Get your exact Amazon KDP full wrap cover dimensions — spine width, front cover, back cover, bleed, and pixel size at 300 DPI. Enter your trim size, page count, and paper type. Results appear instantly.
Not to scale — proportional illustration only
Every KDP paperback requires a full wrap cover file — a single PDF containing your back cover, spine, and front cover all in one document. The dimensions of this file depend on three variables: your trim size, your page count, and your paper type. Get any one of these wrong and KDP will reject your cover, or worse, print it misaligned.
The calculation itself is not complicated once you understand the components. Here is the formula KDP uses, and that this calculator applies automatically:
Total width = 0.125″ bleed + back cover width + spine width + front cover width + 0.125″ bleed
Total height = trim height + 0.125″ bleed top + 0.125″ bleed bottom = trim height + 0.25″
The spine width is where most authors get tripped up. It is calculated by multiplying your total page count by the paper thickness per page for your specific paper type.
KDP uses three different paper stocks, and each has a different thickness per page. This affects your spine width directly — and therefore your entire cover file dimensions. Using the wrong paper thickness is the most common reason for cover rejection or misaligned spines.
| Paper Type | Thickness Per Page | Spine for 300 Pages | Spine for 200 Pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| White (Standard) | 0.002252″ per page | 0.676″ (17.2mm) | 0.450″ (11.4mm) |
| Cream | 0.0025″ per page | 0.750″ (19.1mm) | 0.500″ (12.7mm) |
| Color | 0.002347″ per page | 0.704″ (17.9mm) | 0.469″ (11.9mm) |
Cream paper produces a noticeably thicker book and wider spine than white paper for the same page count. If you design your cover for white paper and then switch to cream in KDP, your cover file will have the wrong spine width and KDP will reject it. Always finalise your paper type choice before designing your cover, and always recalculate if you change your paper type after your cover is designed.
How to design a print-ready KDP cover in Canva, Affinity Designer, or Photoshop — CMYK colour setup, bleed and safe zone settings, spine design, and export settings that pass KDP’s file check first time.
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Bleed is extra artwork that extends beyond your intended trim line. KDP requires 0.125 inches of bleed on all four outer edges of your cover file. During production, the cover is printed slightly larger than the final book size and then trimmed down. The bleed area ensures that any background colour, image, or design element that extends to the edge of your cover continues through the bleed zone — so when the cover is trimmed, there is no white sliver from a slightly imprecise cut.
Any design element you want to appear at the very edge of your printed cover must extend into the bleed area. Any text or critical design element that must not get cut off should be kept at least 0.25 inches inside the trim line — this is the safe zone.
KDP recommends a minimum spine width of 0.5 inches before adding any text to your spine. At narrower widths, spine text is difficult or impossible to read and KDP may flag your cover for review. The calculator above shows a warning when your spine falls below this threshold.
For books under approximately 220 pages on white paper (spine under 0.5″), consider leaving the spine blank or using a simple colour stripe with no text. For books between 220 and 300 pages, a short author name or title may fit if set in a condensed font at a small size. Over 300 pages, most spines have enough width for both the title and author name.
Here are the most common KDP trim sizes with calculated full wrap dimensions for a 300-page book on white paper. All include 0.125″ bleed on four edges.
| Trim Size | Spine (300pp white) | Total Width | Total Height | Width at 300dpi |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5″ × 8″ | 0.676″ | 11.426″ | 8.25″ | 3428 px |
| 5.5″ × 8.5″ | 0.676″ | 11.926″ | 8.75″ | 3578 px |
| 6″ × 9″ | 0.676″ | 12.926″ | 9.25″ | 3878 px |
| 6.14″ × 9.21″ | 0.676″ | 13.206″ | 9.46″ | 3962 px |
| 7″ × 10″ | 0.676″ | 14.926″ | 10.25″ | 4478 px |
| 8.5″ × 11″ | 0.676″ | 17.926″ | 11.25″ | 5378 px |
Canva includes KDP-specific cover templates for common trim sizes. Set your custom dimensions using the numbers from this calculator, design your full wrap cover, and export as a print-ready PDF. Used by thousands of indie authors for professional-quality covers without hiring a designer.
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KDP hardcover covers follow the same bleed and spine calculation principles, but the dimensions are slightly different from paperbacks. Hardcover manufacturing adds a small amount to each dimension to account for the case binding. The calculator above adjusts for this automatically when you select Hardcover in the Format dropdown.
The key practical difference: hardcover covers are more expensive per unit if you change them after printing (since author copies cost more for hardcovers), so getting the dimensions right before finalising your design is even more important than for paperbacks.
Now that you have your cover dimensions, use the Printing Cost Calculator to find your printing cost per book and the minimum list price you need to set.
Open Printing Cost Calculator →FAQ
Everything authors ask about calculating and designing full wrap covers for Amazon KDP paperbacks.
Once your cover dimensions are set, use our free Paperback Formatter to make sure your manuscript PDF matches the same trim size exactly. No signup required.
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