Frequently asked questions · MOQ, pricing, lead times
The questions buyers ask before the first order
28 questions we answer every week, grouped by the decision they belong to: how few pieces you can order, what the published ranges actually mean, what has to be proved for food contact, how long sampling and production take, who owns the freight, how artwork and colour are approved, when you pay, and how a reorder is priced. Short, specific answers, including the ones that are inconvenient for a supplier to give.
Indicative ranges, dated September 2026 — not a quotation
Every price, MOQ and lead time on this page is an indicative planning figure, compiled from
published Chinese factory price and MOQ schedules in September 2026, quoted in USD ex-works. These
figures exclude freight, duties, taxes and tooling where tooling applies, and they are not an offer.
A quotation is issued only against your own size, material, finish coverage, insert, quantity and
Incoterm — and when it arrives it is itemised line by line, so you can see what each element
costs before you commit.
Jump to Orders & MOQ · Pricing & quotations · Materials & compliance · Sampling & lead times · Freight, Incoterms & duties · Artwork & colour · Payment terms · Reorders & repeat business
Group 01
Orders & MOQ
What is the minimum order quantity for custom packaging?
Rigid boxes (magnetic, drawer, lid and base) and heavy canvas bags start at 100–500 pcs depending on structure. Corrugated mailer boxes start at 300 pcs, food-grade boxes at 500 pcs, non-woven bags at 500 pcs, and folding cartons usually make sense from 500–1,000 pcs. The industry norm for rigid boxes is 500–1,000 pcs, so a 100 pc start is a deliberate choice: it lets you validate the structure and the finishing before committing to a large first run.
My first order is smaller than the minimum. Is that a problem?
Tell us the quantity you actually need and we will tell you honestly whether it is workable, rather than losing the detail in a sales answer. Below the listed minimum the setup cost per piece rises quickly, because a cutting die and a press make-ready are spread over fewer units — so the practical answer is usually ‘yes, but the unit price will reflect it’ rather than a flat no.
What are the one-off costs, and are they repeated on a reorder?
Cutting dies for rigid structures, print plates or screens, and any custom insert tooling are one-off costs. Each appears as its own line on the quotation, and a reorder against the same specification does not repeat them. That is the main reason a second order prices lower than the first.
Group 02
Pricing & quotations
How much does custom packaging cost?
Indicative 2026 ex-works ranges: magnetic rigid boxes $1.50–2.30/pc at 500 pcs; lid and base rigid boxes $1.20–1.80 at 500 pcs; sliding drawer boxes $0.80–1.80 at 1,000 pcs; corrugated mailers $0.42–0.68 at 1,000 pcs and $0.22–0.35 at 5,000+; food-grade boxes $0.48–0.68 at 1,000 pcs and $0.12–0.18 at 10,000+; canvas totes $0.40–1.20 standard and $2.84–6.37 for heavy 12oz; luxury paper gift bags $0.10–0.73; folding cartons $0.05–0.65; non-woven bags $0.05–0.10 at 5,000+.
What exactly appears on an itemised quotation?
The lines that actually make the price, separated: board or fabric; printing; each individual finish (foil, embossing, soft-touch lamination, spot UV); the insert; packing; and freight for your route. Where tooling applies it is shown as its own one-off line. Cut a finish and you can see exactly what that saves; add one and you can see exactly what it costs.
Are the ranges published on this site a quotation?
No. They are indicative planning ranges, compiled in September 2026 from published Chinese factory price and MOQ schedules, shown in USD ex-works. They exclude freight, duties and tooling where tooling applies. A quotation is issued only against your own size, material, finish coverage, insert, quantity and Incoterm — in writing, and line by line.
Why do two suppliers quote different prices for a similar-looking box?
Almost always one of seven variables: board weight and thickness; the material the box is wrapped in; foil coverage (priced by stamped area, not by number of logos); the lamination; the insert, which is the largest single driver; whether assembly is by hand or machine; and quantity. Unit cost falls fastest between 100 and 1,000 pcs and then improves gradually — so the cheapest quote is often the lighter board or the thinner insert.
Group 03
Materials & compliance
Which materials and structures do you work with?
Wrapped greyboard for rigid boxes; E-flute corrugated board for mailers; 300–400gsm SBS cardstock for folding cartons; grease-resistant food-contact board; FSC-certified and recycled greyboard options; 10–12oz canvas and cotton for tote bags; and kraft through to laminated coated paper for gift bags. If the material you need is not on that list, ask — most specifications have a workable equivalent.
Do you offer sustainable and plastic-free options?
Yes — FSC-certified board, recycled greyboard, soy-based inks, water-based coatings and plastic-free grease barriers for food contact. Ask for the current certificate for the exact material you are considering, because the scope of a certificate usually depends on the specific board or coating rather than on the factory as a whole. We would rather send you the document for your material than a generic badge.
Can you supply food-contact compliance documents?
Yes. For food-contact work we supply the material declarations and migration test documents your destination market asks for, for the exact board and coating in your specification, including direct-contact-safe and grease-resistant grades. Because these declarations are issued for a material and a coating rather than for a supplier in general, tell us the market you are selling into and we will identify which documents apply before the first run rather than after it.
Group 04
Sampling & lead times
How long does production take?
Plan on 12–18 days of production after you approve the physical sample, plus freight. Canvas and cotton totes typically run 15–20 days, because the fabric is printed and sewn on a different line. Sea freight in FCL or LCL is the cheapest route for volume but the slowest; air and express suit samples and urgent small runs.
How long does a sample take, and what does it cost?
A physical pre-production sample takes 3–5 working days to produce, and courier delivery adds a further 1–3 days. The sample cost is credited against your bulk order. Nothing goes to bulk until you have approved a sample you can hold and open.
Can you hit a Q4 or Ramadan delivery date?
Yes, if artwork is locked early. Q4 (October to December) and Ramadan/Eid are the two annual peaks, and production slots start filling from around August for Q4. Lock artwork 4–6 months ahead for either peak, and build the sample and revision window into the plan instead of assuming the calendar will compress later.
What happens between placing an order and shipment?
Structural dielines and a 3D mockup come first, then the physical sample for your approval, then production with photo and video updates every two days — plate, print, die-cut, assembly and packed carton. Third-party inspection is available on request for larger programmes. You watch the run being made rather than waiting on a tracking number.
Group 05
Freight, Incoterms & duties
Who handles the freight, and can you ship DDP?
We quote ex-works, FOB or DDP depending on what you need. Sea freight in FCL or LCL is the cheapest route for volume; air and express courier suit samples and urgent small runs. We prepare the commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading and certificates of origin, and we deliver to Amazon FBA and 3PL addresses.
Which Incoterm should I ask for?
The one that matches how the goods actually move. Ex-works or FOB if you have your own forwarder and want to control the routing; DDP if you want a single delivered cost to a door or a warehouse. Because we quote all three, you can compare landed cost rather than ex-works price — the lower unit price is not always the lower landed one.
Do the published prices include duties and taxes?
No. The ranges are ex-works and exclude freight, duties and tooling where tooling applies. Duty rates depend on the HS code and the destination market, so a delivered figure has to be quoted for your specific route and product. Ask for an FOB or DDP quote and you will get the number for your lane rather than a generic one.
Do you ship to Amazon FBA or a 3PL warehouse?
Yes. We deliver to Amazon FBA and 3PL addresses, and we can pack to the carton labelling and pallet requirements your warehouse specifies. Tell us the fulfilment centre and its labelling rules when you enquire, and they are built into the packing line items on the quote rather than treated as an afterthought.
Group 06
Artwork & colour
Can you match a Pantone colour exactly?
Yes. We print against physical Pantone swatches and supply a colour proof for approval. On uncoated kraft board the ink sits differently than on coated paper, so the approved proof — not the screen — is the reference we hold production to.
What artwork files do you need, and who checks them?
Print-ready PDF or AI, 300dpi or vector, with bleed, CMYK colour and fonts outlined. Our own team checks bleed, resolution, Pantone references and dieline fit before plates are made, and comes back to you before anything is printed. If all you have is a logo file or a reference image, send that — it is enough to start.
What if I do not have artwork or a dieline yet?
Start without either. Structural design sits with our own team: we build the die line to your product dimensions and produce a 3D mockup with your branding, free of charge. Send the product type, approximate size, quantity and destination, and the first deliverable is a dieline and a mockup rather than an invoice.
Can you print inside the box?
Yes. Interior printing is common on magnetic and lid and base boxes — a printed message, a pattern or unboxing instructions. It is a separate pass through the press, so it is quoted as its own line and you can see exactly what it adds before deciding.
Group 07
Payment terms
What are your payment terms?
Standard terms are a 30% deposit with the balance before shipment, by bank transfer. We can also work through Trade Assurance. Repeat customers who have completed three orders can ask about credit terms.
In which currency are quotes issued?
Quotations are issued in USD. If you need to compare against a local-currency landed cost, ask your forwarder for the exchange and duty assumptions and we will quote the freight element the same way, so the two numbers are comparable.
Does the price include tooling, packing and freight?
No — pricing is ex-works, and tooling, packing and freight each appear as their own line. Tooling is a one-off and is not repeated on reorders. Packing covers the protective wrapping, master cartons and pallet or FBA labelling you specify, and freight is quoted for your route and Incoterm.
Group 08
Reorders & repeat business
How do reorders work?
A reorder repeats an approved specification: the same die line, the same board, the same finishing and the same colour reference. Because tooling is one-off, a straight reorder skips die and plate setup — which is why the second run prices below the first.
Do you keep my specification on file?
Yes. Your dieline, approved colour proof and production specification stay on file, so a reorder is a repeat of something you have already signed off rather than a new round of sampling. Tell us it is a reorder and we will price it against the original specification.
What if a delivery does not match the approved sample?
Every order runs against an approved sample and an approved colour proof, and we keep photo and video records at each milestone — plate, print, die-cut, assembly and packed carton. If something arrives outside that specification, send photographs of the carton and the print; we compare them against the approved reference and tell you what we are doing about it.
How we quote
One box, six lines, never a lump sum
A single number tells you nothing about where to spend and where to save. Every quote we issue is broken into the lines that actually drive the price, so a budget decision is a decision about specification rather than a guess about the supplier.
- Board or fabric — The substrate itself, priced by weight, grade and thickness.
- Printing — Offset, screen, DTG or embroidery, priced by colour count and coverage.
- Each finish, separately — Foil, embossing, soft-touch lamination and spot UV as individual lines.
- The insert — Folded paper tray, EVA foam, velvet-wrapped or moulded pulp, cut to your product.
- Packing — Protective wrapping, master cartons, pallet or FBA labelling you specify.
- Freight — Quoted for your route and Incoterm — ex-works, FOB or DDP.
Cutting dies, print plates and insert tooling are one-off costs and appear as their own line; a reorder against the same specification does not repeat them.
Keep reading
Guides and ranges behind these answers
If the answer you need is a spreadsheet rather than a paragraph, start with one of these.
Cost guide
What custom packaging costs in 2026
Line-by-line pricing for rigid boxes, mailers, food-grade boxes, totes and paper bags.
MOQ guide
MOQ and the first-order playbook
Why 100, 300, 500 and 1,000 pcs behave differently, and how to size a first run.
Comparison
Magnetic, lid & base, drawer or mailer?
A side-by-side on cost, unboxing effect and freight volume.
Fabric guide
Choosing a tote bag fabric and print
gsm, ounces, cotton versus canvas, and which print method survives real use.
Rigid boxes
Magnetic, drawer and lid & base structures
MOQ 100 pcs, indicative $1.20–2.30/pc at 500 pcs, foil and soft-touch finishes.
Product ranges
Everything we make, in one place
Tote bags, paper gift bags, food-grade packaging, mailers and folding cartons.
Get a free quote
Send your spec. Get a number in 24 hours.
Tell us the product, the quantity and the destination. You will get an itemised factory-direct price, a recommended structure and a 3D mockup — no design files needed to start.
- ✓Itemised pricing, not a single lump sum
- ✓Structural dieline and 3D mockup included
- ✓Physical sample before any bulk run
- ✓Photo and video updates through production
Free quote
Free quote in 24 hours
Two minutes to fill in. No design files needed to start.