Bond / Ledger Weight
Paper Weight & Grammage · 7 specs
Direct Answer
Bond Paper (Basis Weight: Bond, standardized under TAPPI T 410) is a traditional North American paper weight grade defined as the weight in pounds (lbs) of a 500-sheet ream of uncut master sheets measuring 17 × 22 inches. Standard 20 lb and 24 lb Bond are the dominant office copy papers across the US and Canada.
Source: TAPPI T 410 (Grammage of paper and paperboard) / American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) · Last reviewed Aug 28, 2026
Specs
| Master Parent Sheet Size | 17.0 × 22.0 inches (yields four 8.5 × 11 in Letter sheets per master sheet) |
| Standard Ream Basis | 500 master sheets (17 × 22 in) |
| 20 lb Bond Equivalent | 75.2 gsm (The ubiquitous standard US office copy machine paper) |
| 24 lb Bond Equivalent | 90.3 gsm (Standard for commercial desktop inkjet/laser printing and corporate stationery) |
| 28 lb Bond Equivalent | 105.3 gsm (Heavy presentation paper, double-sided color printing) |
| 32 lb Bond Equivalent | 120.4 gsm (Premium cotton executive resume paper) |
| Cross-Grade Equivalent | 20 lb Bond = 50 lb Text = ~28 lb Cover |
The 17×22-Inch Master Derivation
When 500 master sheets of 17 × 22 inch paper weigh exactly 20.0 pounds, the resulting paper is classified as 20 lb Bond. When cut into standard 8.5 × 11 inch Letter sheets, a 500-sheet retail ream weighs exactly 5.0 pounds.
20 lb vs 24 lb in Daily Office Use
- 20 lb Bond (75 gsm): Economical, lightweight, prone to minor ink show-through (bleed-through) on double-sided high-speed laser printing.
- 24 lb Bond (90 gsm): Brighter, stiffer, opaque, recommended for formal corporate proposals and double-sided color documents.