Sublimation orscreen printing:which is rightfor team jerseys?
Both put your colours on a jersey. Only one gets through a season of games and hot washes without cracking. Here is how each works, what each costs, and when each one is the better buy.
On this pageThe short answer
The short answer
- For polyester game jerseys, choose sublimation. The dye goes inside the fibre, so it can’t crack or peel, and every colour, name and number costs the same.
- Choose screen printing for cotton tees, hoodies and fan wear with one to three solid colours, especially in runs of a few hundred.
- Choose tackle twill for the raised, stitched college look. It costs the most and weighs the most.
- At TextileZilla, sublimation is included in the jersey price. Screen printing and tackle twill are add-ons.
How sublimation works
Sublimation starts on paper. We print your design in mirror image onto transfer paper with special dye inks, then lay it on white fabric in a . At about 200 °C (around 390 °F) the dye turns straight into a gas, which is what means, and moves into the polyester fibres while the heat holds them open. When the press lifts and the fabric cools, the fibres close with the colour locked inside.
Because the colour is part of the fabric, there is nothing on top of it. You can’t feel the print, the jersey breathes like plain mesh, and there is no layer to crack, peel or fade in patches. The whole panel prints at once, so a design with twelve colours and a fade costs the same as one with two. Names and numbers are just part of the file, so every player’s jersey can be different at no extra cost.
The limits: sublimation only works on polyester, or fabric that is mostly polyester, and it needs a white base. It can’t print white, because white areas are simply the fabric showing through. That is why we print each panel before it is cut and sewn, so the colour runs right into the seams.
How screen printing works
Screen printing pushes thick ink through a fine mesh stencil, one screen for each colour. The most common ink, , sits on the surface of the fabric and is cured with heat at about 160 °C (320 °F). On dark garments, a white goes down first so the colours on top stay bright.
Done well, a screen print is bold and opaque, and it works on cotton, where sublimation can’t. It is the cheapest way to put a one or two colour logo on a few hundred tees. But every colour needs its own screen and setup, so detailed designs get expensive fast, and each player’s name and number needs its own print step.
On jerseys there are two more problems. The ink layer stretches less than the fabric under it, so hot washes, stretching and the dryer slowly break it into cracks. A well-cured print lasts much longer, but it still wears. And on coloured polyester, the dye in the fabric can bleed into the ink while it cures. This is called , and it turns white numbers pink or grey unless the printer uses low-bleed ink.
Our rule of thumb: if a design has a fade or more than four colours, sublimation wins. For a one-colour logo on 500 cotton tees, screen printing is the better buy.
Side by side
Here is how the three common ways to decorate a team jersey compare. The highlighted column is what most of our teams choose for game kits.
| Feature | Sublimation | Screen printing | Tackle twill |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it works | Dye turns to gas and bonds inside polyester fibres | Ink pushed through a mesh screen, one per colour, cured on top | Fabric letters and numbers cut out and stitched on in layers |
| Fabric | Polyester, white base | Cotton, blends and polyester (with low-bleed ink) | Most fabrics |
| Colours | Unlimited, with fades and photos | Best with 1–4 solid colours | 1–3 layered colours |
| Feel | Nothing to feel; breathes like the fabric | A smooth layer you can feel; large prints trap heat | Raised, heavy and stiffer |
| After a season | No cracking or peeling | Can crack or peel, faster if washed hot | Lasts years; edges can fray |
| Names + numbers | Included in the print | Extra print step per player | Cut and stitched per player |
| Price here | Included | Extra charge, in your quote | Extra charge, in your quote |
| Best for | Game kits, fades and patterns | Cotton tees, hoodies, fan wear | Traditional school and college looks |
Swipe the table sideways →
What a season of washing does
A team jersey gets washed after every game and most practices. Over a 25-game season that is easily 50 washes, often hot and often with the dryer on high. Drag the slider to see what typically happens to each kind of number.
An illustration of typical wear on a plastisol print washed hot and tumble dried, not a lab test. Washing inside out in cold water and drying on a line slows it down for any print.
Where tackle twill fits
is the stitched lettering you see on college and pro jerseys: names and numbers cut from sturdy twill fabric and sewn on in one to three layers. It looks premium, lasts for years, and a damaged number can be unpicked and replaced.
It is also the heaviest and least breathable option, and the most expensive, because every letter is cut and stitched. A popular middle path is a sublimated body for colour and comfort with tackle twill numbers for the classic look. You can see that combination on our Baseline Classic Set.
Which one should your team choose?
Answer three questions and we will point you to the method we would recommend for your order. You can mix methods too; our sublimated basketball uniforms take stitched numbers or an embroidered crest as add-ons.
Where each one is cheaper
Sublimation has no setup per colour, so the price per jersey barely changes between 20 and 500 pieces, and a complex design costs the same as a simple one. Screen printing pays for a screen and a setup for every colour, so it gets cheaper per piece as the order grows, and dearer with every colour you add. Tackle twill is priced by the letter, so long names cost more.
In practice, for team jerseys with names and numbers, sublimation is almost always the cheaper choice. Screen printing wins on big runs of cotton fan tees with a simple logo. Your quote shows the exact cost of each option for your design, and you can see every step from artwork to delivery on how we make it.
Quick questions
Can you sublimate on cotton?
No. Sublimation dye only bonds with polyester, so it washes out of cotton. For cotton tees and hoodies we screen print. If you want a soft, cotton-like feel with sublimated colour, ask for our polyester tee fabric.
Do sublimated jerseys fade?
Very slowly. The dye is inside the fibre, so it can’t crack or peel. Strong sun and hot washes fade any colour over the years, so wash inside out in cold water and skip the dryer.
Can we add a player later?
Yes. We keep your design files and colour codes, so a new player’s jersey matches the first batch. Ask us about the minimum for top-up orders.
Can one uniform mix methods?
Yes, and many teams do. A sublimated body with tackle twill numbers, or a sublimated jersey with an embroidered crest, are both common. Each add-on is listed in your quote.
