When choosing personalised workwear for your organisation, deciding between embroidered or printed branding is key. The final look, fit and feel of your garments will be determined by the customisation you choose. But which is best for your requirements?

As an experienced provider of premium customised workwear, we know a thing or two about printed and embroidered hoodies. In fact, the classic embroidered hoodie, custom made with your designs, is one of our bestselling items. We are frequently asked, which is better, printed or embroidered hoodies?

Let us take you through the differences between custom embroidered hoodies and printed ones. We’ll explain how each are made, and why that makes them ideally suited as branded workwear for event organisers, businesses, as merchandise and as workwear.

By the time you’ve read our useful guide, you’ll have a much better understanding of which personalisation method is best for you.

Embroidered Hoodies Overview

Embroidery is the process of decorating textiles with stitching using a needle and thread. Traditionally, embroidery was hand-stitched and required a steady touch and a good eye. In recent years, embroidery machines have replaced hand stitching as they are more precise and much quicker.

Embroidery is considered as one of the most reliable forms of customisation for clothing. Ideal for adding logos, text and symbols onto workwear, it is considered a premium method for creating distinctive personalised embroidered hoodie designs.

Advantages of Embroidery

Super durable: Embroidery is long-lasting due to the strong bond of thread to fabric. It is ideally suited to frequent use making it great for workwear uniforms.
Premium quality: Its durability gives embroidery a reputation for being premium quality. Longer lasting than other customisation techniques, embroidered workwear creates a polished and professional finish. Not only does this produce a stylish aesthetic, but it inspires trust in the brand too.
Textured: Embroidering logos and text onto garments results in a raised texture from the layered thread. The raised profile of the stitching means branding stands out more, making it more eye-catching. With an embroidered logo, hoodie designs look more premium overall.

Disadvantages of Embroidery

Cost: It costs more to produce a custom embroidered hoodie per unit than other methods of branding. Therefore, embroidered designs are better suited to smaller orders. However, as embroidery is generally longer lasting, it will need replacing less frequently, giving it a comparable lifetime cost.
Not suited to intricate designs: The process of precision stitching, although made easier with advances in technology, is not ideal for intricate or detailed designs. Stitching is more suited to text, logos and simpler designs.
Not suited to delicate fabrics: Due to the weight and volume of thread needed to create text and logo designs, embroidery is too heavy to use on some delicate fabrics. Any textile lighter than a cotton t-shirt may not be able to bear the weight of the stitching and become warped when personalised.

Examples of Embroidered Hoodies

Embroidered hoodies are ideal for professional workwear offering lasting quality through regular wear and frequent washing. The strong bond between the thread and fabric stands up to daily use, making embroidery an excellent choice for frequently worn workwear.

Company hoodies with business logos
Layering under hi-vis vests in cooler work environments
Premium embroidered workwear for events, expos and demonstrations

Printed Hoodies Overview

Among several modern printing techniques, screen printing continues to be the leading choice for commercial use.

The desired design is made into a stencil first. It is then positioned onto the fabric and a blade squeezes ink through the stencil into the fabric. Only one colour can be printed at a time so multi-coloured designs are layered to produce the final image, text or logo.

Digital printing is also used commercially to make printed hoodies. Inkjet technology and special ink are used to print designs directly onto fabric. Essentially, a transfer is made of the logo or image, which is then applied with heat and force to the fabric.

This is a more sustainable approach as inks and agents are typically water-based and there is less waste. At Stitch and Print we use direct-to-film digital printing (or DTF) as our preferred printing method.

Advantages of Printing

More affordable: Cheaper to produce than embroidered hoodies, printed hoodies have lower setup and production costs, making them more affordable for bulk orders than embroidered hoodies.
Quicker to produce: As the printing time is quicker, large orders can be fulfilled in less time than it takes to produce custom embroidered hoodies.
Better choice of design: The precise nature of printing hoodies means complex, large or colourful designs look sharper with printing than embroidered. Printing on more delicate fabrics is also easier as the final design weighs less and doesn’t warp the garment.

Disadvantages of Printing

Less durable: Heat and light exposure, frequent washing and regular wear make branding on custom printed hoodies less durable than embroidery.
Less premium: Printed hoodies are perceived as less premium than embroidered hoodies as they lack the same texture, depth and longevity.
Need more care: Careful washing is required to prolong the life of printed hoodies. Washing inside out, on gentle spins and cool cycles will help preserve the design for longer.

Examples of Printed Hoodies

Custom hoodie printing is great for event hoodies, merchandise and vibrant designs. Although not as hard-wearing as embroidered hoodies, printed hoodies make excellent workwear items for occasional or light use. As they’re cheaper to print, hoodies with printed designs benefit smaller businesses with tighter budgets that don’t need the premium printing preferred by larger companies.

Sports clubs and associations
Hospitality, events and leisure businesses
Large teams
Selling as merchandise

Embroidered Versus Printed

To summarise the differences between embroidered hoodies and printed hoodies, we’ve put together a handy table outlining the key takeaways.

Feature	Embroidered Hoodies	Printed Hoodies
Overall Look	Premium & Professional Stitched logos create a high-end, durable finish that stands out.	Bold & Versatile Vibrant prints bring full-colour designs to life with modern appeal.
Durability	Built to last — embroidery withstands years of washing and wear.	Good longevity, though prints may fade or crack with heavy use.
Brand Perception	Exudes quality and craftsmanship — ideal for trades, corporate teams, or as long-term uniforms.	Creative and eye-catching — perfect for promotions, events, and casual workwear.
Design Detail	Best for clean, simple logos and text.	Great for complex, detailed or photographic designs.
Comfort & Feel	Slightly textured finish from the stitching.	Smooth and lightweight — no raised texture.
Cost	Higher setup cost but unbeatable longevity.	Cost-effective for larger quantities or short-term use.
Maintenance	Easy to care for — embroidery won’t fade or peel.	Requires gentle washing to keep prints looking fresh.
Best For	Long-term staff uniforms, tradespeople, and professional teams.	Events, marketing campaigns, and creative industries.

Our Recommendations

We recommend embroidered hoodies for premium customised workwear that stands up to heavy use. So, manufacturing, agricultural, industrial, transportation and distribution industries will benefit from the longevity and durability embroidered designs offer.

Equally, professional industries looking for relaxed workwear for events, demonstrations, exhibitions and training, embroidered hoodies have that premium look and feel. They create a stronger brand aesthetic than printed designs.

Printed hoodies are great for more detailed branding. Large images, complex logos, lots of text or intricate motifs look better when printed using DTF digital printing. The precise and exact nature of this type of customisation lends itself to finer detailing, larger print runs (bigger orders) and quicker turnaround times.

How much does it cost to embroider a hoodie?

Most suppliers will prefer to embroider or print onto their own garments. These fabrics have been selected for their suitability to customisation. For this reason, embroidering a hoodie with a personalised design includes the cost of the hoodie.

Our embroidered workwear hoodies start from £19 for orders of 12 or more. Smaller orders cost more per item so consider ordering in bulk for the most competitive prices.

Does embroidery or printing last longer on hoodies?

Embroidery lasts longer than printing on hoodies. The bond between the thread and the fabric is stronger when stitched than printed, therefore is usually more long-lasting.

Is embroidery or printing better for adding my logo to workwear?

The answer to this depends on your logo. Simple or minimal designs look great when embroidered. Larger, more complex logos may look better printed. Get in touch with our friendly team and we’ll be able to advise on the best printing method for your preferred workwear.

How to care for personalised hoodies?

Washing inside out is key to avoid snags, abrasions or cross contamination of dirt.
Use a cool cycle to avoid damage from heat and reduce the chances of fading.
Pick a gentle spin setting to help designs from being warped or stretched.
Avoid tumble drying which may cause colours to fade and fabrics to shrink. Line dry or use an airer but avoid direct sun exposure.
If stains occur, pretreat quickly with a stain remover before washing for the best chances of lifting the stain.

Stitch and Print Custom Embroidered Hoodies

Here at Stitch and Print, we don’t discriminate between embroidered hoodies and printed hoodies. Some designs look best with the premium look and feel of embroidery. Others may call for the precision technology of digital printing.

What makes us a preferred supplier to businesses all over the UK is that we understand the differences between the two printing techniques. We create unique embroidered personalised hoodie designs that look fantastic, are comfortable to wear and are long lasting.

Whether you need embroidered men’s hoodie workwear or personalised hoodies for women, embroidered zip up hoodie designs for merchandise or heavyweight classic embroidered hoodies, we’ve got you covered.

For all your custom hoodies, embroidered t-shirts & sweatshirts, get in touch with our experienced team to discuss your requirements.

Embroidery vs Printing - Which Is Better for Work Hoodies?