Canvas is one of the few products where the face dimension really is standard. Stretcher bars are made to a familiar set of sizes and most printers and artists work within them, so the box conversation moves quickly to the two things that are not standard: the profile depth and how you keep pressure off the painted surface.
Face sizes and the two common depths
These are published stretched canvas sizes as the trade sells them, useful as a planning reference rather than a list of boxes we stock. Depth is what changes the box.
| Canvas face size | Slim or standard profile | Gallery profile |
|---|---|---|
| 8 x 10 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
| 11 x 14 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
| 12 x 16 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
| 16 x 20 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
| 18 x 24 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
| 24 x 36 in | About 3/4 in deep | About 1.5 in deep |
Read the depth column carefully before ordering. A single dieline cannot serve both profiles unless you build the depth for gallery bars and pad down for slim ones, and padding down is often cheaper than carrying two dies. Since the die is included on every order, carrying two is also an option worth pricing rather than assuming.
The face is the fragile part
A canvas rarely breaks. It dents, scuffs or gets a pressure mark, and all three come from something touching the face. Sizing decisions that prevent it:
- Add corner protectors into the dimension. Foam or moulded corners add on both the width and the height, and a box cut to the bare canvas will not take them.
- Leave an air gap at the face. A pad or a raised rib that carries the load on the stretcher bars, not the surface, is the difference between a clean arrival and a crease.
- Bag or interleave the face. A thin sheet over the surface stops board fibre marking a varnish.
- Ship on edge where you can. A canvas standing on its long edge resists a flat impact far better than one lying face up under a stack.
Board and multipacks
Large canvases behave like flat panels, so the failure mode is bending, not crushing. Double wall board or a stiffening pad across the back keeps the panel rigid, and a snug fit stops the canvas sliding into a corner during a drop. For multipacks, put a divider between each piece, face to back rather than face to face, and remember that each divider adds to the internal depth. If you are also shipping framed and glazed work, the sizing runs differently, and how to size a picture frame box covers that case.
Ordering, minimum and lead time
The minimum is 100 boxes, priced from about $0.48 per unit at bulk volumes and confirmed on your written quote. The die, the plates, design support, US shipping and a digital proof before printing come with the order, so a box cut to the exact face size and profile depth you sell is not a surcharge. Production is quoted per product in three lanes, rush (expedited production plus air freight), standard (air) and cost saver (sea), from about 7 business days, plus 2 to 5 for delivery. We produce at two plants, West Chicago and Guangzhou.
Tell us the face sizes in your range, the profile depth and whether canvases ship singly or in multiples on your quote request, and we will draw the depth around the corner protection rather than around the canvas alone. For plain outer shippers, custom shipping boxes is the order page.
