Custom Food Packaging

Donut Boxes

Bespoke donut Boxes manufactured to order, with material and finish chosen around how the product ships.

Minimum order: 100 units
Production: 3–5 business days
Construction: folding carton
Delivery: US, UK, Canada, Australia

Donut Boxes shown as a finished custom-printed pack

No obligation

Price it for service volumes

Name, email, phone and what you are packing and the volumes you run. Attach artwork if you have it. We reply with a specification and a written price, usually within one business day.

What donut boxes have to cope with

Donut Boxes hold glazed or filled donuts laid in a single layer, where the glaze sticks to anything it touches. That is the starting point for the specification, because height clearance above the glaze is the whole specification. A grease-resistant base stops the second problem, which is a translucent bottom panel.

In service they are used for counter service and office deliveries, carried flat and stacked on top of each other.

Where donut boxes are actually used

Donut Boxes are specified for counter service and office deliveries, carried flat and stacked on top of each other. Height clearance above the glaze is the whole specification. A grease-resistant base stops the second problem, which is a translucent bottom panel.

Counter service and office deliveries, carried flat and stacked on top of each other
Shelf display in specialty retail
Subscription and gift sets
E-commerce inner packaging

The substrate for donut boxes

Grease-resistant coated board on the base, and enough caliper in the lid to keep it off the glaze across the span.

The options we would consider for this format are below; height clearance above the glaze is the whole specification. A grease-resistant base stops the second problem, which is a translucent bottom panel.

12pt SBS paperboard
14pt SBS paperboard
16pt SBS paperboard
18pt kraft board
recycled CCNB board

Printing donut boxes

Kraft reads well for this category, but glaze marks show badly on unbleached stock — coat the inside face.

Offset lithography, Digital press, Flexography are all available for this format. Run length usually decides which is cheapest: digital removes the plate cost on short quantities, offset and flexo overtake it at volume.

Finishing donut boxes

Kraft reads well for this category, but glaze marks show badly on unbleached stock — coat the inside face.

Each finish below is a separate pass on the press or the finishing line, which is why they are quoted individually rather than bundled.

Gloss lamination
Matte lamination
Soft-touch lamination
Spot UV
Foil stamping
Embossing
Debossing
Aqueous coating

Sizing donut boxes

Shallow: 6-count around 10 × 7 × 2 in, dozen around 14 × 10 × 2 in.

Send the contents rather than a box size. Boxes are ordered flat to save on freight and storage, then run half an inch too shallow for a raised donut.

Holding donut boxes before service

Glaze bonds to the lid where the box is too shallow, and the topping tears off on opening.

Paperboard also absorbs moisture from the air until it equalises with its surroundings. If stock sits more than about six weeks in unconditioned space, a moisture-resistant coating is worth its small premium.

What we need from your files

Supply artwork on the dieline we send you, with 3 mm bleed past every trim edge and all text held 4 mm inside the fold lines.

Supply a print-ready PDF or vector file with fonts outlined and images at 300 dpi. Our prepress team checks every file before a proof is issued. The check that catches most files is type sitting too close to a crease, which is easier to move at layout than at proof.

Ordering donut boxes

The useful starting point is the product, not the pack. Give us its measurements and the quantity, and we work the folding carton outward from there.

A dieline template follows, sized to your product. Prepress checks your artwork against it and issues a proof; nothing runs until you sign that off.

What buyers get wrong with donut boxes

Boxes are ordered flat to save on freight and storage, then run half an inch too shallow for a raised donut.

The rest of these come up often enough across the format to be worth stating plainly.

Specifying board weight without saying how hot or greasy the contents are.
Forgetting that a pack carried at an angle in a courier bag behaves differently to one on a counter.
Choosing a vented lid for a dish that needs to stay hot, or a sealed one for a dish that needs to stay crisp.
Ordering a year of stock that then sits through a humid summer.

Sampling before you order

Ask for an unprinted sample if the question is fit, or a printed prototype if the question is colour. They answer different things.

Sample costs are normally credited against the production order.

Reference

Donut Boxes at a specification level

Product	Donut Boxes
Category	Custom Food Packaging
Construction	Die-cut, creased and seam-glued
Board thickness	12pt – 18pt depending on product weight
Ships as	Flat-packed, glued one seam
Materials	12pt SBS paperboard, 14pt SBS paperboard, 16pt SBS paperboard, 18pt kraft board
Printing	Offset lithography, Digital press, Flexography
Finishes	Gloss lamination, Matte lamination, Soft-touch lamination, Spot UV, Foil stamping
Minimum order	Minimum order is 100 units on any format, and unit cost falls sharply as the quantity rises.
Lead time	3 to 5 business days after artwork approval
Shipping	Across the US, UK, Canada and Australia

What you get

Where this holds up on a line

The dimensions that matter

Shallow: 6-count around 10 × 7 × 2 in, dozen around 14 × 10 × 2 in.

The failure we design out

Glaze bonds to the lid where the box is too shallow, and the topping tears off on opening.

Where it is used

Specified for counter service and office deliveries, carried flat and stacked on top of each other.

The detail that matters

Height clearance above the glaze is the whole specification. A grease-resistant base stops the second problem, which is a translucent bottom panel.

This format sits in our custom food packaging range, alongside 33 other made-to-order formats.

Answers

Running donut boxes: common questions

Specification, minimums and lead times for donut boxes.

Are these food-contact compliant?

We specify food-contact compliant boards and inks where the pack touches food directly. Tell us whether contact is direct or through a liner for donut boxes, because it changes which stocks are available to you.

How do you stop grease showing through?

A grease-resistant coating or a greaseproof liner. Untreated board will always strike through eventually with hot, oily food — that is a property of the material rather than a quality fault, and it is inexpensive to design out.

Do donut boxes arrive flat or assembled?

Flat and glued along one seam, so they pop open on your packing line. That keeps freight cost down considerably compared with a pre-assembled structure.

Can I order donut boxes in a custom size?

Every run is cut to your dimensions — there are no stock sizes here. Send the product measurements rather than a box size and we will build the folding carton around them, then send a dieline template you can design onto.

What happens after I approve the quote?

We issue a dieline template sized to your product, prepress checks your artwork against it, and a proof comes back for sign-off. Nothing runs until you approve that proof, and folding cartons then take 3 to 5 business days.

Can you hold the specification for repeat orders?

Yes. Once a first run is approved we hold the board, structure, dimensions, print method and finishes against your account, so a reorder references the same specification exactly rather than being re-derived. The board and coating are held together, so a reorder cannot quietly arrive on a stock with different grease resistance.

Do you offer recycled or recyclable options?

Recycled grades are available across most of the substrates we run for folding cartons. Recycled content, kerbside recyclability and certified compostability are three different claims though, so tell us which one you intend to print.

What file format should I send artwork in?

A print-ready PDF or a vector file, with fonts outlined and any raster images at 300 dpi at final size. We supply the dieline to design onto, and prepress checks bleed, safe area and crease clearance before issuing a proof. The dieline we supply carries the crease positions, so keeping type clear of a crease is easier to solve at layout than at proof.

What is the minimum order for donut boxes?

A flat 100 units on any format. Most folding cartons in this range are quoted from 100 units upward because unit cost falls sharply above that, but the minimum exists so you can validate a structure first.

How long do donut boxes take to produce?

3 to 5 business days after artwork approval, plus freight. Folding carton runs with applied finishes can take longer because each finish is a separate pass, and we confirm a firm date in writing with the quote.

What do donut boxes cost?

Prices start from $0.30 per piece for large-volume orders. For this format the biggest levers are quantity, print route, board grade and how many finishing passes are involved. We quote each element separately so you can see where the money is going. Finishing passes are the lever buyers most often underestimate: each one is a separate run through the line.

Can I see a sample first?

Yes. We can send a plain unprinted sample so you can check the fit and structure, or a printed prototype for colour and finish. Sample costs are normally credited against the production order. Worth running a few through your actual line rather than checking them by hand: fill speed and hot contents find fit problems that a desk check does not.

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