# Matte vs Glossy: What is your opinion?



## Sapphire (Apr 24, 2012)

Does the best choice depend on genre? Which do readers seem to prefer? Does one look more professional than the other? Does one look more modern than the other?

I need to make a decision on a new CreateSpace paperback soon and am hoping to get some input.


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## Sarah Stimson (Oct 9, 2013)

I've gone for matte. 

When Createspace announced the matte option I went to a book shop and looked at other covers and decided I preferred matte. 

I would be really interested to see any pictures of a matte and glossy cover side by side though.


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

I dislike glossy because of the way it picks up finger prints and etc. All of my books are currently glossy and I do not want to mess with anything till after Christmas - but once that is behind us I plan to create matte versions and see how they look side by side.


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## Christopher Gray (Feb 27, 2013)

Glossy has more "pop" but can look cheap. Overall Matte has a more high-quality, professional look. I'm very glad CS now offers the matte option, because my books produced by LSI always had nicer covers. I've ordered a couple of samples of my book from CS to compare.


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## Sapphire (Apr 24, 2012)

Does someone have a matte cover from CS already? How does it look?


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

My matte cover copies are coming on Wednesday. I hope they meet my expectations.


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## DuncanMH (Apr 24, 2013)

Sapphire said:


> Does someone have a matte cover from CS already? How does it look?


I've got the CS matte version of my book, which was previously in glossy. I much prefer the matte, both for look and feel. I'm going to try and include a couple of photos of the matte and glossy side by side; hopefully the pictures will be good enough to discern the difference.

Glossy is on the left, matte is on the right.


















ETA - Grrr, sorry don't know how to make the images appear in the post!
ETA2 - Images fixed, with kind assistance of VydorScope.


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

Thanks for the images, Duncan, I've been really holding out for some! Have you noticed any difference in the lift/curl of the cover, if you ever had any issues with that?


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

The matte looks great, by the way.


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

Here are his images...



















Duncan, if you hit "quote" on my post you will see the forum code to insert the images.


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## DuncanMH (Apr 24, 2013)

Ryan Sullivan said:


> Thanks for the images, Duncan, I've been really holding out for some! Have you noticed any difference in the lift/curl of the cover, if you ever had any issues with that?


I haven't really handled the matte copy much - certainly haven't read it - so I can't speak toward those issues. I don't recall having had any issues in that regard with the glossy covers though.

Thanks for that Vydor, I'd just tried sticking the links between the img html tags.


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

DuncanMH said:


> Thanks for that Vydor, I'd just tried sticking the links between the img html tags.


Yea - and that is correct - but you linked WEB PAGES not IMAGES.


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## Amanda Brice (Feb 16, 2011)

Glossy is pretty standard for trade paperbacks in my genre -- not just for self-published authors but for trad-published as well. I'd say you see glossy just as often -- if not more often -- as you see matte. So since I've already begun my YA mystery series in glossy I'm going to stick with glossy for the rest of this particular series simply because I've sold a lot of copies of the first three books and I don't want to mess up my readers' collections on their shelves. I'm sure not everyone is as neurotic about such things as I am, but owning half a series in glossy and the other half in matte would drive me bonkers.

However, for my future series I will be using matte because I think it looks really nice.


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## Don J (Nov 7, 2013)

That's a beautiful cover, Duncan. I do prefer the look and feel of matte covers, so I'll probably switch it up in the future, but not until after my upcoming promotions are behind me. I'm hesitant to change anything at the moment.


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## Sapphire (Apr 24, 2012)

When the paperback of Book 2 of my series comes out (soon), I will also be releasing Book 1 with its new cover. So, I can go either way and be consistent. My genre is Women's Contemporary Literature, and my target audience is over the age of 45. I'm leaning toward matte at the moment, but I'm ambivalent.


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## Amanda Brice (Feb 16, 2011)

For an older-skewing women's fiction (any women's fiction, really), I would choose matte. If it was rom-com (which I know yours isn't but I'm just giving an example), I would probably choose glossy.

What it comes down to is knowing the conventions of your genre. Easiest to way to do that is walk into your local bookstore and take a look at the trade paperbacks in your genre. If you're seeing all or predominantly matte, then this is what you should pick.


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## Sandra K. Williams (Jun 15, 2013)

You might want to make sure you get a proof of the book with the matte cover before making a decision.

I tried the Lightning Source matte with a dark-colored cover, and it became too dark. I didn't want to adjust the color, so it was back to glossy for that cover. 

I've seen the matte used for a hot pink cover, and it's absolutely gorgeous.


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## jcfalch (Apr 12, 2013)

Just to join the fray, I've ordered two proofs in matte. I didn't like the glossy version because it shows every wrinkle.  Cheers!


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## Cheyanne (Jan 9, 2013)

Thanks for posting pictures, Duncan. I've been searching around for photos of CS's matte covers ever since they announced it. 

I've been wanting matte covers for two years now, so when they announced it, I changed all my books to matte sight unseen and just assuming they'll look better matte. Hopefully I'm right.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

I just don't get why anyone would want matte covers and have only ever seen two books with them. Maybe for litfic that wants to say 'I AM SOMBER', but I don't get the attraction for anything else.


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## Guest (Nov 15, 2013)

In general, matte covers have a more elegant look. Richer because of the tones they achieve. 

It just depends on what you're going for. I think I'll leave most of my covers glossy, but the series I'm doing just might be fab with the matte going on!


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

These books I own that are in my genre (fantasy) are matte:
The Name of the Wind
The Hobbit
The "A Song of Ice and Fire" series (Game of Thrones)
The Silmarillion
Lara
The Inheritance Cycle (Eragon)


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## RM Prioleau (Mar 18, 2011)

I love the matte covers!! Can't wait to finally use that option for my upcoming books


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

I'm sticking with glossy. I was thrilled with the glossy cover on my first book and never wanted matte.


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## Amanda Brice (Feb 16, 2011)

WPotocki said:


> In general, matte covers have a more elegant look. Richer because of the tones they achieve.
> 
> It just depends on what you're going for. I think I'll leave most of my covers glossy, but the series I'm doing just might be fab with the matte going on!


And this is basically what I'm doing. I think matte will look spectacular for the YA time travel series I'm working on since it has some more literary undertones to it but glossy works best for my YA mystery series.


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## Lummox JR (Jul 1, 2012)

I'm strongly considering switching to matte when I release my first book as a 2nd edition. It feels nicer to read and I think looks a little better. The tendency to attract fingerprints also bothers me about the glossy.


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## H. S. St. Ours (Mar 24, 2012)

I, too, have ordered a few sets of the matte cover, to see. Just from handling the books in my personal library, I think I'm going to like it.


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## Guest (Nov 16, 2013)

I think it depends on genre.  In general, it seems that matte goes with cream, while glossy goes with B&W.  I put this question to a friend tonight and went through his bookshelf, and that's what we found.  Most of the older sf&f books that look like they are matte w/ cream are really just glossy covers with the sheen worn off and pages that have turned yellow with age. 

I think I'm going to keep glossy w/ B&W pages for now, since that seems to be more standard in sf&f.  Not sure though, so if anyone else has an opinion, I'd definitely like to hear it.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

My books are gorgeous in glossy. I don't know if I will switch to matte for my next series, but probably not, since this first series looks striking.


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

Joe, here's my opinion.



Ryan Sullivan said:


> These books I own that are in my genre (fantasy) are matte:
> The Name of the Wind
> The Hobbit
> The "A Song of Ice and Fire" series (Game of Thrones)
> ...


I found the others were glossy. They all seemed to have cream paper. The rest of my fantasy books, probably double the list I have here (only counting the first book of each series), had glossy covers. My LOTR all in one book did, but I know the black Fellowship of the Ring etc. covers are actually matte. I think I have more but didn't look that hard.

From my findings, almost 50/50 are glossy or matte. So choose whichever one you actually want!


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## N. Gemini Sasson (Jul 5, 2010)

I did my last two standalones in matte and love it!


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## Incognita (Apr 3, 2011)

I'm switching my fantasy series to matte, since I think the colors and artwork will work much better with that finish. The rest of my titles will stay glossy. I have a feeling that any new series will probably be matte, though. I just like the look of it better.


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## Gabriela Popa (Apr 7, 2010)

Ordered and just got author copies of Kafka's House in matte covers. So. Much. Better.  Definitely looks more professional.  I'm going matte on my books from now on.


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## Becca Mills (Apr 27, 2012)

I just got my book with the new matte cover. I think it looks a lot better. The artwork actually looks sharper to me. I'm happy having switched and plan to choose matte covers going forward.

FYI, the switch is very easy. You don't have to go through the approval/proof process again. It's literally one click.


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## Incognita (Apr 3, 2011)

I just got the matte books for my Goodreads giveaway. They are so pretty! So glad I made the switch.


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## TiffanyNicole (Jul 28, 2013)

I just got my proof in matte a few minutes ago and I love it so that's definitely what I'll be using from now on.


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## Gabriela Popa (Apr 7, 2010)

I think the tactile experience is 80% of it.  Velvet-like.


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## Lyoung (Oct 21, 2013)

As a reader, I'm attracted mainly to the look of the cover versus "matte" or "glossy". However, as a general aesthetic preference, I lean towards matte.


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## Peter Salisbury (Mar 3, 2010)

Not wishing to be too controversial but I can't raise the effort to click the button, fork out the fee and wait ten days or more for UK delivery, just so I can stroke the cover of one of my books in a slightly different form, sorry.

If they were talking silver or gold for the front cover text, now that would be a thing - Oo, and Embossed, I'd really go for that! Or that thing where you can choose part of the image to be gloss on a matte background...

BTW, is there any discernible difference in the way a matte vs gloss cover is displayed on the book product page where the customer chooses whether to buy the book, or not?


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## Steve W. (Feb 23, 2011)

tried matte, didn't really like it. Will go back to Gloss. I do wish CS and LSI had more options for printing - i.e. adding coating to prevent fingerprints, embossing, foil... etc.


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## Revolution (Sep 17, 2012)

Sapphire said:


> Does the best choice depend on genre? Which do readers seem to prefer? Does one look more professional than the other? Does one look more modern than the other?
> 
> I need to make a decision on a new CreateSpace paperback soon and am hoping to get some input.


My own personal preference is matte. Glossy often lends itself to cheap, at least in my own headspace.


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## NicWilson (Apr 16, 2011)

I'd say even beyond genre, it goes along with the cover design for a specific project. Some colors or textures would show beautifully with matte, and others wouldn't. Most of my books will probably stay glossy, but I may switch the paperback for Banksters to matte, since the design has some unusual textures that would show more vividly without the gloss. That said- I'd love to be able to emboss, or do some portions shiny, on a matte background. I like the idea of doing Dag with a matte backdrop, and the glossy palm-tree-man.


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

I got my matte proofs today! Here are the pictures!


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## sarahdalton (Mar 15, 2011)

I got a copy of The Blemished in matte today. I opened the box very excited and then felt a little 'meh' when I saw it. It's not bad, but I'm not sure if I like it more than the gloss or not. The purple is a lot pinkier. I'll upload some pics in a bit.


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## Sarah Stimson (Oct 9, 2013)

I got my proof today.  The designer is having to fiddle with the design as it has come out way, way darker than on the e-book cover - a dark teal rather than a bright turquoise.  It's also lost all the background graphics in the background.  

Apart from that, I like the look and feel of the matte.

I hope the adjustments and a new proof will mean I'll be ready to get it out on time.


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## H. S. St. Ours (Mar 24, 2012)

Gabriela Popa said:


> I think the tactile experience is 80% of it. Velvet-like.


^This^

My order of matte books came today and I am thrilled. It's not so much that the look is that much better -- some people just prefer glossy to matte, so there'll always be that -- but the _feel_ is fantastic. I wasn't expecting that. And because my book cover designs have textured backgrounds (leather, rough paper, stone) the haptic response is important. I think I'll leave it this way.


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