Ten constructions, and where each one fails
Every box on this page is a different way of holding a product. The dimensions are always custom — the construction is the decision that comes first.
01Tuck-end folding carton
A one-piece board carton closed by tucking a flap into the body. The cheapest construction there is, and the only one where the blank ships flat and assembles on the packing line.
Watch out: a tuck flap that is too shallow pops open in a courier bag. Below about 20 mm of tuck depth we recommend a locking tab instead.
Formats: Paper boxes
02Sleeve and tray (drawer)
An outer sleeve with an inner tray that slides out. Two pieces, two tooling sets, and the format buyers associate with premium sets.
Watch out: the fit between sleeve and tray is a tolerance question. Too loose and the tray falls out in transit; too tight and it jams after a week of humidity.
Formats: Slide-out drawer box
03Two-piece rigid (lid and base)
A separate lid overlapping a separate base, both rigid. The oldest construction in the trade and still the one that survives the most handling.
Watch out: the overlap depth decides whether the lid stays on. Under 15 mm it lifts in stacking; over 40 mm it is hard to remove one-handed.
Formats: Two-piece lid and base box
04Magnetic-closure rigid box
A rigid box held shut by concealed magnets instead of friction. Opens flat, presents the whole contents at once, and closes with a sound that buyers notice.
Watch out: magnet strength is a specification, not a default. Too weak is worse than no magnet at all, because the box feels broken.
Formats: Book-style magnetic box
05Hinged clear box (PET)
One thermoformed piece with the lid attached. Nothing to assemble, nothing to mis-align, and the product is visible without being touched.
Watch out: the hinge is formed from the same sheet, so a box that is too deep thins at the hinge line and cracks within a few open-close cycles.
Formats: Clear PET hinged box · Frosted PP hinged box · Dual-colour box
06Clamshell
Two formed halves hinged on one edge, no card. The product is the entire pack, visible from both sides.
Watch out: both halves must form to the same tolerance or the pack will not close flush at the hinge. This is where cheap clamshells fail first.
Formats: Clamshell blister
07Blister card (sealed or slide)
A clear cavity on a printed card. Sealed across the full face for tamper evidence, or slid into a sleeve when the artwork has to change without new tooling.
Watch out: a sealed blister needs a heat-seal coated card. Uncoated card looks identical and fails on the sealing line — the most common wrong specification we see.
Formats: Full-face seal blister · Slide blister card · Euro-hole blister
08Cylinder and tube
A wrapped sheet formed into a tube, closed with a push-on lid, a screw thread or a second telescoping section.
Watch out: diameter drives material use more than height. A tall narrow tube uses less sheet than a short wide one of the same volume — worth checking before the tool is cut.
Formats: Round cylinder box · Screw-top tube · Telescoping tube
09Multi-cavity tray and insert
A thermoformed tray with one pocket per component, used inside a box or as the pack itself. This is what stops a kit becoming a bag of loose parts in transit.
Watch out: pocket count against tray size. More pockets in the same footprint means thinner walls between them and a higher reject rate.
Formats: Box with insert tray · Multi-cavity tray · Blister tray
10Window and sleeve
A printed board or paper wrap with a clear window, or a clear box inside a printed sleeve. The artwork lives on the paper, the transparency lives in the plastic.
Watch out: a window patch is a separate film glued in, so it adds a process step. If the design allows, a sleeve is usually cheaper per unit at volume.
Formats: Box with printed sleeve · Long box with PET window