.
When you have finished selecting 4-5 images, click on Add to Canvas.

All the images appear on the canvas on top of each other and grouped.
Click away from the grouping to deselect.
Then move each one away from the other.

Select an image and look at Operation at the top left of the screen. It should state Print Then Cut. This indicates that the image is set properly.

Note your ruler at the top and on the left-hand side. The printing space is 6.75” W x 9.25” H for each page. This restriction allows Design Space to print the registration marks on 8.5”x 11” sticker or printable vinyl paper. When you print your stickers individually instead of from a sheet, you can size each one up to 6.75” x 9.25, the maximum.

If you want to resize any image, make sure the lock is turned on for each as it maintains its ratio.

When resizing your stickers, make sure they don’t overlap. Give them some space. After resizing and moving, look at your layers on the right-hand side. Make sure they all show Print Then Cut.

When you are finished resizing, click Make It at the top right of your screen.

Note the redistribution of the stickers. Design Space may move them into the best fit for the page. You can move any of them manually here if you need to.

Make sure that Mirror is turned off.

Tip: If you want to change anything, click cancel. You can add more stickers, move or remove them, resize them, etc. When you are ready, click Make It again. Do this step until you have the stickers just as you want them.

Ensure you are connected to your Cricut machine. The circular spinning arrows will disappear when your machine is connected.

The Send to Printer button will activate. Select Send to Printer.

Turn on Add Bleed and Use System Dialog. 

The Print Setup box will appear. Click on Print.

When the printer dialog box opens, try setting your printer for high quality printouts. For paper stickers, try matte photo paper, high print quality, borderless or similar. For printable vinyl or glossy sticker paper, try glossy photo paper, high print quality.  You may need to tweak it as you make more.

Tip: Add Bleed extends the image a bit more, making sure there isn’t any accidental white border on your sticker.

If you need to reprint, select Print and the Send to Printer button will reappear. Print again then move to the next step.

After printing, select your material.

For a kiss cut, I use Washi Tape and for full cuts I use Printable Sticker Paper. A kiss cut does not go through the backing material and the stickers will pull from the sheet. A full cut goes through the backing and will make individual stickers.

Tip: After cutting, if you’re not getting the strong cut you want, try using more pressure before moving to another material.

Place your sticker paper in the upper-left-hand corner as straight as possible on a blue, light grip mat. Try to place it as smoothly as possible to minimize any wrinkling.

Make sure your fine point blade is installed into clamp B.

Place your mat in the guides and press the Load button.

When ready, press the flashing Go button.

After your Cricut has finished cutting and before unloading the mat, check a small area to see if one of the stickers lifts the way you expect it to. If it doesn’t, run it through again by pressing the Go button before you remove it. Otherwise, remove the mat and click Finish in Design Studio.

Remove the stickers gently from the mat by pulling the mat away from the paper/vinyl using gravity (upside down.)

How to make Print Then Cut stickers with Image Uploads

In Cricut Design Space, check the drop down next to New Project and make sure your type of machine is selected. Once you have done that, select New Project.

Select Upload, Note the acceptable file types of images.

Click Upload Image.

Then Click Browse to browse for the image file.

Browse to the location of the image file you are using for the stickers.

Select the file and click Open.

Indicate the complexity of the coloring of the project. If you have several different colors, select Complex. Simple is typically monochromatic, Moderately Complex typically would be two to three colors, and Complex typically would be three or more colors.

Select Complex, then Continue.

Next, Design Space will attempt to remove the background, even if it’s already transparent.

Those with a Cricut Access subscription will be able to use the automatic Background Remover tool.  Those without can see the results but will need to use the manual tools.  

Sometimes Background Remover has trouble removing the background completely. In those case, the manual tools will need to be used as well.

Most stickers and sticker sheets should already be prepared with the background set to transparent so that you don’t have to manually remove them.

Select Apply and Continue.

Cricut wants to know what we plan to do with the images. The first option, Cut Image, is selected when cutting the outline of an object. This is used for vinyl items, cardmaking, and other crafts.

Print then Cut is used for projects like stickers, printed decals, printed cutouts and other crafts that have a print on it. We will be doing a Print Then Cut.

Select Print Then Cut Image.

Optionally, on the right of the screen, add an image name and any tags you want to associate.

Click Upload.

Select the file you uploaded. It will be the first file on the left. If it is missing, select cancel and try uploading again.

Select Add to Canvas.

Note the error message in the layers area on the right-hand side. Clicking on the message shows that the image is too large for Print Then Cut. It will need to be resized.

In the toolbar, click into the height box and change it to 9.25 inches and press enter. Note the width and height are now within the acceptable range of 6.75” W 9 .25” H and the error message is no longer in the layers panel.

If the image skewed oddly, the lock was probably open, and the image ratio was not maintained. Type Control+Z to under the last step. Click on the lock on the toolbar between width and height. Ensure it is closed. Redo last step. Move onto the next step.

Select Make It in the upper-right-hand corner. Make sure that all the stickers are inside the registration mark (the black box surrounding the stickers) and that the sheet is well placed.

If there are any errors or issues, click cancel. Resize or reimport if necessary.

Click Continue.

Ensure you are connected to your Cricut machine. The circular spinning arrows will disappear when your machine is connected.

The Send to Printer button will activate. Select Send to Printer.

Turn on Add Bleed and Use System Dialog. 

The Print Setup box will appear. Click on Print.

When the printer dialog box opens, try setting your printer for high quality printouts. For paper stickers, try matte photo paper, high print quality, borderless or similar. For printable vinyl or glossy sticker paper, try glossy photo paper, high print quality.  You may need to tweak it as you make more.

Tip: Add Bleed extends the image a bit more, making sure there isn’t any accidental white border on your sticker. When the system dialog box pops up for your printer, set up the preferences for printing on your specific paper.

If you need to reprint, select Print and the Send to Printer button will reappear. Print again then move to the next step.

After printing, select your base material.

For a kiss cut, I use Washi Tape and for full cuts I use Printable Sticker Paper.  A kiss cut does not go through the backing material and the stickers will pull from the sheet. A full cut goes through the backing and will make provide individual stickers.

Tip: After cutting, if you’re not getting the strong cut you want, try using more pressure before moving to another material.

Place your sticker paper in the upper-left-hand corner as straight as possible on a blue, light grip mat. Try to place it as smoothly as possible to minimize any wrinkling. 

Make sure your fine point blade is installed into clamp B.

Place your mat in the guides and press the Load button.

When ready, press the flashing Go button.

After your Cricut has finished cutting and before unloading the mat, check a small area to see if one of the stickers lifts the way you expect it to. If it doesn’t, run it through again by pressing the Go button before you remove it. Otherwise, remove the mat and click Finish in Design Studio.

Remove the stickers gently from the mat by pulling the mat away from the paper using gravity (upside down.)

Tips and More

CALIBRATION
It’s possible for the cut to come out completely out of whack with your print. The cut edges may be completely off or even run into another sticker. This happened to me on my very first Print Then Cut with each of my machines.

If this happens, you’ll need to run a Print Then Cut calibration to get a proper alignment. I recommend doing this before your first Print Then Cut. Check out the Cricut website for the full instructions on calibrating your machine.

CLEANING YOUR BLADE
If the sticker paper is getting torn or ripped, the blade might have debris on it. Clean your blade beforehand if you haven’t in a while so that you get a clean cut. This video shows how to clean it with aluminum foil.

MOBILE DEVICES

iOS: Print Then Cut feature is available.
Android: Print Then Cut is not available, even for Cricut Access Print Then Cut images.

PRINTER

The maximum print area for your images for Print Then Cut is 6.75” W x 9.25” H.

An inkjet is recommended for sticker paper and printable vinyl due to the LaserJet’s heat. However, I have recently seen vinyl sticker paper brands that are indicated for LaserJet printers. I have not tried these. If you have, please let us know your experience in the comments. We’d love to know how it worked out for you!

In the simplest sense, printing needs to be done through the Cricut because it needs to print the registration marks. It is possible to create your own outside of Cricut Design Space and print beforehand, but it is simpler and easier to let Cricut Design Space do it.

MORE

Print Then Cut for Cricut is available on the Explore Air 2, Explore 3, Cricut Maker and Cricut Maker 3. The Cricut Joy only supports Cut and Draw; it does not support Print Then Cut.

The sensors that pick up the registration marks can be pretty sensitive. Any reflective materials, or ones that are not light, or even patterned can cause issues. White materials only on Cricut Explore Air 2 and Explore 3 may be used. You can use white and light-colored materials with the Cricut Maker and Maker 3. There isn’t enough difference between registration marks and dark colors for the sensors to pick them up.

If your paper is high gloss, you may receive an error message because the sensors couldn’t pick up the registration marks. If this happens, try some matte scotch tape over your registration marks and see if that does the trick. Props to a gentleman skeleton on Reddit for this one.

If you’re not getting a great cut (not cutting through, ripping the paper), check your mat. Clean or replace it if it’s dirty or almost out of commission. Make sure you’re using the right mat type. Ensure your blade is clean and doesn’t need to be replaced.

There are different types of sticker paper and many different brands. There are several ways to make glossy and water-resistant stickers based upon available materials. Use glossy vinyl on top of sticker paper to really make them shine! Learn more about the different types of adhesive vinyl for Cricut.

Here’s a good video on a bunch of different brands of sticker paper. I recommend Angie Holden’s videos and blog posts highly.
There are many projects that you can make with Print Then Cut. You can print on cardstock and printable vinyl and other materials. Look around online and you will learn about so many things you can make!

If you have any questions, please leave a comment. Happy happy crafting!