Materials
Pillow Box Materials Explained
Material decides how your artwork reproduces, how much the pack can carry and whether a window is possible. It is the first decision on any brief and the one that constrains everything after it.
The four material families
These are genuinely different products rather than price tiers.
Kraft
- Unbleached, brown through the sheet
- Absorbs ink — softer, warmer color
- Excellent for line art and one-color logos
- Photography and pale colors do not work on it
Coated paperboard
- Clay-coated white printing face
- Holds ink on the surface — sharp detail
- Takes CMYK, Pantone, lamination, foil, spot UV
- The general default for full-color work
Corrugated
- Fluted layer between two liners
- Roughly three times the crush resistance
- Direct print can show faint ribbing on solids
- The only sensible choice for unaccompanied shipping
Weight comes from the contents, not the dimensions
This is the most common source of disappointment on a first order. Two boxes of identical size holding a soap bar and a filled candle need different boards, because the candle is several times heavier and the tuck tension has to fight gravity across the same span.
Give us the filled weight and how far the pack travels, and the board is specified from that. A box sized correctly on a light stock will still bow in the middle if the contents are heavy, and no amount of printing hides it.
Board weights and what they carry
Approximate equivalences; the exact figures vary by mill.
| Caliper | Approx. gsm | Typically used for |
|---|---|---|
| 12pt | ~250 gsm | Sachets, seed packets, flat cards, very small boxes |
| 14pt | ~300 gsm | Soap, lip balm, cosmetics, small candles |
| 16pt | ~350 gsm | The general retail default; bracelets, filled packs |
| 18pt | ~400 gsm | Larger gift and apparel formats |
| 20pt | ~450 gsm | Large formats where rigidity matters more than the tuck |
| E-flute | n/a | Fragile or heavy contents; unaccompanied shipping |
Clear film, and why it is a separate decision
- PET is clearer, more stable and more widely recycled than PVC
- Every printed color on clear film is a glaze unless backed with opaque white
- A clear pack has almost no branding surface — plan for a band or a label
- Film is springier than board, so the pack feels different in the hand
- Where visibility matters but plastic does not, a die-cut aperture is the alternative
Recycled content and what it changes
Recycled-content boards are available in both kraft and coated grades and print acceptably. The white point is grayer and slightly more variable than virgin board, which matters most if the design has large areas of white or a pale flat color across the panel.
We show it on a proof before sign-off rather than letting it be a surprise. The wider set of choices for a paper-only specification is on our recyclable packaging page.
Questions this raises
Which material is cheapest?
At the same weight and quantity, kraft and coated paperboard are close. In a real quote the difference comes from what you print and how you finish it rather than from the sheet.
How do I know what board weight I need?
Tell us the filled weight of the pack and how far it travels. Choosing a weight from the dimensions alone is the most common cause of a box that bows or fails.
Can I print photography on kraft?
Not well. Kraft absorbs ink and has no white base, so photographic images print muddy. A bleached kraft keeps the fiber texture with a printable face, or use a coated board.
When do I need corrugated?
When the contents are heavy or fragile, or when the pack ships alone through a carrier network. Solid board dents on a large flat face and crushes at the ends.
Is recycled board noticeably different?
Grayer and slightly more variable in shade. On a design with strong ink coverage it is barely noticeable; on a large pale panel it shows, and we will flag it on your proof.