Custom Hexagon Boxes
Hexagons are usually chosen because they look different. What actually makes them useful is that they pack together with no gaps — a tray of hexagonal boxes uses its space as efficiently as squares do, which is not true of any other unusual shape.
- Build
- Six-sided folding carton; petal tuck, lid and base, or auto-lock bottom
- Board
- 14–24pt folding boxboard, kraft or white-lined
- All six faces, inside and out
Get a price for Hexagon 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.
It costs more board, and that is the whole premium
A hexagon holding the same volume as a rectangle uses a larger flat blank, because the shape nests less efficiently on a printing sheet. That extra area is nearly all of the price difference — the cutting die is not meaningfully more complicated.
So a hexagon is not expensive because it is unusual. It is slightly more expensive because it is bigger, which is a much easier thing to budget for than people expect.
If the design is dark and full-bleed, the larger blank also means more ink, which shows up in the quote at volume.
Six narrow faces change how you design
Each face of a hexagon is narrower than the face of a rectangular box of the same volume, and there are more of them. A logo scaled to fill a rectangular front will be cramped on a hexagonal one.
The designs that work either treat alternating faces differently — three brand faces and three information faces — or run a continuous pattern around all six. Repeating the same panel six times looks mechanical.
Closures on a six-sided box
The petal-fold top is the signature of this shape and it is genuinely satisfying to close. It is not, however, a load-bearing base — anything heavy needs a locked bottom.
| Six-flap tuck top | Petal-fold; closes without glue and looks deliberate |
|---|---|
| Hexagonal lid and base | Two shallow hexagons; the gift build |
| Auto-lock base | Needed for any real weight; the petal base will not carry it |
| Full sleeve over the body | A hexagonal tube with separate ends |
Where the shape earns its keep
- Candles and jars, where a round product in a round-ish box wastes less space.
- Gift sets, where the shape itself signals that this is not a standard product.
- Anything displayed in a tessellated block, which is where hexagons genuinely outperform.
- Products with six variants, where each face can carry one.
Folding six panels without cracking any of them
A hexagon has creases running at angles that no rectangular carton has, which means the grain direction cannot be right for all of them. On light artwork this is invisible; on a dark all-over print, some creases may show a fine line.
We plan the sheet layout around whichever faces carry the critical artwork. It is the same constraint that governs cubes, and it is set out in our folding carton construction notes.
Hexagon 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
- Build
- Six-sided folding carton; petal tuck, lid and base, or auto-lock bottom
- Board
- 14–24pt folding boxboard, kraft or white-lined
- All six faces, inside and out
- Sizing
- Across flats or across corners — we quote both so the number is unambiguous
- Assembly
- Ships flat; petal tops close without glue
- Minimum
- 100 cartons
On every job
- Print process
- Digital below about a thousand, offset above it. One side or both, with spot colors where a match has to hold.
- Color
- CMYK as standard. Uncoated and kraft stocks print lighter and warmer; a spot color is the only exact match.
- Tolerance
- Cutting plus or minus 1 mm, creasing plus or minus 0.5 mm, confirmed on a plain sample before the run.
- Tooling
- A cutting die per size, made once and kept. Foil and emboss dies per artwork, also kept.
- Food contact
- Food-grade board and inks where the carton touches food, with the interior left plain.
- Sustainability
- Mono-material board wherever the product allows; recycled-content and FSC stocks; no claim printed the pack does not earn.
- 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 hexagon boxes on
A folding carton is one sheet of board, so the board is the product. These are the stocks we run for cartons, what each is good at, and where it lets you down.
Natural kraft
Unbleached folding board. Warm, hides marks, costs least. Mutes color — one or two flat colors print well, photographs do not.
250–350gsm sleeves; 14–24pt cartonsWhite SBS
Solid bleached sulfate: bright, coated, the retail carton standard. Takes accurate color and every finish. Shows scuffs sooner than kraft.
14–24ptWhite lined chipboard
A recycled gray core under a white printing face. Cheaper than SBS and slightly duller; the back of the sheet stays gray.
16–24ptKraft-look coated
A kraft face over a coated inner. The natural look with a barrier behind it — the answer where oil, grease or moisture would mark plain kraft.
14–20ptRecycled-content board
Post-consumer fiber with a gray-brown cast. Right for outers and inner components; poor for bright whites and photography.
16–22ptMicro-flute E and F
A fine corrugated layer where a carton needs structure it cannot get from board — a large panel, a heavy product, a box that ships alone.
E 1.5 mm; F 0.8 mmUncoated and textured
No clay coat, or a linen or laid grain. Print reads softer and warmer; a deboss goes deeper. Photographs do not sit well on it.
280–350gsmMetallised and pearlescent
A metallic or pearl face for a shelf that needs to catch light. Costly, and it fights a photograph — a mark or a pattern suits it better.
16–20ptNot 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.
Every finish here is a decision about light on a shelf, not about luxury.
Matte lamination
Reads considered, hides marks, takes a ballpoint.
Gloss lamination
Lifts color; glares under shop lighting.
Soft-touch
Velvet in the hand; shows fingerprints in a bag.
Hot foil
Real metal leaf — the most reliable premium signal.
Emboss / deboss
Shape with no ink; works in the dark.
Spot UV
Gloss shapes on a matte field.
Uncoated kraft
Warm, natural, mutes color.
Textured stock
Texture in the paper; cannot scuff off.
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 a folding carton so the die comes out right: hexagon boxes
Measure the product, not the box it is in now. A carton is built around what has to fit inside it, assembled — cap on, lid fitted, folded if it folds — at its widest point in each direction. Send those three numbers and say which is which.
- Length x width x height
- Internal, always. External dimensions include the board and are what the carrier measures, not what the product needs.
- Clearance
- 2–3 mm a side for a snug fit; more where an insert or void fill goes in. A carton cut exactly to the product is slow to pack and transmits every knock.
- Board thickness
- Heavier board takes internal space from the product. It matters most on small boxes, where four walls of 24pt is a real share of the cavity.
- Varies between batches?
- Glass, textiles, molded parts and cured soap all do. Measure several and build to the largest.
- Cutting tolerance
- Plus or minus 1 mm on folding board. Confirmed on a plain sample before the run.
- Units
- Metric or imperial, as long as you say which. Mixing them in one spec is where mistakes happen.
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
Build your Hexagon Boxes in 3D
Pick a shape, type a size, choose a board 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 hexagon 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 is the minimum order?
100 boxes, printed on all six faces if you want them.
Why does a hexagon cost more than a square box?
It uses a larger flat blank for the same volume. The die is not meaningfully more complex — the board area is the premium.
How do I give you the size?
Either across the flats or across the corners, as long as you say which. We quote both to avoid the ambiguity.
Is the petal-fold top strong enough?
As a top, yes. As a base under weight, no — use an auto-lock bottom for anything heavy.
Will the folds crack?
Some creases sit at angles where the grain cannot help. On dark solids that can show, so we plan the layout around the key faces.
Can I print a continuous pattern around all six sides?
Yes, and it looks better than repeating the same panel six times, which reads as mechanical.
Why does a hexagon cost more than a square box?
It uses a larger flat blank for the same volume. The die is not meaningfully more complex — the board area is the premium.
How do I give you the size?
Either across the flats or across the corners, as long as you say which. We quote both to avoid the ambiguity.
Is the petal-fold top strong enough?
As a top, yes. As a base under weight, no — use an auto-lock bottom for anything heavy.
Will the folds crack?
Some creases sit at angles where the grain cannot help. On dark solids that can show, so we plan the layout around the key faces.
Same range
