Line sheet vs lookbook vs catalog: which one do you need?

Line sheets, lookbooks, catalogs, price lists and order forms are all "the PDF you send to buyers", which is why they are so often confused. They do different jobs, though, and sending the wrong one at the wrong moment slows down orders. This guide explains each document, who reads it, and when to send it.

The short answer

If you only make one document for wholesale, make a line sheet. If you sell by look and feel (fashion, jewelry, home), add a lookbook. If your range is large and photos add little (parts, supplies, food), a price list may do most of the work.

Line sheet

A line sheet is an order reference. Each product appears once with a photo, style number, wholesale price, MSRP, options and minimums, and the brand's terms appear on the sheet. It is deliberately dense and consistent so a buyer can scan fifty styles, judge margins and mark quantities quickly.

Send it: with every wholesale enquiry, before and after trade shows, at the start of each season, and whenever prices change. Read what is a line sheet for a full breakdown.

Lookbook

A lookbook is a visual story. It shows products styled together, on models or in rooms, usually one or two images per page, with a collection name and a short narrative. Product details are minimal: often just names and style numbers so a buyer can find each piece on the line sheet. Prices are usually left out.

Send it: at the start of a selling season, to press and stylists, and to buyers alongside the line sheet. It earns attention; the line sheet converts it. Make one with the lookbook maker.

Product catalog

A product catalog presents your full range in an organized way, with photos, names, descriptions, options and prices. It is less dense than a line sheet and more informative than a lookbook. Catalogs can be wholesale (with trade prices) or retail (with consumer prices), and they are common in industries where buyers browse a large range: home goods, furniture, lighting, gifts, B2B supplies.

Send it: to new accounts who need to understand everything you offer, with quotes, at trade shows, and to retail customers who ask what you sell. The product catalog maker builds one from a spreadsheet.

Price list

A price list is a compact table: item code, description, unit or pack size and price, grouped by category. It drops photos (or keeps them tiny) to fit a large range on a few pages. Price lists are the workhorse of distributors, food suppliers, trades and anyone whose buyers already know the products.

Send it: to existing customers, whenever prices change, and to buyers who reorder regularly. Because prices change, a live link often works better than a file. See how to create a wholesale price list.

Order form

An order form lists your products with prices and empty quantity and total columns, plus space for the buyer's details. It turns browsing into a complete order with no ambiguity.

Send it: at trade shows and store visits (printed), with line sheets for buyers who prefer to email orders, or replace it with an online order list. Our wholesale order form template generates one from the same products as your line sheet.

Which documents do you need?

How they work together in a wholesale season

1. Before the season: publish the lookbook to set the mood and the line sheet with prices and terms.
2. Trade shows and showroom meetings: show the lookbook, hand out the line sheet and take orders on order forms or a tablet.
3. After the show: follow up with the line sheet as a PDF and an online catalog link so buyers can order on their phones.
4. During the season: send updated price lists or simply update the online catalog when stock or prices change.
5. Reorders: buyers reorder from the line sheet or price list by style number.

PDF, print or link?

Each of these documents can be sent as a PDF, printed or shared as an online page, and the right format depends on the moment rather than the document. PDFs are best as email attachments and for buyers who like to annotate. Print still matters at trade shows and in showroom meetings, where a buyer may take your line sheet back to the hotel. An online link is best for anything that changes often (prices, stock) and for buyers who live on their phones, because it is always current and can carry an order button. Many sellers send a PDF and a link in the same email and let the buyer choose.

Keep them consistent

The biggest risk with five documents is that they disagree: a price changes on the line sheet but not on the order form, or a style is renamed in the lookbook but not the catalog. Keep a single product list (a spreadsheet or a catalog tool) and generate every document from it. In CatalogKite, all templates share the same products, so you can switch a line sheet into an order form or catalog without retyping anything.

Common mix-ups to avoid

• Sending a lookbook when a buyer asked for a line sheet. They wanted prices and minimums; now they have to ask again.
• Calling a retail catalog a line sheet. If it shows retail prices only, a wholesale buyer cannot judge their margin.
• Building the order form separately from the line sheet, so codes or prices drift apart.
• Printing a huge catalog for a small range. Under 30 products, a line sheet usually does the job better.
• Sending all five documents to a new contact. Start with the one that answers their question, then follow up.

When in doubt, ask the buyer what they need. "Would a line sheet with wholesale prices be most useful, or would you like the full catalog?" is a perfectly professional question.

Summary checklist

• One product list is the source for every document
• Line sheet: wholesale, MSRP, style numbers, terms
• Lookbook: best images, style numbers, collection story
• Catalog: full range, organized by category
• Price list: dated, with units and pack sizes
• Order form: matches the line sheet's codes and prices
• Style numbers identical across all of them

Choose the document by the question your reader is asking. "Do I want this?" is answered by a lookbook or catalog. "What does it cost and how do I order?" is answered by a line sheet, price list or order form.