Help & user guide
Kumi for Adobe InDesign
Set up your publication, check its print order and take it through to assembly. Follow the steps below or jump straight to the feature you need help with.
Requires Adobe InDesign 18.5 or newer. Open the panel from Plugins > Kumi.
1. Open Kumi
Find Kumi through the Adobe Exchange profile. Once installed:
- Start or restart Adobe InDesign, then choose Plugins > Kumi.
- Create a blank document or open a copy of the document you want to work on.
- Choose Publication for a book or zine, or Single Page layout for a repeating layout, folded booklet or map.
Save a copy before applying a layout to existing artwork. Kumi changes document setup and sections, and replaces previously generated Kumi items when you reapply a publication.
2. Set up your publication
In Publication, choose the binding first. The available settings and preview follow the structure you select. Use the arrows beside the binding cards to browse all 13 styles.
- Pages
- Enter the total page count. Follow the guidance below the field; folded sheet layouts use multiples of four.
- Page size and orientation
- Choose the finished page dimensions and Portrait or Landscape orientation.
- Bleed and margins
- Bleed extends artwork beyond the finished trim. Margins keep content inset from the page edge. The example shown uses 3 mm bleed and 12 mm margins.
- Image frame
- Choose how the editable image frames fit the page. With Fit to margins + bleed, Kumi calculates the frame width and height, so those fields are read-only. The automatic frames reach the bleed edge.
3. Choose sections and signatures
A signature is a group of pages folded and assembled together. Where your binding supports it, use Signature pages to choose how the total pages are divided into sections.
In this example, 16 pages with 8 pages · 2 sections produces two eight-page sections. Check the Imposition summary beneath the apply button to confirm the sheet count and section count.
Creep is the amount inner sheets can project beyond outer sheets when folded. Kumi estimates it where applicable. An estimate marked not applied is a planning reference, not an adjustment already made to your artwork.
4. Read the print preview
Use Prev and Next to move through print spreads, and Front and Back to inspect both sides. The expand icon opens a larger view.
- Page numbers: identify which pages appear on the selected printed side.
- Orange outline: shows the image-frame or bleed edge. The black crop marks indicate the finished trim.
- Shaded areas: identify space taken up by the binding. Keep important text and image details outside these areas.
- Fold and stitch guides: help explain the physical structure where they apply to the chosen binding.
Read the note beneath the preview as well as the drawing. In this Fukuro-toji example, the 20 mm sewing area is shaded and the image frame enters it.
5. Apply the layout and add your artwork
- Make sure the intended InDesign document is open and active, and save a copy if it contains existing artwork.
- Review the settings and preview, then click Apply to open document.
- Check the resulting pages, sections, margins and bleed in InDesign. Add your artwork to the editable image frames.
- Use the page and section labels beneath each page to navigate. These labels are on a locked, non-printing layer.
Publication mode creates facing pages at the finished page size. The preview shows printed sheet order; it does not mean the document itself is arranged as imposed printer spreads. Confirm your export and printing workflow against the assembly guide.
6. Print and assemble your publication
- Check the Imposition summary matches your intended page count, binding and sections.
- Choose Show assembly steps to read the guidance in the panel.
- Choose Download comprehensive assembly PDF and save the guide to use while printing and making your book.
The guide is created for your selected binding and publication settings. Depending on the structure, it can cover:
- Print and duplex setup
- Sheet order
- Folding sequence
- Signature organisation
- Collation
- Binding-specific assembly
- Page and section references
- Creep considerations where applicable
- Practical finishing guidance
An internet connection is required to generate the PDF. Download a fresh guide after changing your settings, and print, fold and assemble one proof before the full print run.
Make a single-sheet layout
Choose Single Page layout, then select a template:
- Repeating layout: arrange multiple image boxes on a sheet and adjust image size, borders and padding.
- Booklet: choose an 8- or 16-page layout with fold and cut guides.
- Map / Poster Fold: use a continuous image across a 3 × 4 fold grid.
Set the sheet and layout options, inspect the preview, then use the apply button for your selected template. Add your artwork in InDesign and download its trimming or assembly PDF.
Troubleshooting
Kumi does not appear in InDesign
Kumi requires InDesign 18.5 or newer. Check your version, finish installing the plugin through Creative Cloud, then restart InDesign and look under Plugins > Kumi.
The layout will not apply
Open an InDesign document and make it the active document before applying a layout. Check the panel for validation messages and correct the settings it identifies. Use a new blank document to check whether the issue is specific to an existing file.
The document looks different from the print preview
Publication mode creates a facing-pages document at the finished page size. The imposition preview shows how those pages are ordered on printed sheets. It is a planning preview; applying the publication does not turn the document into imposed printer spreads. Use the assembly guide to check the printing and binding plan.
Labels or binding areas do not appear in my exported PDF
The pasteboard page labels and binding-obscured areas are non-printing guides. Page labels are locked; binding-obscured areas are on a separate visible, unlocked layer. Use them to keep important artwork away from areas hidden by the binding.
A PDF guide will not download
Guide generation needs an internet connection to kumizine.com. Check your connection, retry the download, and choose a writable location in the Save dialog. Publication planning and applying layouts run locally, so you can continue that work while offline.
Does Kumi draw every binding detail?
Kumi includes 13 binding methods, sheet-order planning, binding-obscured areas and stitch lines. Advanced geometry such as accordion multi-up layouts and complete binding-specific hole or punch patterns is not yet fully rendered in InDesign. Check the assembly guide for your chosen binding before production.
Contact support
Still need help? Contact Kumizine support and mention Kumi for InDesign. Include your Kumi and InDesign versions, operating system, selected template or binding, the steps you took and the exact error message.
More about Kumi
Build faster. Plan accurately. Create more.
From the first page count to the final fold, Kumi connects your InDesign setup with the way your publication will be printed and assembled.
- Choose from 13 creative binding styles
- Generate accurate imposed page order automatically
- Build single- or multi-section signature layouts
- Preview imposed print order before you start designing
- Create correctly separated InDesign sections
- Configure page dimensions, orientation, margins and bleed
- Add editable image frames with optional bleed extension
- Identify facing pages suitable for double-page artwork
- Label every page and section on a locked, non-printing layer
- Estimate paper creep where applicable
- Download comprehensive, binding-specific assembly guides
- Follow clear printing, folding, collating and construction instructions
- Experiment with different publication structures quickly
- Reduce manual calculations and page-order errors
- Build complex layouts in seconds instead of planning them by hand
Whether you’re making your first zine, testing a new binding or planning a complex multi-signature publication, Kumi helps you spend less time on structural setup and more time designing and making.