Custom boxes and packaging for online stores

A good box for an online store starts with the product and the courier, not the design: inner size, protection and weight first, printing second. For many small shops, a stock box with a branded sticker or tape makes the same impression as a fully printed one. It's also worth knowing now what the new EU packaging regulation will require once it applies in August 2026.

Start with the product, not the artwork

Measure the product, including whatever protects it, and that gives you the inner size of the box. A few questions before any sketch:

1. How many sizes do you need? If you sell items of different sizes, one big box for everything means a lot of air and a lot of void fill.
2. How fragile is the product? Glass and ceramics need dividers or heavier board. Clothing can go in thinner boxes or mailers.
3. How do you ship it? The box goes through several depots and conveyor belts. Corners get knocked, boxes get stacked.
4. Who opens it? If it's a gift or a collector's item, the inside matters too. If it's a consumable, easy opening matters more.

Before the big order, ask for a plain sample with no print, at the final size. Put the product in, close it and ship it to your own address. You'll see exactly what happens on the way.

What kind of box

Corrugated boxes share a common language: the FEFCO code, an international system where each box construction has a number. It helps when comparing quotes, because two manufacturers mean the same thing by the same code.

Online stores usually go with:

• the self-locking mailer box, which closes without tape and opens nicely, good for clothing, cosmetics and accessories;
• the classic flap box, sealed with tape, for heavy or bulky items;
• the rigid box with a lid, for premium items or gift sets, which in turn goes inside a shipping box.

Printing: where and how much

Not every box needs full print. Options, from simple to complex:

• a stock box with no print, plus a logo sticker on the lid and a card or note inside;
• a stock box with custom packing tape;
• one-color print on the outside, usually the logo;
• print outside and inside, in several colors.

On brown kraft board, colors come out darker and duller than on screen, and white doesn't show at all without a white base layer. A dark, single-color logo looks best on kraft. If you want vivid colors, print on white board.

For stickers and seal labels, see our stickers page.

What's coming from the EU: less air in the box

Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging was published in January 2025, has been in force since February 11, 2025, and will generally apply from August 12, 2026. A few provisions matter directly if you ship parcels:

• Empty space. For transport and e-commerce packaging, the empty space ratio will be capped at 50%, from January 1, 2030, or three years after the implementing acts, whichever is later. Void fill (paper, air cushions, bubble wrap, polystyrene) counts as empty space.
• Minimal packaging. Also by 2030, packaging weight and volume must be cut to the minimum needed to do its job. Double walls, false bottoms and other tricks that make a product look bigger won't be allowed.
• Material label. Packaging will carry a harmonized label showing its material composition, from August 2028 or 24 months after the implementing acts.

In practice, two or three box sizes matched to your products beat one big box for everything. You also stop paying to ship air.

If you want to say something concrete about the material, ask for FSC-certified board. FSC Recycled means 100% recycled material, FSC 100% means fiber from certified forests, and FSC Mix is a combination.

What drives the cost

The price comes with the quote, but you can know ahead what moves it:

• quantity: with printed boxes, the first units carry the setup cost, and the unit price drops as the run grows;
• shape: a custom box with a special cutout needs a die, made once;
• board: thickness and number of layers;
• printing: how many colors, one side or both;
• finishes: film, varnish, cardboard inserts.

For packaging and printed materials for your business, see our page for companies.