Direct to Film transfers for custom garment decoration. Professional-grade results with vibrant colors, soft hand feel, and exceptional wash durability — at transparent per-inch prices that work for individuals, small shops, and high-volume orders alike.
Direct to Film (DTF) is a cutting-edge transfer printing technology where your design is printed onto a special PET film using water-based inks, coated with hot-melt adhesive powder, and cured into a flexible transfer sheet. That transfer is then heat-pressed onto any garment.
The result: full-color, photo-quality prints that adhere to virtually any fabric — including cotton, polyester, nylon, and blends — on any color garment, with no pre-treatment required.
Trying to decide between print methods? Compare DTF vs screen printing or DTF vs sublimation — cost, durability, color, and where each method wins.
Works on light AND dark garments without white underbase issues.
Full color range including gradients, photographic detail, and fine lines.
Soft hand-feel transfers that hold up through repeated washing.
All sheets are 22.5" wide. Choose any height from 12" to 300" in 1-inch increments — simple per-inch pricing.
Pay by the inch. No setup fees.
Need a custom size or volume quote? Contact us.
Every order is backed by commitments no national competitor makes. If we fall short, we make it right — no runaround, no exceptions.
Custom orders and artwork changes get a digital proof before we run a single inch of film. Anything we flag as tricky earns a real phone call. No surprises, no color-shift disappointments.
Call us, text us, or email us. You'll reach a person who knows your order. No ticket queue, no automated "someone will get back to you."
Standard orders ship in 3–5 business days. Rush: 1–2 business days. We tell you the door-to-door estimate at checkout — not just production time.
A standard heat press, the right temperature, and a hot peel. About 30 seconds of active work per garment.
Press the blank garment for 3–5 seconds at 320°F (160°C) to remove moisture and flatten the fibers. Skipping this step is the #1 reason transfers peel.
Lay the transfer face-up (carrier film on top, design touching the fabric) on the garment. Use a ruler or alignment tool — once it presses, it is committed.
Use medium-firm pressure (40–60 psi). A clamshell or swing-away heat press both work; a household iron does not deliver consistent heat or pressure and will fail.
Peel the carrier film away while the transfer is still warm — no waiting for it to cool. Hot-peel film keeps production moving, performs reliably on cotton, polyester, and blends, and leaves a soft hand feel on the finished garment. Pull slowly at a low, flat angle in one smooth motion.
Cover the design with a non-stick sheet (parchment paper or Teflon) and press again for 5–10 seconds. This locks the adhesive into the fibers and dramatically improves wash life.
Screen printing requires screen setup for each color and struggles with photographic detail and gradients. DTF has no setup fees and prints full-color designs with unlimited detail in a single pass — making it ideal for small runs, one-offs, and complex artwork.
DTF transfers work on virtually any fabric — cotton, polyester, nylon, blends, denim, and more. They adhere to both light and dark garments without the limitations of screen printing or heat-transfer vinyl (HTV).
We accept PNG (recommended, with a transparent background), JPG, SVG, PDF, EPS, and AI files. For raster files, 300 DPI at print size gives the best results. Vector files (SVG, PDF, EPS, AI) have no DPI limit — use them whenever possible for the sharpest output. For step-by-step prep instructions and software-specific export settings, see our artwork prep guide.
Use our free DTF Sheet Builder to upload your designs, arrange them on a sheet, verify DPI, and download a print-ready layout. Then contact us or upload your file through our order form and we'll take it from there.
Properly heat-pressed DTF transfers are wash-durable for 50+ cycles when cared for correctly. Turn garments inside out, wash cold, and avoid high-heat drying to maximize lifespan. Full instructions in our DTF care guide.
Yes. DTF transfers can be applied with a commercial heat press or a quality home press at around 320°F (160°C) with medium-firm pressure for 10–15 seconds. A standard household iron is not recommended — it can't deliver the consistent heat and pressure needed for a lasting bond.
Most standard orders are ready within a few business days. Turnaround varies by volume and current workload — contact us for current lead times before placing a time-sensitive order.
We ship via USPS, UPS, and FedEx. CA-based means faster ground delivery for the entire West Coast — often arriving in 1–2 days after production with standard shipping. Orders over $100 ship free. Bay Area / Central Coast customers can also pick up locally.