What is the difference between letter and A4 for printing a calendar?

US Letter is 8.5 × 11 inches (216 × 279 mm) and A4 is 8.27 × 11.69 inches (210 × 297 mm). A4 is slightly narrower and taller than Letter. That small difference is why a calendar can get cut off if the file size and the paper in your printer do not match.

Should I choose letter or A4 to print my calendar?

Match the paper actually loaded in your printer. In the US and Canada that is almost always Letter; in Europe, the UK, Australia and most other countries it is A4. Our calendar pages print cleanly on either, so just set the print dialog to your paper size.

Should I use 'Fit' or 'Actual Size' when printing a calendar?

Use 'Fit' (scale to fit) when in doubt — it guarantees the whole grid lands on the page even if the file and paper are slightly mismatched, at the cost of a slightly smaller grid. Use 'Actual Size' for maximum writing room only when the file and paper sizes match exactly.

Why does my printed calendar have a white border?

Most home printers reserve a small unprintable margin around every page, so a thin white border is normal and does not mean anything is cut off. Leave borderless mode off for calendars, since borderless printing enlarges the content and can push the grid off the edge.

Why is the last week of my calendar getting cut off?

That almost always means the file size and paper size disagree — often an A4 layout on Letter paper, which clips the taller content at the bottom. Set the paper size to match your tray and choose 'Fit' scaling, then check the print preview shows the final row before printing.

Letter vs A4: Printing Calendars at the Right Size

The letter vs A4 question trips up more calendar printouts than any other setting, because the two paper sizes are close enough to look interchangeable and different enough to cut off the bottom row of a month. Letter is the standard in the United States and Canada; A4 is the standard almost everywhere else. If your printed calendar comes out with a missing edge, a thin sliver of an extra page, or shrunken squares, the cause is nearly always a size mismatch between the file, your print dialog, and the paper in the tray. This guide explains the exact dimensions and the print settings that get it right.

Letter vs A4: The Exact Dimensions

The whole issue comes down to a small difference in shape. Here are the numbers:

US Letter: 8.5 × 11 inches, or 216 × 279 mm.
A4: 8.27 × 11.69 inches, or 210 × 297 mm.

Compared side by side, A4 is a little narrower and a little taller than Letter. That is the crux of the letter vs A4 problem: A4 is about 6 mm slimmer but 18 mm longer. So when a Letter-sized layout is sent to an A4 printer with no adjustment, the wider Letter content can clip at the sides, and when an A4 layout prints on Letter paper the taller content can clip at the bottom — often lopping off the final week of the month.

Which Size Should You Use?

Match the paper you actually have in the tray. In the US and Canada, that is almost always Letter, so choose Letter and you are done. In Europe, the UK, Australia, and most of the world, it is A4. Our calendar pages are built to print cleanly on either size — the print layout adapts — so the reliable rule is simply: set your print dialog to the paper loaded in your printer, and do not assume the default is correct.

Scale to Fit vs Actual Size

Your print dialog has a scaling option, and it is the second most common cause of size trouble after the paper setting. The two choices behave very differently:

Fit / Scale to Fit

"Fit" (sometimes "Shrink oversized pages" or "Scale to fit") tells the printer to resize the content so the whole thing lands on the paper, whatever its size. For calendars, this is usually the safest choice: it guarantees nothing gets cut off, even if the file and the paper are slightly mismatched. The only cost is that the grid may shrink by a few percent, leaving a thin white margin.

Actual Size / 100%

"Actual size" or "100%" prints the content at its true dimensions with no resizing. You get the largest possible grid and the most writing room, but if the file and paper do not match exactly, an edge will be clipped. Use this when you are confident the file size and the paper size agree — for example a Letter file on Letter paper.

When in doubt, choose Fit. A calendar that is a hair smaller than it could be still works; a calendar missing its last week does not.

Borderless Printing

Most home printers cannot print all the way to the paper's edge — they reserve a small unprintable margin, usually a few millimeters, on each side. That is why even a perfectly sized calendar prints with a thin white border. A few points to keep in mind:

A white border is normal and harmless; it does not mean anything is cut off.
Some inkjet printers offer a borderless mode that prints edge to edge, but it works by slightly enlarging the image, which can push content off the edge — the opposite of what you want for a full grid.
For calendars, leave borderless off and accept the small margin. The margin actually gives you a clean edge to hold and hang the page.

US vs International: A Quick Checklist

Because the site serves a US audience by default, most readers will use Letter, but the settings that guarantee a clean print are the same everywhere:

Check what paper is physically in your printer.
Set the print dialog's Paper Size to match it — Letter in the US, A4 abroad.
Set scaling to Fit for a guaranteed-complete grid, or Actual Size if file and paper match and you want maximum size.
Leave borderless mode off.
Use the print preview to confirm the whole month, including the last row, is visible before you commit.

Run through that list once and printing becomes reliable rather than a gamble.

Saving a Calendar as a PDF at the Right Size

If you want to keep or share a calendar rather than print it immediately, "printing" to a PDF is the cleanest route — and the same size rules apply. In the print dialog, choose Save as PDF (or Microsoft Print to PDF) as the destination, then set the paper size exactly as you would for real paper: Letter for a US audience, A4 for an international one. A PDF made at Letter size will print perfectly on Letter paper anywhere, but if you send an A4 PDF to a friend in the US they may see the last row clip unless they enable "Fit." So pick the size that matches where the calendar will actually be printed, not just where you are. The advantage of the PDF step is that you can check the layout once, then reprint the same file all year without re-choosing settings.

A Note on Orientation and Quality

Size is not the only setting worth a glance. Monthly calendars generally look best in portrait, while a full-year overview often fits better in landscape — check the preview and switch orientation if the grid looks cramped. For quality, standard or "normal" is plenty for a working calendar; save "best" or "photo" quality and heavier paper for a calendar you intend to display. Printing in black and white is fine too, since our templates are designed to stay readable without color.

Print With Confidence

The letter vs A4 distinction sounds fussy, but it comes down to one habit: set the paper size in your print dialog to match the sheets in your tray, and choose "Fit" when you are unsure. Do that and your monthly grid will land complete every time, last week included. Once your sizing is dialed in, the natural next step is to make the calendar your own — see our guide on how to customize a printable calendar for color-coding, notes columns, and laminating tips that build on a clean printout.