Top 10 Water Based Screen Printing Ink Suppliers in China

Water-based screen printing has become an important printing method for garment manufacturers looking for softer prints, comfortable fabric feel and alternatives to conventional solvent-heavy or PVC-based printing systems.

But water-based screen printing ink is a broad category.

A cotton T-shirt factory may want a soft-hand pigment ink. A fashion printer may need high-opacity rubber paste for dark fabrics. Sportswear manufacturers may require greater elasticity, while shoe factories need stronger adhesion and resistance on nylon, PU or other treated materials.

This means choosing a water-based ink supplier should start with the fabric and required printing effect, not simply the lowest price per kilogram.

This guide introduces 10 representative water based screen printing ink suppliers in China, with particular attention to textile, garment and specialty fabric-printing applications.

This list is an editorial supplier guide based on publicly available manufacturer and supplier information. It is not an official ranking based on revenue, production volume or market share.

Top 10 Water Based Screen Printing Ink Suppliers in China at a Glance

1. XG Silicone / Xinguang Silicone

Focused on Flexible Textile Printing

XG Silicone / Xinguang Silicone serves the textile screen-printing market through Ganzhou Xinguang Silicone Co., Ltd. and Huizhou  Yirun Silicone Co., Ltd.

Ganzhou Xinguang Silicone was established in 2007, while Huizhou Xinguang Yirun Silicone was established in 2018 to improve international service and export efficiency. The company is primarily known for silicone screen-printing materials, but its current product portfolio also includes a dedicated water-based ink range.

Water-Based Ink Applications

Xinguang's water-based products are positioned for flexible materials including:

T-shirts

Hoodies

Cotton fabrics

Polyester fabrics

Blended fabrics

Shoe uppers

Elastic webbing

Textile accessories

The company describes its water-based ink as providing a soft hand feel, color durability and compatibility with several textile substrates.

Xinguang also publishes a dedicated water-based shoe-upper printing process involving base coating, transparent layers, color ink, varnish and optional yellowing-resistant layers for more demanding footwear applications.

Why Xinguang Is Different

Xinguang is particularly relevant to textile printers that use more than one ink system.

A customer may need:

Water-based ink for soft-hand garment printing

Silicone ink for high-elasticity designs

High-density effects

Heat-transfer silicone

Specialty ink for shoes or coated fabrics

This creates a useful sourcing option for garment and footwear factories that need several printing technologies from one textile-focused supplier.

Best for: T-shirts, sportswear, shoes, webbing, elastic fabrics and textile screen-printing projects.

2. Zhangzhou DECAI New Material Technology Co., Ltd.

Specialist in Water-Based Textile Printing Materials

DECAI is one of the more specialized suppliers in this list.

The company states that it was founded in 1995 and focuses on environmentally oriented water-based textile printing materials.

Its business is centered around textile applications rather than general industrial screen printing.

Main Product Areas

Its published categories include:

Water-based garment printing materials

High-performance color paste

Digital pigment printing materials

Heat-transfer materials

Shoe-material printing systems

Mechanical textile printing materials

DECAI describes itself as a supplier focused specifically on environmentally friendly water-based clothing-printing materials.

Who Should Consider DECAI?

DECAI may be particularly relevant for garment printing factories that want a supplier with long-term specialization in water-based textile chemistry rather than a manufacturer serving many unrelated ink markets.

Best for: Garment printing, textile factories, fashion apparel and water-based printing materials.

3. Guangdong Caigle Science & Technology Co., Ltd.

Large-Scale Water-Based Textile Material Supplier

Guangdong Caigle focuses on R&D, manufacturing and sales of water-based textile printing materials.

The company reports that it was founded in 2009, operates a production site of more than 30,000 square meters and has annual production capacity of approximately 50,000 tons.

Product Focus

Caigle's portfolio covers textile printing systems including:

Water-based printing paste

Textile pigment systems

Functional printing materials

Digital textile ink

Pretreatment liquids

Specialty printing materials

Its products are positioned for textile printing, apparel, shoe materials, luggage and related industries.

Why Consider Caigle?

Production scale can matter when buyers require repeat orders across multiple factories.

Caigle may therefore be worth evaluating for customers requiring a broad water-based textile system together with larger-volume supply.

Best for: Garment factories, footwear, bags, industrial textile printing and volume purchasing.

4. Dongguan Rui Ke Industrial Co., Ltd. / SOLLYD

Strong Option for Garment Screen Printing

Dongguan Rui Ke is active in textile printing inks and additives and markets products under the SOLLYD name.

Its listed products include water-based pigment textile ink designed for garment and T-shirt screen printing, together with specialty effects such as glow-in-the-dark and foil-related water-based systems.

Relevant Products

Buyers can evaluate products including:

Water-based pigment ink

Glossy water-based textile ink

Foil-effect water-based ink

Luminous textile ink

Silicone printing materials

Textile printing auxiliaries

Why Consider Rui Ke?

Rui Ke may be particularly suitable for fashion printers looking beyond basic CMYK-style garment graphics.

Special effects can add value to:

Streetwear

Fashion T-shirts

Children's garments

Promotional apparel

Custom collections

Best for: T-shirts, fashion garments, pigment printing and specialty screen-print effects.

5. Dongguan Batu Printing Material Co., Ltd.

Water-Based Rubber Paste and Specialty Effects

Dongguan Batu Printing Material focuses on water-based textile printing materials.

Its product portfolio includes screen-printing ink, water-based printing materials, rubber paste, glitter ink, flocking ink, discharge systems, pigments, binders and auxiliaries.

Key Product Categories

Its textile range includes:

Elastic white rubber paste

Transparent rubber paste

Foil paste

Flocking paste

Foaming paste

Anti-sublimation paste

Pigment paste

Printing binder

Batu specifically lists elastic water-based rubber paste for textile screen printing among its products.

Best Application

This type of product range is especially useful for screen-printing factories producing a large variety of fashion effects.

Best for: Cotton garments, jeans, fashion apparel, foil effects, puff printing and textile screen printing.

6. Dongguan Haiya Printing Material Co., Ltd.

Water-Based Textile Screen Printing Focus

Dongguan Haiya supplies water-based inks and screen-printing pastes for textile applications.

Its listed products include water-based pigment textile ink suitable for cotton fabrics and T-shirts as well as polyurethane heat-transfer paste and glitter/foil-related textile materials.

Typical Applications

Haiya may be considered for:

Cotton T-shirts

Fashion garments

Textile logos

Water-based pigment printing

Glitter effects

Foil effects

Heat-transfer applications

Why Consider Haiya?

The company is particularly aligned with garment decoration rather than paper or packaging ink.

This makes its product mix more relevant to apparel screen printers.

Best for: Cotton fabric, T-shirts and fashion garment printing.

7. Shanghai Laoan Chemical Co., Ltd.

Pigment Chemistry for Textile Printing

Shanghai Laoan takes a slightly different position from finished-ink-only suppliers.

Its product portfolio includes:

Pigment paste

Pigment ink

Color paste

Thickener

Binder

The company also lists eco-oriented water-based fabric screen-printing inks and textile pigment inks.

Why This Matters

Some larger textile printers do not only buy ready-to-use finished ink.

They may also use:

Pigment + binder + thickener + additives

to adjust printing performance according to their own production conditions.

A supplier with experience in the underlying pigment and binder system may therefore be useful for technically experienced printing factories.

Best for: Textile pigment printing, formulation-oriented customers and water-based fabric printing.

8. Henan Newcolour Printing Material Co., Ltd.

Water-Based Ink Plus Heat-Transfer Materials

Henan Newcolour supplies several textile-printing products, including water-based screen-printing ink and high-density white ink.

Its listed range also includes silicone heat-transfer ink, making it relevant to garment decorators working with both direct screen printing and transfer decoration.

Where Newcolour Fits

The company may be worth evaluating when a production facility uses several processes such as:

Direct screen printing

High-density printing

Heat transfer

Logo decoration

Instead of sourcing each system from completely different channels, buyers can compare compatible materials from one source.

Best for: Textile screen printing, high-density designs and transfer decoration.

9. Zhongyi Ink & Paint Co., Ltd.

Water-Based Ink for More Than Just Cotton Fabric

Zhongyi Ink & Paint was established in Zhongshan, Guangdong, and describes itself as a manufacturer of screen-printing inks with a product portfolio covering water-based, solvent-based, UV and LED-curable systems.

For water-based screen printing, Zhongyi is interesting because its applications extend beyond conventional cotton T-shirts.

Products listed by the company include water-based systems for substrates such as nylon cloth, shoe materials, PU, TPU and PVC.

Why Consider Zhongyi?

This broader substrate capability can be useful to manufacturers that print:

Nylon

PU

TPU

PVC

Flexible products

Shoe materials

Industrial textiles

The company also states that it provides sample testing on customer substrates.

Best for: Nylon, shoe materials, flexible substrates and industrial water-based screen printing.

10. Guangzhou Ledi New Material Technology Co., Ltd.

Specialty Water-Based Screen Printing Applications

Guangzhou Ledi New Material was established in 2017 in Guangzhou and produces water-based, solvent-based, UV/LED and specialty printing inks.

What makes Ledi relevant to this list is the breadth of its water-based specialty products.

Water-Based Products Include

Water-based thick-plate material

Water-based heat-transfer ink

Water-based helmet ink

Water-based shoe ink

Water-based PVC ink

Water-based leather coatings

Water-based soft-touch coatings

The company therefore reaches beyond conventional garment printing into more specialized substrate applications.

Best for: Shoes, synthetic materials, heat transfer and specialty industrial screen printing.

What Is Water-Based Screen Printing Ink?

Water-based screen printing ink uses water as a principal carrier in the formulation.

In textile printing, it is often chosen when printers want a relatively soft and breathable printed surface.

Instead of creating the same heavy surface layer associated with some conventional printing systems, many water-based textile inks interact more closely with the fabric structure.

Xinguang Silicone describes water-based screen-printing ink as particularly useful where printers want a soft hand feel, breathable finish and textile-oriented printing process.

Water-Based Ink Is Not One Single Formula

One important point for buyers is that "water-based ink" does not describe one universal product.

Several very different formulations fall under the category.

Water-Based Pigment Ink

Commonly used for fashion and garment printing.

It can be suitable for:

Cotton

T-shirts

Tote bags

Fashion fabrics

A major advantage is the ability to produce relatively soft textile prints.

Water-Based Rubber Paste

Rubber paste is commonly used where stronger opacity and a more substantial printed film are required.

It can be useful for:

Dark T-shirts

Fashion garments

High-coverage designs

Stretching applications

Suppliers such as Batu and Cowint focus strongly on water-based rubber-paste systems. Batu, for example, lists elastic rubber paste and special-effect water-based products for textile printing.

High-Density Water-Based Ink

High-density printing creates a thicker, raised design.

It is used for:

Logos

Lettering

Streetwear

Fashion decoration

Sportswear graphics

The mesh, stencil thickness and curing conditions become especially important when building multiple layers.

Discharge Ink

Discharge printing works differently from simply placing an opaque ink layer over a dark garment.

The system changes or removes part of the original garment dye and introduces the desired printing effect.

Because garment dyes respond differently, production testing is essential.

Water-Based Ink vs Silicone Ink

For textile buyers, these two systems sometimes overlap-but they are not the same.

Water-Based Ink Is Strongest When You Want:

Soft hand feel

Breathable printing

Natural fabric appearance

Fashion T-shirt graphics

Cotton garment printing

Silicone Ink Is Strongest When You Want:

Very high elasticity

Raised 3D logos

Anti-slip effects

Premium rubber-like surfaces

Stretch sportswear decoration

This is one reason Xinguang Silicone can be particularly relevant to textile factories using several printing effects: its current portfolio covers both textile water-based ink and specialized silicone screen-printing materials.

Which Water-Based Ink Is Best for T-Shirts?

Start with the T-shirt fabric.

100% Cotton

Water-based pigment ink is often a strong starting point when a soft print is important.

Dark Cotton

A higher-opacity system, white base or rubber-paste formulation may be needed.

Polyester

Dye migration can become an important issue.

The supplier should know the polyester fabric, dye type and curing conditions before recommending the ink.

Polyester / Spandex

Elasticity becomes more important.

Depending on the desired effect, an elastic water-based system or silicone printing system may be more appropriate.

How to Compare Water-Based Screen Printing Ink Suppliers

Price should not be the first comparison point.

A cheap ink that requires extra passes, causes production stoppages or fails after washing can be considerably more expensive in real production.

Instead, compare the following factors.

1. Opacity

Ask how many print passes are normally required on your fabric.

Dark garments can be particularly challenging.

2. Hand Feel

A major reason to choose water-based ink is the finished feel.

Ask for a printed sample rather than evaluating liquid ink alone.

3. Screen Stability

Water evaporates during production.

The ink must remain practical to print without causing constant screen blocking.

4. Elasticity

For stretch garments, test the printed fabric under actual extension.

5. Wash Resistance

Carry out production-level washing tests before bulk orders.

6. Dye Migration

This is particularly important with polyester.

A white print that looks perfect immediately after curing may change after heat exposure or storage if the fabric dye migrates.

7. Color Matching

For branded garments, provide a Pantone reference together with the actual fabric.

Questions to Ask Before Requesting a Sample

When contacting a Chinese water-based ink supplier, do not simply write:

"Please send your water-based ink price."

A more useful inquiry should include:

Fabric composition:
100% cotton, polyester, nylon, spandex or blend.

Fabric color:
White, black or another dark color.

Printing method:
Manual or automatic screen printing.

Mesh count:
Provide your normal screen specification.

Printing effect:
Soft-hand, high-opacity, high-density, glossy, matte, puff or other effect.

Curing equipment:
Conveyor dryer, heat press or other system.

Required performance:
Wash resistance, elasticity, abrasion resistance, anti-migration or other requirements.

Target quantity:
Sample, trial order or regular production volume.

Why Actual Fabric Testing Matters

Textile ink should not be selected from a specification sheet alone.

Two fabrics both described as "100% polyester" can behave differently because of:

Dye chemistry

Surface coating

Fabric construction

Finishing treatment

Heat sensitivity

Xinguang's own published shoe-upper process notes that production results can be affected by temperature, environment and material, and recommends validating the process before bulk production.

The same principle applies to water-based garment printing.

Common Water-Based Screen Printing Problems

Ink Dries in the Screen

Because water evaporates, extended pauses can cause screen blocking.

Printers should manage open time, humidity and production rhythm carefully.

Poor Coverage on Dark Fabric

A formulation intended for soft printing on white cotton may not provide enough opacity on black garments.

Ask for an opaque base or suitable rubber-paste system.

Print Feels Too Hard

This may be caused by using too much ink, an unsuitable formulation or excessive layer thickness.

Print Cracks After Stretching

The ink may not have enough elasticity for the fabric.

Test the cured print at the expected garment stretch percentage.

Color Migrates on Polyester

The fabric dye can move into the printed layer under heat.

Use a suitable anti-migration system and test the actual fabric.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who Are the Leading Water Based Screen Printing Ink Suppliers in China?

Representative Chinese suppliers include Xinguang Silicone, DECAI, Caigle, Rui Ke, Batu, Haiya, Laoan, Newcolour, Zhongyi and Guangzhou Ledi.

They serve different segments, so this should be treated as a supplier-selection guide rather than a strict market-share ranking.

Does Xinguang Silicone Supply Water-Based Ink?

Yes.

Xinguang Silicone currently has a dedicated water-based ink product category for textile and flexible-material printing, including garments, shoes and webbing.

The company's business is operated through Ganzhou Xinguang Silicone Co., Ltd. and Huizhou Xinguang Yirun Silicone Co., Ltd.

Is Water-Based Ink Good for T-Shirt Printing?

Yes, particularly when a soft, breathable garment print is desired.

However, the correct formulation depends on fabric color and composition.

Can Water-Based Ink Print on Polyester?

Yes, but polyester requires more careful testing than many cotton applications.

Dye migration, adhesion and elasticity should be evaluated before mass production.

Is Water-Based Ink Better Than Plastisol?

Neither is automatically better.

Water-based systems are attractive when softness and breathability are priorities, while plastisol can be useful where strong opacity and simpler screen stability are more important.

Xinguang's current technical guidance also compares these two systems in terms of hand feel, opacity and production requirements.

Can Suppliers Match Pantone Colors?

Many textile-printing suppliers provide color-matching support.

For accurate results, provide the Pantone reference together with the actual fabric because substrate color can significantly affect the final appearance.

Conclusion

China has a broad supply base for water based screen printing ink, ranging from specialized garment-printing manufacturers to companies producing complete textile chemical systems.

For buyers focused mainly on water-based garment chemistry, manufacturers such as DECAI and Caigle offer extensive textile-printing material portfolios.

For rubber paste and fashion screen-printing effects, Dongguan Batu, Rui Ke / SOLLYD and similar textile-focused suppliers are worth comparing.

For customers printing more difficult substrates such as nylon, PU, TPU or specialty materials, suppliers including Zhongyi and Guangzhou Ledi offer broader water-based screen-printing technologies.

For garment and footwear companies requiring water-based ink together with silicone printing solutions, XG Silicone / Xinguang Silicone has a different position.

Through Ganzhou Xinguang Silicone Co., Ltd. and Huizhou Yirun Silicone Co., Ltd., the company supplies water-based textile ink as well as silicone printing systems for T-shirts, sportswear, shoes, webbing and other flexible materials.

The best supplier therefore depends on the fabric, printing effect and production process-not simply the ink price.

For a more accurate recommendation, send the supplier your fabric composition, fabric color, required printing effect, mesh count and curing conditions before requesting a production sample.

Contact Xinguang Silicone for water-based textile screen printing ink recommendations, samples and customized garment printing solutions.