Weight

The measurement of the heaviness of a quantity of paper, expressed in terms such as basis weight, ream weight, M weight, or grammage. Each term refers to specific standards of measurement:

• Basis Weight: The weight in pounds of 500 sheets of paper cut to a standard size, known as the basic size, which varies by paper grade.
• Ream Weight: The actual weight in pounds of 500 sheets of paper, regardless of the paper's basic size or grade.
• M Weight: The weight of 1,000 sheets of paper. Since this quantity is twice that of a ream, M weight is also double the ream weight.
• Grammage: A metric measurement of paper weight, expressed in grams per square meter (gsm). Unlike basis weight, grammage uses a consistent measurement of one square meter for all grades of paper, providing a standardized comparison across types.