Mailing & Shipping Tubes

For one or two rolled posters, a 1½″ to 2″ internal diameter tube is normal. For a thicker stock, several prints together, or anything you do not want tightly curled, move up to 2″ to 3″.

Make the tube 1″ to 2″ longer than the rolled artwork so the print is not bearing against the end caps.

In practice they are the same product described by different buyers. Mailing tube tends to mean the smaller diameters used for posters and documents; shipping tube tends to mean the heavier builds used for banners, textiles and anything going by freight.

Both are specified the same way: internal diameter, length, wall thickness and closure.

Yes. The standard minimum is 500 pieces and per-piece cost drops significantly with quantity. Smaller runs from around 100 pieces are available at a higher per-piece cost, because setup and printing are fixed regardless of how many you order.

Plain kraft tubes without printing are the lowest-cost configuration at any quantity.

A plastic push cap is the right default — it reopens cleanly, holds well and costs least. Move to a deep-skirt cap above 4″ diameter, or to crimped metal ends when the contents are heavy or valuable.

Paperboard plug caps look better and keep the pack all-paper, but they have the least retention, so keep them for lighter contents.

Yes. A one- or two-color direct print is the economical route for logistics use, and a full-color offset wrap is available where the tube is part of how the brand arrives. At lower quantities, a printed label on a plain kraft tube often gives a better result for the money.

Here, made to your dimensions rather than picked from a fixed range. Poster tubes are one of the most-ordered things on this site, in diameters from 1½″ for a single rolled print up to 4″ for canvas and fine-art work, in lengths to 48″.

If you need them plain, unprinted kraft is the fastest and cheapest configuration. If the tube is part of how your brand arrives, a printed wrap or an applied label are both available.

A tube specified for transit will. A tube specified for a shelf will not, and that is the distinction this whole category is built on. Three things decide it: a wall of 1.5 mm or heavier, a closure with real retention, and enough length that the artwork is not resting against either end cap.

The most common failure is not the print being damaged — it is the tube arriving with dented ends because the wall was too thin for its diameter. That is what generates the complaint, and it is avoidable at specification stage.

Yes, and for logistics use it is usually the right answer. Plain natural kraft is the lowest-cost configuration at every quantity, it does not show handling marks the way a white gloss laminate does, and it needs no artwork approval.

If you want branding without printing the tube itself, a printed label applied to a plain kraft tube is the economical middle route and often looks better than a cheap direct print.

Use a wider tube than the minimum that will physically fit. A tight roll fits a smaller diameter but sets a curl into the print that never fully relaxes, and the customer notices it the moment they unroll it.

For a single poster, 1½″ to 2″ is fine. For heavier stock, several prints together, or anything you do not want curled, move up to 2″ to 3″. Canvas and fine-art prints want 3″ to 4″, usually with a tissue or foam interleaf.

Yes. A one- or two-color flexographic direct print is the economical route at volume and suits kraft board well. A full-color offset-printed wrap is available where the tube is part of the brand experience, and digital printing suits shorter runs without plate costs.

Supply artwork with bleed on all four edges and keep critical type away from the vertical seam where the wrap overlaps itself. We will confirm the flat dimensions for your diameter before you lay it out.

Yes. Samples can be provided to confirm sizing, material selection and design details before full production begins, so you can check the structure and the print in your hand rather than on screen.

Free design support comes with it — artwork preparation, layout help, bleed and print-ready file setup, and 3D mockups before manufacturing starts. For a first order it is worth using both, because the two things that go wrong most often are a diameter chosen without the product to hand and artwork laid out before the flat dimensions were confirmed.

Processing takes 3 to 5 business days, which covers printing, packaging and quality checks, and orders are processed Monday to Saturday. Transit is a further 3 to 5 business days, for a total estimated delivery time of 6 to 10 business days.

Timelines vary a little with the destination city and courier workload, and a tracking link is emailed once the order ships. Embossing adds to production time, so allow extra if your build includes it.

Yes — free standard shipping to the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. Those are the destinations the policy covers, so it is worth checking it applies to yours before you plan around it.

The full terms, including processing and transit times, order tracking and what happens if a shipment is delayed or lost, are set out on the shipping policy page.