Custom Ice Cream Labels
Custom ice cream labels from 100 — wrap-around body labels, round lid labels and tamper seals for tubs and pints, printed on film or coated paper with an adhesive that holds at freezer temperature.
A label that has to stay put at minus twenty
- Material
- White or clear polypropylene film; coated paper with varnish or laminate
- Adhesive
- Freezer-grade permanent, rated for application cold or at room temperature
- Shapes
- Arc-cut wrap-arounds for tapered tubs, rounds for lids, tamper strips
Order online
Order ice cream labels
Starting from $0.75 per unit
Printed to your artwork or plain, sold in runs of 100 up to 5,000 units per product online. Freight to the US, UK, Canada and Australia is inside the price.
How an online order runs
- Add the units you needThen check out with your delivery address. Add other products to the same order on the way.
- A digital proof comes backLaid on the dieline, before anything prints. Change it as often as you need.
- Pay once you approve itPay by PayPal invoice or bank transfer after you approve your digital proof, or cash on delivery in the US and Canada.
- We make it and ship it deliveredYour delivery date is confirmed with the proof, against the spec and your fill date. Freight and customs are handled on the way to you.
Another size, board or finish, or more than 5,000 units? Send the spec for a price instead. Freight by market and our terms cover delivery and remakes.
Get a price for Ice Cream Labels
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.
Freezer adhesive is chosen before anything else
Standard permanent adhesives lose their grip below freezing, and the edge of a wrap-around label is the first place it shows. Freezer-grade adhesives stay tacky down to around -40 °F, but many of them need to go onto a container that is already cold and dry. We ask whether labels go on empty tubs at room temperature or on filled tubs straight from the hardening room, because the two call for different adhesives.
Frost on the container surface is the other problem. A label applied over a thin layer of ice sticks to the ice, not the tub, and slides off as soon as it thaws.
Where each label sits on a tub
| Wrap-around body label | Flavor, brand and net weight; overlaps itself at the seam |
|---|---|
| Round lid label | The face a buyer sees looking down into a freezer case |
| Tamper seal | A narrow strip across lid and body that tears when opened |
| Back or side label | Ingredients, allergens, nutrition panel and barcode |
| Flavor dot | Small round label for scoop shops to mark tubs by flavor |
Film for condensation, paper for a craft look
White or clear polypropylene film shrugs off condensation and does not cloud or wrinkle when a tub sweats on the counter. Coated paper looks warmer and suits a small-batch brand, but it needs a varnish or laminate to survive wet hands. Clear film lets the color of the ice cream show through a paper or plastic tub, which works well for fruit sorbets.
For the containers themselves, see our printed ice cream cups and tubs, which can be printed directly instead of labeled.
Labeling a tapered tub without wrinkles
- Pint and quart tubs taper, so a straight rectangle wrinkles at the top edge; the label is cut as an arc to follow the cone.
- We draw the arc from the tub’s top and bottom diameters and its height, so send the container spec or a sample.
- Leave a small gap rather than a long overlap at the seam on film, or the overlap can lift in the freezer.
- Round lid labels are sized a few millimeters inside the lid’s raised rim so they sit flat.
Small runs of many flavors
Most ice cream makers sell a dozen flavors in small quantities rather than one flavor in large ones. Labels can be printed as a set of flavors on one order, sharing a design with the flavor name, color band and ingredient list changing on each. Seasonal flavors can be added later on the same layout. Our full range of printed labels covers the other stocks and shapes.
Send the container type, the diameters and height, and whether labels go on by hand or machine. That decides the shape, the roll and the adhesive.
Ice Cream Labels — 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
- Material
- White or clear polypropylene film; coated paper with varnish or laminate
- Adhesive
- Freezer-grade permanent, rated for application cold or at room temperature
- Shapes
- Arc-cut wrap-arounds for tapered tubs, rounds for lids, tamper strips
- Full color, with flavor names and ingredients changed across one order
- Supply
- On rolls for applicators or on sheets for hand labeling
- Minimum
- 100 labels per design
On every job
- Print process
- Flexo in one to six colors, printed on the outer face only and before any lining goes on.
- Color
- Food-safe inks throughout. Kraft mutes color; a white board or liner is needed for anything photographic.
- Tolerance
- Cutting plus or minus 1 mm, and fit confirmed by filling a plain sample from your own kitchen or line.
- Tooling
- A cutting die per size, kept. Molded pulp needs a tool per shape, which is a longer lead and a larger one-off.
- Food contact
- Every board food-contact grade, with grease resistance built into the sheet and never a PFAS treatment.
- Sustainability
- Aqueous linings and unlined boards repulp with ordinary paper. PE-lined cups need cup collection, and we say which you have.
- 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 ice cream labels on
Food packaging is chosen for what the food does to it: grease, steam, heat and time. Every board here is food-contact grade, and none of them uses a PFAS treatment for grease resistance.
Food-grade virgin board
Bleached board made for direct food contact. Clean, bright, no recycled fiber and no mineral-oil risk from recovered paper.
14–24ptGrease-resistant board
Resistance built into the sheet rather than sprayed on. Holds fries, pastry and butter without darkening. PFAS-free.
16–24ptPE-lined cupstock
Board with a polyethylene film for hot and cold liquid. Microwave-safe for reheating; recycled only where cup collection exists.
260–350gsmAqueous-lined cupstock
A water-based lining instead of PE. Repulpable in ordinary paper recycling in more places, and compostable; a slightly shorter hold time.
260–320gsmGreaseproof and glassine
Dense, calendered paper that resists fat through the fiber. Wraps, liners and interleaves; breathable, so pastry stays crisp.
30–55gsmFood-grade corrugated
E and B flute with a food-contact liner, vented where steam has to leave. Pizza, catering and anything hot and heavy.
E and B fluteMolded pulp and bagasse
Fiber pressed into a shape. Holds heat, resists grease with no lining, composts, and takes only an embossed or one-color mark.
Molded to shapeRecycled board
Post-consumer fiber. Used for outers, sleeves and anything that does not touch food directly — not for direct contact.
Non-contact onlyNot 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.
Food finishes are limited by what may touch food, and that is the point.
Food-safe inks
Printed on the outer face only. Every food pack we make uses them, laminated or not.
Uncoated kraft
No coating at all. Breathable, so pastry stays crisp, and it takes one or two colors.
Aqueous varnish
Scuff resistance without a plastic film, so the pack still repulps.
Molded emboss
A logo pressed into pulp or bagasse. No ink, nothing to rub off, and it survives grease.
Grease-resistant face
Not a finish you can see. It is in the sheet, it is PFAS-free, and it is why the print stays clean.
Matte lamination
Available on outers and sleeves that never touch food — a cake box lid, a carrier, a gift sleeve.
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 food packaging around a portion, hot: ice cream labels
Food is sized by serving, not by dimensions, and it is served hot, heaped and in a hurry. Send us the portion — or better, the box you use now with the food in it — and we size to how it is actually filled.
- Portion, heaped
- Fries, popcorn and salad are served above the rim. A box sized to a level fill looks mean and spills in a bag.
- Lid clearance
- Enough that a loaded burger or a topped cake does not touch the lid. This is the single most common complaint about a food box.
- Venting
- Hot food steams. Vents in the lid keep pastry and fries crisp; a sealed box is right only for cold food.
- Grease path
- Where the fat sits decides the board. Say if the food is fried, buttered or sauced, and whether it is held for minutes or an hour.
- Stacking in a bag
- Delivery boxes are stacked five high on a bike. The lid has to hold the box above it off the food below.
- Sample fill
- A plain box filled from your kitchen settles the size in one try, and we send one before the run.
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 Ice Cream Labels 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 ice cream labels? 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.
Will ice cream labels stay on in a freezer?
Yes, when they use a freezer-grade adhesive. Standard adhesives lose grip below freezing; ours are rated for frozen storage.
Can ice cream labels go on tubs that are already frozen?
Yes, with an adhesive made for cold application. Tell us the container temperature at labeling, because it changes the adhesive we use.
Why do ice cream labels wrinkle on pint tubs?
Because the tub tapers. A straight label cannot follow a cone, so we cut the label as an arc drawn from your tub’s dimensions.
Are ice cream labels waterproof?
Film labels are, and resist condensation without clouding. Paper labels need a varnish or laminate to handle wet hands and sweating tubs.
Can I print different flavors on one ice cream label order?
Yes. A set of flavors can share one design, with the name, color and ingredients changing on each label.
Do you make round lid labels for ice cream tubs?
Yes. Lid labels are cut round and sized just inside the raised rim so they sit flat on the lid.
Can ice cream labels include a tamper seal?
Yes. A narrow seal label runs across the lid and body and tears when the tub is first opened.
Should I choose clear or white film for ice cream labels?
Clear film lets the ice cream or a printed tub show through; white film gives the strongest color and the most readable ingredient text.
Do ice cream labels come on rolls?
Yes, wound to suit your applicator, or on sheets if your shop labels tubs by hand.
What information goes on an ice cream label?
Typically the flavor, net weight, ingredients, allergens, nutrition facts, the producer’s address and a barcode, laid out to fit the container.
Can ice cream labels be printed on recyclable stock?
Polypropylene labels suit polypropylene tubs, which keeps the container a single material for recycling.
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