A B3 notice built from B5 sheets
B3 is 364 by 515 mm, a JIS B-series size common on Japanese school and municipal noticeboards. If B5 is the only paper you have, four tiled sheets give you the same finished notice.
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JIS B is not ISO B
Japan uses the JIS B series: B5 is 182 by 257 mm, B4 is 257 by 364 and B3 is 364 by 515. The international ISO B5 is 176 by 250 mm, a few millimetres different. This tool uses the JIS dimensions, which match the B5 paper handed out in Japanese schools and offices. If you are printing outside Japan, check what your printer driver means by B5.
Why Japanese schools still use B sizes
Japanese official documents used the B series for decades, and the habit survives in school handouts and club noticeboards. Each B size is a step larger than its A counterpart: B4 has 1.22 times the area of A4, so you fit more in at the same type size. Four B5 sheets tiled into B3 land at exactly the size that suits the noticeboard at the back of a classroom.
Also useful for enlarging a zine cover
If you want to display the cover artwork of a B5 fanzine or club magazine at poster size, B3 is four times the area, an enlargement of 200 percent. Supply a PDF for text-led covers, or an image of at least 3000 pixels on the long edge for illustration, and the result is sharp enough for a wall.
Frequently asked questions
What are B3 dimensions exactly?
364 by 515 millimetres under JIS. Two by two B5 sheets at 182 by 257 mm come to 364 by 514, a one-millimetre difference that never shows.
My printer driver has no B5 option
Most consumer printers support it, but the driver may list JIS B5 and ISO B5 separately. Pick JIS B5 for Japanese paper. On a printer without B5 at all, print onto A4 and trim the sheets down.
Can I mix A and B sizes?
Yes. The output sheet and the finished size are chosen independently, so B5 sheets tiled into an A2 poster is a valid combination. The proportions differ, so expect a blank border around the artwork.