Fold Types for Paper Folding Machines

Fold Type	Image	Alias(es)	Common Uses	Description
Tri Fold		Letter Fold C Fold	Mailing papers in standard white envelopes Brochures Invitation cards Information pamphlets	Commonly known as letter fold or "C" fold – our most common paper folder application. The majority of the letters you get in the mail will be tri-folded.
Half Fold		Single Fold	Brochures Greeting cards Invitations Wedding programs	Typically used for brochures or marketing material. It’s just taking a single piece of paper and folding it in half right in the middle. Very rarely used for mailings because the paper wouldn’t fit into an envelope.
Z Fold		Accordion Fold Zig Zag Fold	Bills Multi-page letters for mailing Product catalogues Invitations	Sometimes referred to as the accordion fold. Gets its name because the profile view of the paper which forms the letter Z. Most bills from utility companies will be Z folded because the margin for error on the fold locations are a little more forgiving.
Double Parallel Fold		N/A	Customer reports Transactional mailings	This fold is typically only used on larger paper (11 x 17) for marketing material. Although rarely when a company wants to fit 11" x 17" piece of paper into an envelope, this will probably be the fold they use.
Gate Fold		Open Gate Fold Brochure Fold	Book/magazine covers Invitations Brochures	This is used for very unique marketing material where the user wants the paper to open up like two doors. Almost never used in mailings.
Closed Gate Fold		N/A	Brochures Closed documents	Another very rare fold that only shows up when running 11 x 17 paper or larger. Normally the user will apply a piece of tape to maintain the "box" look so it stands up on its own. Never used in mailings.
Cross Fold		French Fold	Greeting cards Wedding Invitations	Sometimes called the French Fold. This is a complicated fold that requires a paper folder to run a single piece of paper two times. So the paper is folded in half, then in half again. When you open up the paper it produces four even squares. Some paper folders can do this reasonably well, some can’t. Please speak with a representative before purchasing a paper folder to run a cross fold.
Church Fold		Right Angle Fold	Brochures Information pamphlets	Looks similar to a half fold, except that the very edge of one of the lips folds inward. Gets its name from churches who distribute bulletins at Sunday services – the small lip is normally the donation ticket. A patron rips off the ticket and gives it along with their money.
Engineering Fold		Short Z Fold Fold Out Fold Half Accordion Fold	Help organize brochure content	An obscure fold that looks like a Z fold, only with one of the panels being extremely large. Only ever used for marketing when you want to "hide" a small portion of the brochure.
Baronial Fold		Double Letter Fold	Cartography Folding maps	Very complicated fold that not many paper folders are capable of doing. Almost exclusively used for cartography and folding maps.
Cross Letter Fold		Double Letter Fold	Brochures	This is a variation of the cross fold, except rather than folding in half twice, the second time it’s turned into a letter fold. It’s even tougher for a paper folder to perform this than it is the cross fold, so please speak with a representative before purchasing a folder for this application.