To make a 2027 photo calendar you can print, choose twelve photos, put each one in a page laid out for your paper size, and export a PDF. Then print it one-sided at home or at a print shop and bind the sheets at the top. If you'd rather not touch a printer, a print service will do all of that for you, as long as you order by mid-December.
This guide is about the printed object: the photos, paper, sizes and dates. If you're after a calendar on your phone instead, see how to make a photo calendar on iPhone.
Step 1: Decide who prints it
This is the choice that sets everything else, and it comes down to how many copies you need and how soon.
| Route | Good for | Cost | Your photos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Print service (Shutterfly, Snapfish, Mixbook) | One bound gift, shipped | Per copy + shipping. Snapfish 8.5 x 11 was $8.99 on sale on Nov 6, 2026; Mixbook from $34.99 | Uploaded to their site |
| Store pickup (Staples) | A bound calendar this week | Per copy, no shipping | Uploaded to their site |
| Your own PDF at a copy shop | Several copies, your own layout | Printing + binding per copy | Only the finished file |
| Your own PDF at home | Tonight, or a few copies | Paper and ink | Stay with you |
A service gets you real binding and printing you can't match at home. Your own file gets you as many copies as you want, because printing it again costs only paper. If you're comparing services, our roundup of the best photo calendars for 2027 picks one for each job.
Step 2: Choose twelve photos that suit their months
A wall calendar isn't an album. Each photo has a whole month on the wall, so choose the ones someone will still enjoy on day 25.
- Match the season. Nothing from 2027 exists yet, so use this year's photos in the same months. Last March's trip goes on March 2027, and the snow goes on January.
- Give birthdays their month. If the calendar is for grandparents, put each grandchild on the month of their birthday. It's the detail people notice.
- Check the shape. A calendar page is usually portrait, so a wide landscape photo loses its sides if it has to fill the page. Layouts with the photo on the top half suit landscape shots better.
- Leave out the near-misses. Screenshots, photos saved from chats and heavy crops are the ones that print soft.
Step 3: Size each photo for your paper
The rule for sharp prints is about 300 pixels per inch. Here's what that means for a photo filling the whole page:
| Page | Size | Pixels at 300 ppi |
|---|---|---|
| A5 | 148 × 210 mm | 1748 × 2480 |
| US Letter | 8.5 × 11 in | 2550 × 3300 |
| A4 | 210 × 297 mm | 2480 × 3508 |
A 12-megapixel iPhone photo clears all three when it's upright. Turned sideways to fill a portrait A4 page, it's cropped to about 258 ppi, which falls under that line, so give it a layout with the photo on the top half instead. The free calendar photo check crops your photo to A4, A5 or Letter on your own device and tells you the real number before you commit.
Step 4: Build the pages and export a PDF
Any tool that exports a print-resolution PDF will work. Calmaker gives you a blank page to design yourself, and print services have their own editors if you're going that way.
We make Photo Calendar, which handles this step on iPhone and iPad. Its year view has a card for 2027: open it, tap a month and pick a photo. One thing to know: its automatic sorting reads the date each photo was taken, so it fills the current year and earlier ones but not 2027. You'll choose those twelve yourself. Automatic sorting does fill 2026 in about a minute, if you'd like a keepsake of the year that just happened.
Two limits to be straight about. The 12-page, 300 dpi PDF for A4 or A5 needs Premium. The free version exports one page at a time at 1600 px on the long edge with a small corner signature, which works out to about 193 ppi on A5 and 136 ppi on A4, so it's fine for sharing but soft in print. And the app doesn't print or ship anything: the PDF goes to your printer or a shop. Any month without a photo comes out as a blank page, and the app tells you how many are empty before you export.
Step 5: Print it at home or at a shop
Each page holds both the photo and the grid, so print one-sided and you'll have twelve loose sheets to bind along the top. There's no need to work out which photo faces which month.
- Print one page first. Colors usually come out darker on paper than on a phone. If a test page is murky, brighten the photos before you run all twelve.
- Use heavy matte paper. Check the heaviest paper your printer's tray takes before you buy any. Glossy paper shows reflections on a wall.
- Printing A4 on US Letter: choose fit to page. The page shrinks to about 94 percent, or roughly 7.8 × 11 inches, leaving a white strip of about a third of an inch down each side.
- Expect a thin white edge at home. Photo Calendar's PDF runs to the edge of the page with no extra bleed, and most home printers can't print right to the edge. If you want it borderless, turn on your printer's borderless setting if it has one, or ask the shop to show you a proof.
- At a shop, take the PDF to a local copy shop, or use the document printing at Staples or FedEx Office. Ask for one-sided heavy stock and coil binding along the short top edge, plus a hole for the nail.
When to order a photo calendar as a Christmas gift
These are the dates the services listed for US delivery by Christmas when we checked on November 6, 2026. Some products have earlier cutoffs, so your cart has the final word.
| Service | Shipping | Order by |
|---|---|---|
| Mixbook | Standard | Tue, Dec 15 |
| Shutterfly | Economy | Wed, Dec 16 |
| Mixbook | Expedited | Thu, Dec 17 |
| Shutterfly | Expedited | Fri, Dec 18 |
| Mixbook | Rush | Fri, Dec 18 |
| Shutterfly | Rush | Sat, Dec 19 |
| Shutterfly | Super Rush | Mon, Dec 21 |
Sources: Shutterfly's shipping page and Mixbook's shipping estimator. Mixbook's dates are shown for a softcover photo book; it says calendars take the same 1-2 business days to print. Ordering early also saves money: shipping an 11 x 8.5 calendar from Mixbook cost $7.99 by economy and $28.99 by rush. Shutterfly's calendars were 50% off through November 8 and Mixbook's sale ran through November 12.
Missed all of those? Staples lists same-day pickup on its 8.5 x 11 and 12 x 12 photo calendars, and your own PDF only needs an evening and a copy shop. Vistaprint is another option if you've got time, and its wall calendars let you pick the starting month, handy if the gift is for a new baby or a school year.
Frequently asked questions
How do I make a photo calendar I can print at home?
Choose twelve photos, place each in a calendar layout for your paper size, and export a PDF. Print one side only at 100 percent or fit to page, on heavy matte paper, then clip or bind the twelve sheets at the top. Photo Calendar makes a 12-page, 300 dpi PDF for A4 or A5 with Premium, and Calmaker or a design template will do the same job.
Can I use this year's photos in a 2027 calendar?
Yes, and most people do, since no 2027 photos exist yet. Match the seasons: put last March's trip on March 2027 and each birthday photo on that person's month. In Photo Calendar, automatic sorting only fills the current year and earlier ones, so for 2027 you open the year and pick a photo for each month yourself.
Can I print an A4 calendar on US Letter paper?
Yes. Choose fit to page in the print dialog. A4 is taller and narrower than Letter, so the page shrinks to about 94 percent and comes out roughly 7.8 by 11 inches, with a white strip of about a third of an inch down each side. Or ask a print shop to print it on A4 paper.
When should I order a photo calendar for Christmas?
In the US, order by about December 15 for standard shipping. For 2026, Shutterfly listed December 16 for economy and December 21 for super rush, and Mixbook listed December 15 for standard and December 18 for rush. Staples lists same-day pickup, and a file you print yourself only needs an evening. Check your cart for the exact date.
Twelve photos, ready for your printer
Photo Calendar lays out a full year on your iPhone or iPad. Try every layout for free; the 300 dpi print PDF comes with Premium.
Download Photo Calendar on the App Store →Related: The Best Photo Calendars for 2027 · How to Make a Photo Calendar on iPhone. Questions? Email us.
