Buying shirt boxes goes wrong in one predictable way: someone orders a box sized to a shirt rather than to the fold. Two brands folding the same medium tee can end up needing boxes an inch and a half apart in every dimension. This guide covers how to get the number right. When you are ready to order, the transactional page is custom shirt boxes.
Measure the fold, in three steps
- Fold ten shirts the way your pack out team actually folds them, including the tissue and any belly band. Not the way the sample was folded.
- Measure the footprint of the folded stack, length and width, at its widest point.
- Measure the height of one folded shirt in your heaviest fabric, then multiply by the maximum count you will ever put in one box.
Add clearance on top of that. Soft goods compress, so they are forgiving on height, but they are not forgiving on length and width: a fold that is a quarter inch too wide bows the lid and the box will not close flat in a stack. If you use a folding board, send us its dimensions and we will build the dieline around it. The dieline is included.
Which build suits your channel
| Build | Best for | Trade off |
|---|---|---|
| Two piece rigid | In store gifting, premium unboxing | Ships and stores assembled, so it takes space |
| Folding carton | Retail shelf, wholesale, cost sensitive runs | Needs erecting at pack out |
| Corrugated mailer | Direct to consumer shipping with no outer carton | Heavier board, less refined feel than rigid |
A common mistake is buying a rigid gift box and then shipping it inside a plain brown carton, doubling the cost per order. If most of your volume ships to a customer's door, a printed mailer that is presentable when opened often does both jobs for less.
Board, print and finish
Apparel boxes are usually printed on a white or uncoated board so the brand mark reads cleanly, or on natural kraft when the look is deliberately plain. Uncoated stock absorbs ink, so colours land softer than they look on screen. That is what the digital proof is for, and it is included before anything prints. Foil stamping and embossing are available and each needs its own tooling, so factor them into the first run rather than adding them halfway through.
What sets the price, and how to order
Per unit price is driven by quantity first, then board area, board grade, print coverage and any finish. iBox Factory quotes from about $0.48 per unit at bulk volumes, confirmed on your written quote. The die, the plates, design support, US shipping and a digital proof are included, so a first order does not carry a separate tooling bill.
The minimum is 100 boxes per design. Turnaround is stated per product across three lanes: rush is expedited production plus air freight, standard is air, cost saver is sea. The floor is from about 7 business days plus 2 to 5 for delivery, with specialty imported items running up to about 12 weeks, and rush carrying a premium of about 7 to 25% depending on the job. Production runs at West Chicago in the US and Guangzhou in China.
Order from the custom shirt boxes page, or send your folded stack dimensions and quantity through the quote form and we will size it with you. If the fit is what worries you, how to choose the right box size covers the measuring method in more detail.
