DTG vs DTF: what's the difference and how we print your T-shirt

Every Laphilo garment is printed in our workshop in Tuscany using one of two digital techniques: DTG or DTF. They work differently and feel different to the touch, and we use both. Here's what changes. In a nutshell: DTG wins on soft hand-feel and natural gradients, DTF on brightness and colour accuracy.

What is DTG printing

DTG stands for direct to garment: the printer deposits water-based inks directly onto the fabric fibres, much like an office printer prints onto paper. On black and coloured garments, before printing, the fabric receives a pre-treatment that helps the white base adhere and keeps the colours vivid; afterwards, the garment goes through a heat press to fix the ink. The result is a print that becomes part of the cotton. You can barely feel it: the cotton stays soft and breathable. Recommended for artwork full of gradients.

What is DTF printing

DTF stands for direct to film: the design is printed onto a film, covered with a heat-activated adhesive powder and then transferred onto the garment with a heat press. The print is a thin layer that sits on top of the fabric: full, bright colours that stay very true to the file you send us, even on dark garments, with razor-sharp edges. It works on almost anything: cotton, polyester, blends, hats, bags, keyrings, towels. To the touch it's slightly noticeable, like a stretchy film.

Which one we use

Both. The technique depends on the garment and the design, and we choose it in the workshop: generally DTG on cotton when softness matters and the design has gradients or photographs, DTF when the colours must stay as true to the file as possible, on accessories and on technical fabrics. The price doesn't change for you.

The machines: Aeoon and Brother

Aeoon: industrial-grade DTG printing. The Aeoon machines aren't workshop printers: they are industrial DTG systems built in Austria, designed for series production. Multiple print heads working in parallel, repeatable colour piece after piece, and factory-level speed: these are the same machines that Europe's large print houses use to produce for brands and print-on-demand platforms. Our workshop produces up to 2,500 garments a day, around 75,000 a month. For you that means one simple thing: whether you order 1 T-shirt or 500, they come out with the same quality and in the same timeframe. And it means consistent colour, order after order.

Brother GTX: professional DTG. Alongside the Aeoon machines we run the Brother GTX, professional DTG printers that we use for single pieces and fine details. They print with Innobella Textile water-based inks, certified OEKO-TEX® ECO PASSPORT, CPSIA-compliant and with a GOTS-approved additive: safe even for newborn and children's garments.

Brother DTF: film printing. For DTF we use Brother DTF printers: the design is printed on the film and then transferred to the garment with a heat press. It is the technique we use for accessories, technical fabrics and logos in solid colours.

How long it lasts

Both prints withstand dozens of washes if you follow two rules: wash at 30°C inside out and don't iron directly on the print. DTG ages with the garment, softening evenly; DTF keeps its colours vivid for longer but, if mistreated (a hot tumble dryer, an iron on the design), it can crack. Full details in the guide how to wash a personalised T-shirt.

In short

Sources

• Brother Innobella Textile ink certifications: OEKO-TEX® ECO PASSPORT (NEP 1802, Nissenken), CPSIA, GOTS Approved Additive (ECOCERT GREENLIFE, GOTS-ECOCERT-08-00932) — manufacturer data, Brother.
• Aeoon Technologies GmbH, Austria: manufacturer of the industrial DTG systems used in our workshop.

FAQ

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