What is a realistic MOQ for printed folding cartons from China?

Below roughly 500 pieces a design, plate-making and press set-up dominate the price. Many factories quote a container minimum because it is easier for them; we quote from 500.

Should the price be FOB or CIF?

Ask for FOB first — it isolates the factory's real cost from freight. Then ask for CIF to your port so you can compare landed cost between suppliers.

How do I check a supplier before paying a deposit?

Ask for a dieline check on your own file, a photographed physical proof, and the business licence with the factory address. If they cannot produce a printed sample of your job, the rest does not matter.

Buyer's guide

Choosing a folding carton supplier in China

Written from the factory side, which is an unusual vantage point for this kind of page. Most guides are written by trading companies explaining why you should use a trading company.

The short version

A carton quote is plate-making + paper + press time + die + finishing + packing, divided by quantity. Two suppliers quoting the same box at very different prices are almost never quoting the same box: one is assuming a thinner board, a smaller sheet, fewer colours, or no proof. Make them specify, and the gap mostly closes.

Six questions that separate factories from resellers

1 · Where is it printed?	A factory names the press and the street. A reseller names a province.
2 · Who checks my dieline?	Ask what will crack on the fold or jam the gluer. If the answer is “no problem”, they did not look.
3 · What board, in gsm?	“High quality white card” is not a specification. 300 gsm grey-back duplex is. Get the number in writing.
4 · Is the proof physical?	A printed, cut and glued sample photographed in daylight. A PDF is not a proof — it cannot show ink on board.
5 · What is the price basis?	FOB isolates their real cost. CIF hides freight inside it. Ask for both.
6 · Who owns the die?	You paid for it. Ask for that in writing, so the next order does not depend on one supplier's goodwill.

Where quotes hide cost

Board substitution. 250 gsm instead of 300 gsm is invisible in a photo and very visible when the box caves in on a pallet.

Oversized sheet, thin content. If the dieline wastes most of the sheet, paper cost doubles while the quote looks normal. A good supplier tells you the box is expensive to lay out, and why.

No proof, then “reprint at cost”. The cheapest way to lose money on packaging is approving a PDF and finding out about the colour on delivery.

VAT and port charges added later. Confirm whether the FOB price includes export documentation and whether the price holds for 30 or 90 days.

What we do differently — and what we will not do

We do	Print, die-cut, glue and pack on one line at No. 138 Yongtuo Road, Yongkang. Quote from 500 pieces. Check the dieline the same day. Send a photographed physical proof. Tell you when a box is a bad idea before you order it.
We do not	Blister or clamshell packaging, PVC/PET forming, stock sizes from a catalogue, or sub-contracting your job to another workshop.

Frequently asked

Realistic MOQ?	From 500 pieces per design. Below that, set-up cost dominates.
FOB or CIF?	Ask for FOB first, then CIF to your port, and compare landed cost.
How to vet a supplier?	Dieline check on your file, photographed physical proof, business licence with the factory address.
Lead time?	7–10 working days after proof approval, plus shipping.

Try the instant estimator for a ballpark before you contact anyone — it prices folding cartons, mailer boxes, header cards and hang tags from the same engine we quote from, so the number you see is a real one, not a placeholder.

Send a dieline See the factory