Custom Tobacco Packaging
Tobacco packaging is the only thing we make where a fixed share of every surface is spoken for before anyone opens a design file. Warning size, placement and often color are set by law in each market, and they differ between them.
Get a price for Tobacco Packaging
Send the size and quantity — we reply the same working day with a price, a dieline and a date. Artwork optional at this stage.
- 2styles in this range, each with its own page and price
- 100unit minimum on every style, printed or plain
- 4markets quoted in the delivery currency
- ±1mmcutting tolerance on folding board, checked on a sample
2 styles in this range
Styles we make in this range
Every one below is written up, priced and dielined. Tap a style to see how it is built.
Side by side
Which tobacco packaging style fits
| Style | Board | Build | Minimum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashtrays Boxes | Wrapped grayboard 2–3 mm; corrugated shipper quoted alongside | Lift-off lid, hinged magnetic lid, two-piece with full-depth lid | 100 boxes | Open → |
| Lighter Boxes | Wrapped grayboard 1.2–1.5 mm rigid; 18–20pt boxboard folding | Hinged or lift-off rigid case, windowed carton, sleeve, counter display | 100 boxes | Open → |
Start from the warning, not the brand
Health warnings occupy a defined percentage of specific faces, with defined minimum type sizes, and in several markets the background color and typeface are prescribed too. That area is not negotiable and it cannot be worked around.
Establish the requirement for every market you sell into, mark those areas on the dieline, and design in what is left. Markets differ enough that one pack rarely satisfies all of them, and finding that out after printing is expensive.
We reserve and mark the areas you specify. Determining what your market requires is your responsibility and your regulator's, not ours.
What we make in this range
| Cigarette cartons | Outer cartons and sleeves; hinged-lid style builds |
|---|---|
| Cigar boxes | Rigid and wooden-look wrapped builds, often with a tray |
| Lighter packaging | Blister-backing card, sleeves and counter display units |
| Matchbox packaging | Printed shells and sleeves in standard sizes |
| Accessory boxes | Cases, tins and small rigid boxes for related products |
Cigars need humidity to be thought about
Cigars are stored at a controlled humidity, and packaging that dries them out ruins them. A plain card box offers no humidity control at all; what protects the cigar is the cellophane or the humidor it sits in, with the box as presentation.
If the box is expected to hold humidity, that is a lined or sealed build with a different cost base. Be clear which of the two you are buying before specifying.
Small rigid boxes, and the tolerance problem
The tolerance reasoning is the same as for any small wrapped box, and it is set out in our small rigid box notes.
- Cigar and accessory boxes are small, and small rigid boxes are harder than large ones.
- Wrap thickness is a large share of the wall on a box under 100 mm.
- A lid that jams on one unit in twenty is a real production problem.
- Order a plain sample at the finished size before signing off artwork.
Retail display, where it is permitted
Display rules for tobacco vary enormously and are restrictive in many markets. Where display is allowed at all, counter units and shelf trays follow the same construction as any other retail display.
Where it is not, the pack is seen only at the point of sale and inside the customer's hand, which changes what the design should prioritize entirely: tactile finish and the feel of the opening, rather than shelf shout.
Across the range
What every tobacco packaging job runs on
Boards
- Natural kraft
- White SBS
- E and B flute
- Wrapped grayboard
- Food-grade board
- Recycled content
Chosen from what goes in the box and how far it travels. Our notes on recyclable and compostable stocks say which claims each board can carry.
Finishes
- Matte
- Gloss
- Soft-touch
- Foil
- Emboss
- Spot UV
- Kraft
- Textured
Each one is a decision about light on a shelf — the specialty finishes range shows them on real boxes.
Artwork
- Vector PDF or AI, fonts outlined
- 3 mm bleed, 4 mm safe area
- CMYK; a spot color where a match must hold
- Proof on the dieline before press
Files not set up that way are fine — see the guide to preparing print files.
Interactive · five steps · no sign-up
Build your Tobacco Packaging 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 tobacco packaging? 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 you tell me what warnings my pack needs?
No — that comes from your market's regulator. Tell us the requirement and we reserve and mark the exact areas.
Can one pack work across several markets?
Rarely. Warning rules differ enough that separate artwork versions are usually cheaper than one compromise.
Will a cigar box keep cigars humid?
Not a plain card box. Humidity control comes from a lined or sealed build, or from the humidor the box sits in.
Why is a small rigid box not cheaper?
The work is in the corners and the wrap tolerance, and a small box has the same number of corners as a large one.
What is the minimum order?
100 units, any build.
Where display is banned, what should the pack prioritize?
Tactile finish and the feel of the opening, because it is seen only at the point of sale and in the hand.
Will you tell me what warnings my pack needs?
No — that comes from your market's regulator. Tell us the requirement and we will reserve and mark the exact areas on the dieline.
Can one pack work across several markets?
Rarely. Warning rules differ enough that separate artwork versions are usually cheaper than one compromise that satisfies nobody.
Will a cigar box keep cigars humid?
Not a plain card box. Humidity control comes from a lined or sealed build, or from the humidor the box sits in.
Why is a small rigid box not cheaper?
The work is in the corners and the wrap tolerance, and a small box has the same number of corners as a large one.
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