Custom Poly Mailers for E-commerce: Sizes, Thickness and Branding

For any e-commerce or DTC brand shipping apparel and soft goods, the poly mailer is the cheapest, lightest and most brandable way to get a parcel to the door. Here is how to specify custom poly mailers that protect your product, keep postage low and turn every delivery into a brand moment.

Poly mailer vs bubble mailer vs courier bag

A flat poly mailer is best for non-fragile soft goods — clothing, textiles, accessories. A courier bag with a document pocket adds a sleeve for the packing list. For anything that can dent or scratch, a cushioned bubble mailer adds an air-bubble lining.

Choosing the right thickness (micron)

Poly mailer thickness is measured in microns (µm) or mil. Lightweight mailers run around 50–60 µm for small, light items; standard mailers are 60–80 µm; and heavy-duty co-extruded mailers reach 90–120 µm for bulky or multi-item orders. Co-extruded (multi-layer) film is opaque and much harder to tear than single-layer film.

Sizing your mailers

Measure your most common product flat, add 2–3 cm on each side for easy packing, and leave room for the self-seal lip. Most brands settle on two or three sizes to cover 90% of orders. Custom dimensions are made-to-order, so you are not forced into stock sizes that waste dimensional weight.

Branding and finish options

• Full-colour print inside and out — logos, patterns, unboxing messages
• Matte or gloss film, or metallic finishes for a premium look
• Double self-seal strip for easy returns without tape
• Tear-strip opening for a clean customer experience

Material options, and what you can actually claim

There are two common alternatives to conventional polyethylene film. Plant-starch mailers in a PBAT and PLA blend keep the self-seal convenience of a poly mailer and can be produced against EN 13432 or ASTM D6400 requirements when a project calls for it; those standards describe industrial composting conditions rather than home composting, certification is arranged per order, and the certificate number is confirmed in writing before anything goes on the artwork. Recycled-content film is the other route, evidenced by a certificate of analysis from the resin supplier and, where a buyer’s programme requires it, a third-party laboratory report on the finished film. Both carry trade-offs worth knowing before you commit: starch-based film is less tear-resistant at the same gauge and has a shorter shelf life, so it is not a material to stockpile. Our guide to material claims and the documents behind them goes through this in detail.

Minimums, samples and scheduling

There is no single site-wide minimum for printed mailers. It moves with the film gauge, the number of print colours, whether you need more than one size in the same run, and whether the film is conventional, recycled-content or plant-starch. The same applies to the schedule: sampling, bulk production and transit are quoted for your specific order and set out with a dated timeline in the quotation, then reconfirmed on the order confirmation. Send us your product dimensions, your monthly volume and your artwork, and we will recommend the size, thickness and finish, then price it against a written specification rather than a generic range.