Choose the box style from two things: how the product travels and where the customer first opens it. A slotted shipping carton suits pallets and courier transit, a die-cut mailer suits e-commerce, a folding carton suits a shop shelf, and a rigid box suits a product whose presentation carries the price.
Updated 20 October 2026 · By the EasyPak team in Qormi, Malta
Most brands start with the look of the box. We start with the journey, because the journey decides how strong the box has to be, and the strength decides most of the cost. Once the structure is right, the print and finish can do the selling.
Ask three questions before you look at a single style. Does the product travel on a pallet, by courier as a single parcel, or both? Who opens it first: a warehouse worker, a shop assistant or your end customer? And does the box need to sell the product, or only protect it? A carton that goes from factory to warehouse on a pallet has a very different job from a mailer that lands on a customer's doorstep.
The plain brown shipping carton is the workhorse of packaging. The packaging industry describes box styles with FEFCO codes, a catalogue kept by the European federation of corrugated board manufacturers. Shipping cartons usually sit in the 02 group, which FEFCO calls slotted-type boxes: one piece of board with a glued joint and flaps that close the top and bottom. They are quick to pack, stack well on a pallet and use board efficiently.
Choose a shipping carton when strength and cost matter more than presentation. They take simple flexo print well, so a logo, handling marks or a product code costs little to add. See our custom boxes and cartons for the formats we make.
A mailer is a die-cut box that folds together from one flat piece, usually with a tuck-in lid and no tape needed to look tidy. These sit in FEFCO's 04 group, folder-type boxes and trays, and the style most suppliers call the classic e-commerce mailer is listed there as 0427. Mailers are strong enough for courier transit and look good when opened, which is why subscription and direct-to-consumer brands use them.
Print inside the lid as well as outside if the unboxing matters. That inside surface is the first thing your customer sees, and it is one of the cheapest places to put a message, an offer or a QR code. Our advertising packaging page shows how brands use it.
A folding carton is made from paperboard rather than corrugated board. It is the box you see on a shop shelf around cosmetics, food, supplements and small electronics. Paperboard takes fine print and finishes very well, so folding cartons are the natural choice when the box is part of the product's shelf appeal. They protect against scuffs and handling, not heavy transit, so they usually travel inside a shipping carton.
A rigid box is built from thick, stiff board wrapped in printed or textured paper. It does not fold flat, it feels solid in the hand, and it is the format used for premium gifts, jewellery, spirits and high-value electronics. Rigid boxes cost more per piece and take more space in storage and transit, so we suggest them only where presentation genuinely carries the price. More on this on our branded and retail packaging page.
An insert holds the product still inside the box. FEFCO lists these in its 09 group, interior fitments: partitions, pads and die-cut holders. A good insert can let you use a lighter outer box, because the product no longer moves around in transit. For fragile or high-value goods, see protective and industrial packaging.
| If the product | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Travels on pallets to a warehouse or retailer | Shipping carton | Strong, stackable, lowest cost per piece |
| Goes by courier straight to a customer | Mailer box | Transit strength plus a tidy unboxing |
| Sits on a shop shelf | Folding carton | Takes fine print and finishes well |
| Is a premium gift or high-value item | Rigid box | Feels solid and premium in the hand |
| Is fragile or moves around in the box | Add an insert | Holds it still, often lets the outer box be lighter |
Whatever the style, measure the product, not the old box. Give us the internal dimensions the product needs, length by width by height in millimetres, plus its weight. A box that is too big costs you twice: once in board and void fill, and again in courier charges for shipping air. Right-sizing also matters for regulation. Under the EU packaging regulation, grouped, transport and e-commerce packaging will have to keep empty space to 50% or less from 1 January 2030. Our guide to the EU packaging rules explains what that means.
Not sure which style fits? Put what you know into the spec builder and leave the style as "not sure". We will recommend one and prove it with a physical sample before any full run.
What is a FEFCO code?
A FEFCO code is a four-digit reference for a box style, taken from the international catalogue kept by FEFCO, the European federation of corrugated board manufacturers. The first two digits give the family, such as 02 for slotted-type boxes or 04 for folder-type boxes, so a supplier anywhere in Europe knows exactly which construction you mean.
Which box style is cheapest?
A slotted shipping carton is usually the lowest cost per piece, because it uses board efficiently and packs quickly. Mailers, folding cartons and rigid boxes cost more as the print, finish and construction get more involved. Your written quote confirms the figures for your specification.
Can one box do both transit and shelf display?
Sometimes. A well-printed mailer can travel by courier and still look good when opened. A shop-shelf carton usually needs a shipping carton around it for transit. We will tell you honestly whether one format can do both jobs for your product.
Do you make rigid boxes?
Yes. Premium rigid boxes are one of our eight packages. We suggest them where presentation genuinely carries the price, because they cost more per piece and take more space than folding formats.
This page is general information for packaging buyers, not legal advice. Checked on 20 October 2026.
Tell us about your product and we'll recommend the right solution, with a clear, no-obligation quote. Once we have your full specifications, you get a written quote within 48 hours.
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