The best bookbinding shops in Leeds won’t let your important files fall apart!
Anyone who’s crawled through uni knows the sheer panic of handing in a thesis only for the binding to fall apart like your will to study in the second year. If you can’t relate, you must be lucky, rich, or both.
Me? I’ve been burnt…first in college, then just a few months ago when I tried to rebind my favourite Murakami novels.
Good thing I came across some bookbinders in Leeds who have the hands, tools, and materials to keep works from turning into paper mulch. I compiled and broke down the best of the best down there, so you can thank me later.
How much do bookbinders charge in Leeds?
Bookbinders in Leeds typically charge between £7.90 and £22.90, with spinal binding as the least expensive and premium leather binding as the priciest.
In Leeds
The PURfect Binding Company
Address: Century House, 4 Millennium Dr, Beeston
Contact Details: 0113 831 4309
Operating Hours: Mon to Fri 8 am to 4 pm
Offering traditional and modern methods, PURfect Binding Company (PBC) is one of this list’s most versatile entries.
PUR (polyurethane-reactive) binding is unsurprisingly their standout offering, as it’s great for soft-cover protection and temperature-resistant spines. It’s often used for manuals or catalogues that need something stronger than a standard EVA super glue.
Additionally, the method is ideal if you’re printing several copies, with PBC’s Horizon line machine churning out hundreds of prints in a matter of hours!
That said, it’s not the cheapest option for one-off binding, probably why it’s mostly publishing houses that use it.
The good news is that they offer affordable options for one-time projects, such as perfect binding (a quicker option), case binding (more durable than the former), and thread-sewn binding (durable and looks elegant).
Cost-wise, rates are typical for Leeds, with decent value across ‘trade’ and ‘public’ tiers.
They’re shut on Sundays, though.
Competitive Price
What an excellent experience dealing with Chris at the PURfect Binding Company. After the initial phone call, my partner and I went to see Chris. My partner wanted to bind his homemade photo album. When we visited the office, Chris spent time explaining the options to us. We decided to go for binding and a box to protect the album. We can not thank him enough , both photo album and a box look amazing. He done an amazing job for us. Really fantastic customer service at a competitive price and we can highly recommend this local business. Thank you Chris.
– Margo Oleksy, Google Review
Wonderful Job
My wife is delighted with the wonderful job Chris has done in restoring a tattered, falling to bits Bible into a very smart, good as new version. Brilliant service and excellent outcome. Highly recommended!
– Philip Proctor (Philproc), Google Review
Smith Settle Printing & Bookbinding Ltd
Address: Gate Way Drive, Yeadon
Contact Details: 0113 250 9201
Operating Hours: Mon to Fri 8 am to 4 pm
I’ve been a long-term client of Smith Settle, largely because they’re an established brand. It’s easy to trust a company that’s been running since 1981.
What’s more, names like The Folio Society have been on their client list for over 20 years. That’s a positive sign since the publisher is associated with collectable-quality books.
Solo clients aren’t left out either. They handled my thesis back then, and the hand-finished detail was quality without going overboard in terms of pricing.
However, the weekend closure can be a snag, particularly for students only available on Saturdays and Sundays.
An online ordering or plug-and-play feature would benefit time-conscious clients as well. It’s 2025, and they’re still more of a direct-service business, which can be inconvenient.
The silver lining? They’re ideal for those after a more personal type of service. From my experience, the in-house staff is cordial and prompt.
Produced Beautiful Books
I have just received an order of music psalm books (and a couple of years ago an order of hymn books) printed and bound by Smith Settle. Their attention to detail and ability to follow through with a first class quality service using both digital and hand craftsmanship cannot be rated highly enough. My recent order was a short run and the previous order a long run. Both received the same attention in every way. They have produced beautiful books and the quality is superb. They will be a joy to use forever!
– Jean Willcox, Google Review
Skilled and Dedicated
The Folio Society has been binding books at Smith Settle for almost 20 years. The Smith Settle team are highly skilled and dedicated and the quality of their work is exceptional, as is the customer service. The books that Folio choose to bind at Smith Settle are our highest value limited editions. I can’t recommend Smith Settle highly enough.
– Kate Dunne, Google Review
Spink & Thackray Ltd.
Address: Manor Street Industrial Estate, Enfield Terrace
Contact Details: 0113 278 0353
Operating Hours:
- Mon to Thu – 8:15 am to 4:30 pm
- Fri – 8:15 am to 3:14 am
It wouldn’t be fair if I left out Spink & Thackray, given their 150-plus-year-old track record. You see, this one has been bookbinding academic, bespoke, and heritage texts since 1891.
Of course, I can’t leave out their prestigious clientele, which includes prime ministers, The Beatles, Russian tsars, and members of the royal family!
The modern-meets-traditional approach is also a perk if you want archival strength without sacrificing precise reproductions.
Like most entries, though, you can’t stop by on Saturdays and Sundays.
The way they handle communication isn’t the best either. Interviewees have griped about the lack of email replies and phone calls that went straight to voicemail.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s the competitive fees. They stay within Leeds’ usual costs despite the brand’s heritage.
You’re also looking at a wide service range. Library, sewn, and bespoke binding are on the table, with niches like comic book and conservation binding to boot!
Beautiful Job
Spink and Thackeray have done a fabulous job printing and binding my Pilates course work so that I can reference all the information and exercises I need really easily. Thank you so much for a beautiful job and making it easy in lockdown too!
– Pilates with Eugenie, Google Review
Near Perfect Books
When the small independent bookbinder who’d been making my duplicate albums for years retired I was in despair. How would I ever replace him? Luckily I came across Spink and Thackray who examined his bindings closely and created these near perfect books for me. So glad to have found them!
– Charles Burns, Google Review
Ryman Stationery
Address: 17 The Merrion Centre
Contact Details: 0113 322 5988
Operating Hours:
- Mon to Sat – 9 am to 6:30 pm
- Sun – 10:30 am to 5 pm
We usually go to Ryman for office supplies, but we’ve used them for binding solutions, too. Sure, most of their services lack the ‘classy’ look of traditional and more time-consuming binding methods, but they’re fit for urgent document jobs.
For example, we’ve used their comb binding for locking in manuals and team reports, including those pushing 450 pages. The same-day turnaround also saves lots of time, and it’s way cheaper than sewn or case binding.
If you’re after something with a neater, book-like finish, there’s thermal binding. Some teammates used this for their thesis, as it can hold up to 200 pages and is a more economical alternative for perfect binding.
Ryman’s click-and-collect setup helps streamline orders, too. You can even sort your printing online, thanks to their solid range of printing solutions.
The primary cause for concern? A few clients reported less-than-friendly interactions with the in-store staff, mainly the one at Merrion Centre.
Sorted the Problem
I had a problem with the DHL detail. Supervisor Jorge and Sales Assistant Lewis were exceptionally kind and helpful. They sorted the problem out and didn’t accept any fee for the help as well. Thanks for the help again.
– Apsara Gurung, Google Review
EXCELLENT
Jo (Deputy Manager) is an absolute STAR! Her customer services is EXCELLENT! She made a stressful situation calm and I also observed her great customer service skills with other customers 10/10 Jo you have been amazing and I will keep returning to Ryman because of your amazing service…THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HELP!
– Ms SS, Google Review
Near Leeds
York Bookbinding
Address: 86 Thief Ln
Contact Details: 01904 415240
Operating Hours:
- Tue – 8:45 am to 5 pm
- Wed – 8:45 am to 4 pm
- Thu – 8:45 am to 5 pm
- Fri – 8:45 am to 4 pm
Travel Time from the Leeds CBD: 51 min (29.6 mi)
Run by Philip Winskill, a craftsman with over 37 years of experience, the 2000-founded York Bookbinding is a good fit for specialist jobs, such as memoir/family history binding and restorations.
They’re particularly handy if you’re heading to or already at York University (10 mins away), though we’ve also met Leeds and Glasgow students who rate them well. After all, thesis binding with official formatting and foil lettering is their main gig.
Beyond that, this pick is well-suited for neatly binding magazines or periodicals. That’s a win for collectors, as confirmed by the tram and birding enthusiasts who told out lot that this is their go-to option.
Unsurprisingly, it loses a few points for being out of Leeds. No online processing either; everything starts with a good old phone call.
To their credit, the good-natured staff, especially Philip, are pretty responsive and know bookbinding inside and out.
I Couldn’t Be More Pleased with the Results
My masters and doctoral theses were bound by York Bookbinding and I was delighted, many years on, to revisit them to have two inherited books rebound by them. I couldn’t be more pleased with the results and the attention to detail. Thank you Phil it was great to meet you again.
– Julie Ski, Google Review
Graciou and Business-Like
Superb quality of bookbinding of the highest quality. Philip was gracious and business- like and did a great job of making new the Bible I needed to be recovered.
– John Hawley, Google Review