Custom Greeting Card Boxes
Custom greeting card boxes sized to your card and envelope — A6, A7, 5 × 7 or your own — as a rigid keepsake or a folding box with a window, from 100. Dieline and price the same working day.
A box of cards is sold on the box, kept for the cards
- Board
- Wrapped grayboard 1.5–2 mm rigid; 18–22pt boxboard folding
- Builds
- Rigid lift-off or hinged lid; folding window box; sleeve over a pack
- Sizing
- Set from the envelope; depth from the card count
Get a price for Greeting Card Boxes
Send the size and quantity — we reply the same working day with a price, a dieline and a date. Artwork optional at this stage.
- Free dielineThe flat drawing comes with the quote, before you commit.
- Proof before pressNothing is printed until you have seen it laid on the dieline.
- Die kept for reordersTooling is paid once. Every reorder skips straight to press.
- Quoted in four marketsUS, UK, Canada and Australia, in the delivery currency.
Card sizes and the box around them
Depth follows the count: a card and envelope pair is about 0.7 mm, so a box of 10 is 10 mm deep with room for a divider, and a box of 20 is 18–20 mm. The envelope, not the card, sets the footprint — it is always the larger.
| A6 (105 × 148 mm) + C6 envelope | Internal about 120 × 165 mm |
|---|---|
| A7 / 5 × 7 in + envelope | Internal about 137 × 187 mm |
| Square 148 × 148 mm | Internal about 158 × 158 mm |
| Notecard 4.25 × 5.5 in | Internal about 115 × 150 mm |
Rigid keepsake, folding box, or sleeve
Stationery brands often run two: a folding window box for stores and a rigid version of the same set for the gift range.
- Rigid lidded box, wrapped — the keepsake; ships assembled; lift-off or hinged lid.
- Folding boxboard box with a window — sells on the shelf, costs a third of rigid, ships flat.
- A belly band or sleeve around a shrink-wrapped pack — the lowest-cost set, for multipacks.
The window, and what shows through it
A window on a card box shows the top card, so the set is designed with the strongest card first and the window cut to its size less a margin. A clear PET window is standard; a paper-based film keeps the box recyclable as paper. A rigid box usually has no window and shows the set on opening instead, with the cards fanned by a stepped insert.
Holding the cards still
Cards slide in a box with any spare room and arrive with dented corners. A board divider between cards and envelopes, a platform under the stack, or a ribbon lift in a rigid box all hold the set square. Our stationery packaging for cards and paper goods covers the notebook and pen boxes that sit beside these in a range.
A set of 12 different designs is a set of 12 top cards. Say which one faces the window, and we position the window for it.
Print and finish for a box that lives in a drawer
Matte lamination on a folding box keeps it clean through a year of handling; foil or a deboss on a rigid lid does the gift work. Inside print — a pattern on the base or the lid liner — is what makes a card box feel like a keepsake and costs little on a short run.
Greeting Card Boxes — specification
The rows that are specific to this build first, then what applies to every job we run. Anything not listed is a question, not a limit — send the brief.
This build
- Board
- Wrapped grayboard 1.5–2 mm rigid; 18–22pt boxboard folding
- Builds
- Rigid lift-off or hinged lid; folding window box; sleeve over a pack
- Sizing
- Set from the envelope; depth from the card count
- Window
- PET or paper-based film, cut to the top card
- Inserts
- Divider, platform, stepped fan insert, ribbon lift
- Full color; matte laminate; foil or deboss on rigid lids; inside print
- Minimum
- 100 boxes
On every job
- Print process
- Digital below about a thousand, offset above it. Both sides as standard on cards, tags and leaflets.
- Color
- CMYK with spot colors for a brand match. Uncoated and cotton stocks print noticeably lighter than coated ones.
- Tolerance
- Trim plus or minus 1 mm guillotined, plus or minus 0.5 mm die-cut. Anything over about 170gsm is creased before folding.
- Tooling
- A die only where the piece is shaped, perforated or drilled, made once and kept. A plain rectangle needs none.
- Food contact
- Food-safe inks on menus and counter print that will be handled where food is served.
- Sustainability
- Uncoated and unlaminated stocks recycle without separation, and FSC papers are available across the range.
- Artwork
- Vector PDF or AI, 3 mm bleed, 4 mm safe area, fonts outlined. We check every file and send a proof before press.
- Dieline
- Supplied free with the quote, before you commit. Yours whether or not you order.
- Sample
- A plain unprinted sample at the finished size on request, for fit and construction.
- Reorders
- Skip the tooling and go straight to press at a lower unit price.
- Lead time
- Quoted with the price against your fill date rather than promised before we have seen the spec.
- Markets
- United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia — priced in the delivery currency, freight included.
Boards and films we build greeting card boxes on
Sheet print is judged in the hand more than a box is: the weight, the surface and whether a pen works on it. These are the stocks we run for cards, folders, leaflets and stationery.
Coated card 300–400gsm
The workhorse. Sharp full-color print, matte or gloss, laminated where it is handled. Does not take a pen unless the finish is matte.
300–400gsmUncoated card
No clay coat. Colors read softer and warmer, a deboss goes deeper, and it writes on with anything. Photographs lose punch.
300–400gsmCotton and textured card
Soft, thick and fibrous. Takes a deep blind deboss and reads as an invitation. Foil sits beautifully; four-color does not.
400–700gsmDuplexed card
Two sheets bonded, often with a colored core, for a very thick card with a visible colored edge. The heaviest thing we print.
600–900gsmText paper 100–170gsm
Leaflets, folder inners and booklet pages. Folds without cracking and takes a full-color print on both faces.
100–170gsmManila and kraft paper
Unbleached, tan, and cheap. One or two colors read well; white ink gives a light mark. Envelopes, folders and tags.
90–300gsmSynthetic stock
Polypropylene sheet for tags and cards that get wet, torn or handled outdoors. Prints like paper and does not soften.
200–400 micronBoard-backed
A printed face laminated to grayboard, for a rigid card, a folder back or a display that has to stand up on its own.
1–2 mm boardNot sure which? Say what goes in it and where it is sold — the material follows from that. Our notes on recycled, recyclable and compostable cover which claims each stock can honestly carry.
- 01
Send what you have
A dimension, a photograph beside a ruler, or the product itself. No technical drawing needed — that part is ours.
- 02
We quote and draw
A price, a dieline and a date come back together. If a different build would suit the product better, that is in the reply too.
- 03
Approve the dieline
The flat drawing is yours to check: which panel is the front, where the folds fall, how deep the cavity really is.
- 04
Artwork on the dieline
You place your design on the flat we sent, or we place it for you, and you see a proof before anything goes to press.
- 05
A sample if you want one
A plain unprinted sample at the finished size shows fit and construction — the things a drawing cannot.
- 06
Cut, printed, shipped
The die is cut once and kept, so every reorder skips the tooling and goes straight to press at a lower unit price.
Format
Vector PDF or AI where possible. Raster artwork at 300dpi at final size, in CMYK.
Bleed
3 mm past every trim line, so a fraction of drift on the cutter never leaves a white edge.
Safe area
Keep type and anything important 4 mm inside the cut and away from every fold.
Color
Convert to CMYK before sending. Uncoated stock prints lighter; a spot color is the only exact match.
Fonts
Outline them or supply the files. A missing font substitutes silently and the proof will not match.
Barcodes
On a light, matte, unvarnished patch with the quiet zone clear — a code on gloss fails the scanner.
Not set up that way? Send it anyway — fixing a file is a short conversation, and we check every one before press. Our guide to preparing print files covers each point.
Sheet print takes the widest range of finishes of anything we make.
Matte lamination
Soft, fingerprint-resistant, and it still takes a pen. The default on anything handled.
Gloss lamination
Maximum color depth. Shows every fingerprint and refuses a ballpoint.
Hot foil
Gold, rose gold, silver, holographic or a color. The block is small so the die is cheap.
Emboss and deboss
Deepest on uncoated and cotton stocks; shallow and prone to cracking on gloss coated.
Spot UV
A gloss shape on a matte laminate. Best on a dark ground where the contrast reads.
Edge paint and colored core
Color on the cut edge of a thick or duplexed card. Only seen when the card is picked up, which is the point.
Soft-touch
A velvet laminate on a cover or a folder. Marks on white; excellent on dark.
Uncoated and textured
No film at all. Writes on, debosses deeply, and reads as considered rather than cheap.
Not sure which suits the shelf it sells from? Say where the product is sold and we suggest one — our notes on specialty finishes show them on real boxes.
Sizing printed sheets, folds and the grain: greeting card boxes
A printed piece is specified flat and finished folded, and the difference between the two is where mistakes live. Send the finished size you want and we work back to the flat.
- Finished size
- The size after folding and trimming. A6, A5, A4, DL, US letter and legal are standard; anything else is cut on its own die.
- Bleed and safe area
- 3 mm of artwork past every trim edge, and nothing important within 4 mm inside it. The guillotine drifts by a fraction on every stack.
- Grain direction
- Paper folds cleanly along the grain and cracks across it. We set the grain to the fold, which is why a sheet is not simply cut from the biggest sheet available.
- Fold allowance
- On a roll fold or a gate fold, the inner panels are cut a millimeter or two shorter so the piece closes flat.
- Creasing
- Anything over about 170gsm is creased before folding. Without it the fold cracks and the coating flakes along the line.
- Trim tolerance
- Plus or minus 1 mm guillotined, plus or minus 0.5 mm die-cut.
Not sure your numbers are right? Send the product dimensions rather than the box dimensions and we work the box out — the full method is in our guide to measuring for a box.
Interactive · five steps · no sign-up
Spec your Greeting Card Boxes
Pick a shape, type a size, choose a stock and a finish. The preview on the left redraws as you go, and the spec lands with us exactly as you set it.
Frequently asked questions
Got a question about greeting card boxes? The answers below cover what we get asked most. If yours is not here, send it with a brief, message us on WhatsApp, or call +1 503-461-4788 — we reply the same working day.
What size box do I need for A6 cards?
About 120 × 165 mm internally, sized from the C6 envelope rather than the card. Depth follows the count — roughly 1 mm per card-and-envelope pair.
Rigid or folding?
Rigid for a keepsake or gift set; folding with a window for a shelf set at a third of the cost. Many brands run both.
Can the box have a window?
Yes, on the folding box, cut to show the top card. Paper-based window film keeps it recyclable.
How do I stop the cards sliding around?
A divider between cards and envelopes, a platform under the stack, or a ribbon lift in a rigid box. Any spare room shows as dented corners.
Can the cards be displayed fanned in a rigid box?
Yes, with a stepped insert that holds each card slightly above the last.
What is the minimum order?
100 boxes.
Does a rigid box ship flat?
No, it arrives assembled. Folding boxes and sleeves ship flat.
Can I have foil on the lid?
Yes, on a rigid lid or a folding box. Foil and deboss dies are made once and kept.
Can the inside be printed?
Yes, and it is what makes a card box feel like a keepsake — a pattern on the base or the lid liner.
Can one box hold cards of several sizes?
Yes, with a divided insert, though it is sized to the largest envelope and the smaller cards need their own compartment.
Do you send a dieline?
Yes, with the quote, showing the window position if there is one.
Do you ship outside the US?
Yes, to the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, quoted in the delivery currency.
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