Custom bubble mailers are padded shipping envelopes printed with your brand. A layer of air bubble cushioning is bonded to a poly or kraft outer skin, so the mailer protects a phone case, a paperback, a folded tee or a jewelry box without the weight of a carton. We print them edge to edge in your colors, build them in your exact size, and there is no minimum order, so a first run of a few hundred and a wholesale run of fifty thousand are both welcome.
Bubble mailer sizes, and what actually fits
Bubble mailers are sold by a size code that has been standard across the industry for decades. The number tells you the outside dimensions. What it does not tell you is the usable space, which is roughly an inch shorter in length once the seal flap is folded down. That single inch is the reason most first orders come back too small.
| Size | Outside (in) | Usable inside (in) | Typical empty weight | What it fits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #000 | 4 x 8 | 4 x 7 | 0.3 to 0.4 oz | Earrings, USB drives, small parts, single trading cards |
| #00 | 5 x 10 | 5 x 9 | 0.4 to 0.5 oz | Cosmetic samples, cables, lip products, keychains |
| #0 | 6 x 10 | 6 x 9 | 0.5 to 0.6 oz | Graded cards in a toploader, phone cases, socks, patches |
| #CD | 7.25 x 8 | 7.25 x 7 | 0.5 to 0.6 oz | Discs, coasters, square pin boards |
| #1 | 7.25 x 12 | 7.25 x 11 | 0.7 to 0.8 oz | Paperbacks, sunglasses cases, small electronics |
| #2 | 8.5 x 12 | 8.5 x 11 | 0.9 to 1.0 oz | Folded tees, documents, hardback books |
| #3 | 8.5 x 14.5 | 8.5 x 13.5 | 1.1 to 1.3 oz | Larger apparel, boxed cosmetic sets |
| #4 | 9.5 x 14.5 | 9.5 x 13.5 | 1.3 to 1.5 oz | Multi item apparel orders, soft homeware |
| #5 | 10.5 x 16 | 10.5 x 15 | 1.6 to 1.9 oz | Bulkier apparel, blankets, larger soft goods |
| #6 | 12.5 x 19 | 12.5 x 18 | 2.3 to 2.6 oz | Large soft goods and bundled orders |
| #7 | 14.25 x 20 | 14.25 x 19 | 2.8 to 3.2 oz | Oversized soft goods |
Weights above are typical for a poly bubble mailer. Kraft bubble mailers run roughly one and a half times heavier because the outer skin is paper. Gauge changes the number too, so treat this table as a planning figure and ask us to confirm the exact weight of your specification before you commit a large run. Across a high volume year, half an ounce is a real number on your postage bill.
We are not limited to these sizes. Send the product dimensions and we will build the mailer around it. Custom sizing is the point of ordering rather than buying stock.
Where the size chart meets your postage
USPS treats a flexible, evenly thick mailing piece as a large envelope, also called a flat, when it stays inside 15 inches long, 12 inches high and three quarters of an inch thick. Go over any of those, or put something rigid inside, and the same mailer is priced as a package instead.
Read that against the table above and something useful falls out. Sizes #000 through #4 sit inside the flat limits on length and height, so they can qualify as a large envelope if the contents stay flexible and under three quarters of an inch. Sizes #5, #6 and #7 are all longer than 15 inches, so they are packages no matter what is inside them.
That is the difference between two rate tables, on every order you ship. It is worth choosing the size with your carrier rates open in front of you. Confirm current limits and rates with your carrier before you build a fulfillment plan on them.
Poly or kraft
Poly bubble mailers have a co-extruded polyethylene skin. They are lighter, they shrug off rain and wet loading docks, and they take bright, saturated print. This is the default for most ecommerce brands.
Kraft bubble mailers have a paper outer with the same bubble lining. They look and feel more natural, they take a warmer and more matte print, and they suit brands whose whole look is unbleached and understated. They weigh more and they do not like getting wet.
On recycling, be careful what you claim on your own packaging. A poly bubble mailer is not accepted at the kerbside in most US programmes, and the bonded bubble lining is why. Some store drop off programmes for plastic film take them and many do not. A kraft bubble mailer has the same problem, because the paper outer is bonded to a plastic lining and the two cannot be separated at a sorting facility. If curbside recyclability matters to your brand, say so on the quote request and we will tell you honestly which of our padded options qualifies and which does not, rather than printing a leaf on something that will not make it through a sorting line.
Ordering bubble mailers in bulk
Most of our bubble mailer work is repeat wholesale volume for brands that ship every day, so the process is built for that.
- No minimum order. Start with a small branded run to prove the size and the artwork, then scale the reorder. There is no floor and no minimum order fee.
- Free design and a free digital proof. Send a logo, a sketch or the mailer you buy today and our team turns it into print ready artwork. You approve a proof before anything is printed.
- Free samples so you can hold the material before you commit a bulk run.
- Production in about 7 to 14 business days, depending on print and finishing. Plain and single color runs move fastest. Tell us your deadline before you order and we will tell you straight whether we can hit it.
- Free shipping with tracking on every order.
- Price match. Send a written quote for the same size, material, gauge, print and quantity and we will beat it.
If you already buy stock mailers and want the same thing with your brand on it, send us the size code and the pack you buy today. We will match the dimensions exactly, so nothing changes on your pack bench.
Specification
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Construction | Air bubble cushioning bonded to a poly or kraft outer |
| Closure | Peel and seal adhesive strip, one motion to close |
| Sizes | #000 through #7 as standard, plus any custom size you specify |
| Full color, edge to edge, front and back, CMYK or PMS matched | |
| Options | Tear notch, hang tab, gusset, matte or gloss finish |
| Minimum order | None |
| Artwork | Free design, free dieline, free digital proof before printing |
| Production | About 7 to 14 business days depending on print and finishing |
Related shipping packaging: poly bubble mailers, custom mailer boxes, kraft mailer boxes and mailer boxes with no minimum order. Not sure whether a padded mailer or a box suits what you ship? Read types of mailer boxes.
Where we ship
We are a national supplier rather than a local one. Orders ship to every US state, shipping and tracking are free, and the price does not change with your address. If you have been searching for a padded mailer supplier near you and finding only stock distributors, that is the reason. Most local suppliers sell plain packs off a shelf. We print your brand on the mailer and deliver it to you wherever you are.
Custom bubble mailer specification
A padded envelope protects a small item without the weight or the dimensional cost of a box. Printing it turns a shipping consumable into the thing customers photograph.
| Build | Air bubble cushioning bonded to a poly or kraft outer skin. Poly resists moisture better; kraft takes print more softly and reads more natural. |
|---|---|
| Sizing | Measure the product flat at its widest and add room for the bubble to work. Too tight and the padding does nothing. |
| What it suits | Phone cases, paperbacks, a folded tee, a jewelry box, cosmetics. Anything rigid with corners, or fragile, wants a box instead. |
| Closure | A peel-and-seal strip that closes in one motion, which matters when you are packing at volume. |
| Printing | Your logo, brand color or a repeat across the face. The front panel is the one that ends up in photographs, so design it as a front panel rather than a label. |
| Minimum order | None. Order the quantity you can actually move. If you are holding a written quote from someone else, send it over and we will work to beat it. |
| Production time | Standard runs are 7 to 14 business days. Print method and finishing move that. |
| Proof and samples | Free design and a free digital proof before anything prints. Samples on request. |
| Shipping | Free, with tracking. |
What to send us for a quote
Three things get you a real number rather than a range:
- What you ship and its flat dimensions.
- How many. No minimum.
- Artwork, if you have it. Free design if not.
Poly or kraft outer
Poly is the lighter, more weather-resistant skin and it is what most high-volume ecommerce runs on. Kraft looks and feels better, takes a softer print, and suits a brand where the packaging is part of the product story. Both use the same bubble lining, so the protection is comparable and the choice is about how you want it to arrive. See poly bubble mailers for the poly version specifically.
If the contents are soft and do not need cushioning, a plain custom poly mailer ships lighter and packs faster than a bubble-lined one.
More Custom Mailer Boxes
See the full Custom Mailer Boxes range, or explore related options with no minimum order and our best-price guarantee:
