If you're switching to greener packaging, the material that does the most good is one that protects the product and that your customer can actually recycle or compost where they live. Below are seven materials that work for shipping ecommerce orders: what each one protects well and badly, how its cost compares with a standard poly mailer or box, and where it really ends up after the box is opened. Further down: why a smaller box costs less to ship as well as to buy, what you can legally print on the package about recycling and composting, and what actually changes the emissions of the delivery itself.
There's no official list of seven packaging types. The seven below cover the mailers, boxes and protective fill that go into a typical ecommerce order. For a broader look that includes plastics, glass and metal, see our guide to the pros and cons of popular packaging materials.
The seven materials at a glance
Material | Good for | Cost compared with a standard poly mailer or box | Where it goes after use |
|---|---|---|---|
Recycled corrugated boxes | Fragile, heavy or multi-item orders | More than a mailer to buy and to ship | Curbside paper recycling in most community programs |
Kraft paper mailers | Apparel, books, flat and soft goods | Roughly 2 to 4 times a poly mailer of the same size, per one supplier | Curbside if paper-padded; bubble-lined ones need the lining pulled out first |
Recycled-content poly mailers | Apparel and other soft goods | The low-cost baseline | Store drop-off, not the curbside bin |
Compostable mailers (PLA/PBAT) | Soft goods, for customers who compost | Varies by supplier; get quotes | Compost only, home or industrial depending on certification |
Paper void fill | Filling empty space in a box | Less fill is the cheaper fill | Curbside paper recycling |
Molded pulp inserts | Bottles, jars and items that must not shift | Stock shapes are simpler than a custom mold | Paper recycling or compost, depending on local rules |
Mushroom packaging | Fragile items that need a fitted insert | Custom shapes carry prototyping and tooling fees | Home compost |
1. Recycled corrugated boxes
Corrugated board is the fluted cardboard that shipping boxes are made from. A box is the right call when the product can break, is heavy, or ships with other items. It resists crushing and stacks well in a truck. Look for the recycled-content percentage on the spec sheet, and in particular post-consumer recycled content (PCR), meaning fiber that a household or business already used and put in a recycling bin.
What it gives up: a box weighs more and takes more space than a mailer, so it costs more to buy and usually more to ship. An oversized box also needs void fill, which adds cost and waste.
After use, the EPA notes that most community recycling programs accept paper and paper products, and asks people to flatten boxes before they go in the bin. For most customers, a box can go straight in the bin.
2. Kraft paper mailers (padded and unpadded)
Unpadded kraft mailers suit flat or soft items such as apparel, books and prints. Padded versions add cushioning, either with paper fiber or with a plastic bubble lining.
What it gives up: paper doesn't handle water or punctures as well as plastic. EcoEnclose, a supplier that sells both, wrote in a 2021 comparison that poly mailers are water and puncture resistant, and that paper mailers typically cost 2 to 4 times as much as a poly mailer of the same size. The same comparison notes that paper mailers cost more to ship and take more storage space.
After use, the padding decides it. The American Forest & Paper Association says fiber-padded mailers can go in the curbside bin, while bubble-lined ones need the bubble layer separated before the paper can be recycled. Tape and labels can stay on. If you want the mailer to go straight in the bin, choose paper padding.
3. Recycled-content poly mailers
A poly mailer made with recycled plastic is light, flexible and waterproof, which keeps shipping costs down. It's a good fit for apparel and anything that won't break. It doesn't protect fragile products.
What it gives up: it's still plastic film. The EPA says plastic bags and film are recyclable but can't go in the household recycling bin, and that retail and grocery stores often take them instead. The How2Recycle label for this route is Store Drop-off. The choice you control is the recycled content: a higher PCR percentage means less new plastic went into the mailer.
4. Compostable mailers (PLA and PBAT blends)
Compostable mailers look and feel like poly mailers but are made from materials meant to break down in compost. PLA (polylactic acid) is a plant-based plastic. noissue, for example, describes its mailers as a blend of PLA, PBAT (a biodegradable polymer) and corn starch. noissue also describes them as durable and waterproof, which makes them a fit for the same soft goods you'd put in a poly mailer.
What it gives up: a compostable mailer only helps if it reaches compost. Some are certified for home compost piles. Others need industrial composting, meaning a commercial facility that runs large, managed compost piles, and not every customer has access to one. They also can't go in recycling: EcoEnclose asks customers not to recycle compostable poly mailers because they contaminate recycled plastic film. Prices vary widely by supplier, so quote them against recycled poly before you switch.
Check whether the mailer is certified for home or industrial composting before you buy, because that changes what you can print on it (more on that below).
5. Paper void fill (honeycomb, crinkle and kraft)
Paper fill stops products from moving inside a box. Kraft paper is crumpled or folded into gaps. Crinkle paper adds a presentation layer. Honeycomb paper is die-cut kraft that stretches into a cushioned wrap.
What it gives up: fill can't make up for a box that's too big, and paper loses strength when it gets wet. The cheapest void fill is the fill you don't need: a box closer to the product's size uses less of it and ships smaller.
After use, it goes in the same curbside paper stream as the box.
6. Molded pulp inserts
Molded pulp is made from recycled paperboard or newsprint that is soaked, pressed into a shape and dried. Egg cartons are the familiar example. In shipping, it holds bottles, jars and small electronics in place so they can't knock into each other.
What it gives up: it's rigid, so it protects best when shaped to the product. Stock shapes such as corner pieces and bottle trays are the easy starting point; a custom insert needs its own mold.
After use, the manufacturer UFP Technologies says molded fiber can go in common curbside recycling bins. Local rules vary, so tell customers to check with their program.
7. Mushroom packaging
Mushroom packaging is grown rather than manufactured. Mushroom Packaging makes it from hemp hurd and mycelium (the root structure of a fungus), and says it is home compostable and breaks down in about 45 days. The company offers corner pieces, insulated coolers and custom inserts that hold a fragile product in place inside a box.
What it gives up: it isn't a loose fill, and custom shapes take setup. Mushroom Packaging's site lists a paid prototyping phase and separate production tooling for custom designs (checked October 7, 2026). It makes the most sense once your product size is settled and you ship enough of it to justify the mold.
Which eco-friendly packaging is cheapest?
The cheapest change is usually packing smaller, not buying a new material. Ship soft goods in a mailer instead of a box, and pick a box that fits the product so it needs less fill. Among mailers, recycled-content poly is the low-cost option; paper and compostable mailers cost more per unit or vary by supplier. The next section shows why the smaller box also costs less in postage.
Why a smaller box costs less to ship, not just to buy
The biggest packaging saving usually has nothing to do with the material: it is shipping less air. A box that fits the product needs less fill, weighs less and takes less room on the truck. Past a certain size it also costs less in postage, because carriers charge by dimensional weight, a figure worked out from the package's volume, whenever that figure is higher than what the package actually weighs.
The formula is the same at the three major carriers: multiply length by width by height in inches, divide by the carrier's divisor, and round up to the next whole pound. The divisor depends on the carrier and on how you buy postage. UPS uses 139 for its daily rates, the rates on a UPS account, and 166 for retail rates paid at a counter or without an account. FedEx uses 139 for U.S. shipments. USPS applies dimensional weight only to parcels over 1 cubic foot (1,728 cubic inches) on Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express and USPS Ground Advantage, and also divides by 139. Each carrier bills whichever is greater, the actual weight or the dimensional weight. The example below uses 139, the divisor for UPS account rates, FedEx and USPS; if you pay UPS retail rates, divide by 166 instead.
An example: a 14 x 12 x 12 inch box is 2,016 cubic inches. Divided by 139 that is 14.5, so it bills as a 15-pound package at UPS account rates, FedEx and USPS even if the product inside weighs 2 pounds (at UPS retail rates, 2,016 divided by 166 is 12.1, so 13 pounds). Put the same product in a 10 x 8 x 6 inch box (480 cubic inches) and FedEx or UPS account rates bill it as 4 pounds, UPS retail as 3, while at USPS it is under a cubic foot and bills at its actual weight.
- Measure your best sellers and stock three to five box sizes that fit them, instead of one size that fits everything.
- Ship soft goods in a mailer. A mailer has almost no empty volume, so dimensional weight rarely applies.
- Leave only the gap the product needs. For a fragile item, FedEx's packing guidance is 2 to 3 inches of cushioning on every side; a T-shirt needs none.
- Read a carrier invoice. If the billed weight runs higher than the actual weight on many orders, the boxes are probably bigger than the products need. Check whether the gap is empty space or cushioning the item really requires before you downsize.
Track three numbers before and after any packaging change: packaging cost per order (box or mailer plus fill), damage claims per hundred orders, and billed weight against actual weight on the carrier invoice. A material that lowers cost per order but raises the damage rate costs more in the end, because a replacement order ships twice.
What is the most eco-friendly packaging material?
There isn't one winner for every product. A practical test: pick the material that protects the product, because a broken order usually means a second shipment, and that your customer can recycle or compost where they live. For many products that means a paper-padded mailer, or a recycled corrugated box with paper fill, since most community programs accept paper.
What's the best alternative to plastic mailers?
For apparel and soft goods, a paper-padded kraft mailer is the closest swap that can go in a curbside bin. A compostable mailer is the other option, but only if your customers can compost it and you label it honestly. If neither fits your product or budget, a high-PCR poly mailer cuts new plastic while keeping the cost and protection you have now.
What you can legally print on the box
This is general information, not legal advice. If you put "recyclable", "compostable" or a recycling symbol on your packaging, two sets of rules matter in the US.
"Recyclable": the FTC's 60% test
The FTC's Green Guides explain how it applies the law against deceptive advertising to environmental claims. Under 16 CFR 260.12, you can make an unqualified "recyclable" claim only when recycling facilities are available to a substantial majority of the consumers or communities where the item is sold, and the FTC defines substantial majority as at least 60 percent. Below that, qualify the claim, for example: "This package may not be recyclable in your area."
The FTC opened a review of the Green Guides in December 2022. As of October 7, 2026, its Green Guides page shows no finalized revision, so the current guides still apply.
"Compostable": say how it composts
Under 16 CFR 260.7, a compostable claim needs reliable scientific evidence that the material breaks down into usable compost in a safe and timely way. If it won't compost in a home pile, say so clearly. If composting facilities aren't available to a substantial majority of the people you sell to, qualify that too. In practice: if a mailer only composts industrially, say so on the mailer.
California's SB 343
California's Truth in Labeling law, SB 343 (Public Resources Code section 42355.51), bars the chasing-arrows symbol and other recyclability claims on products and packaging unless the material meets the state's criteria for being collected and processed for recycling in California. CalRecycle says the rule applies to products and packaging manufactured after October 4, 2026, and publishes the material findings you'd check against.
On July 14, 2026, the federal court in California League of Food Producers v. Bonta (No. 3:26-cv-01675, Southern District of California) issued a preliminary injunction that stops the California Attorney General from enforcing SB 343 while the case continues. CalRecycle says the injunction only blocks enforcement. It is not a final ruling, the law has not been repealed, and the case is ongoing. The FTC's 60% test applies nationwide either way. How2Recycle has already dropped the circular arrows from its Store Drop-off label because of SB 343.
What actually changes the emissions of delivery
Most of what a small brand can do about shipping emissions happens before the carrier picks up the package. The truck runs its route either way; what you control is how much of it your orders take up, how far they go and whether they fly.
- Smaller, lighter packages. The box-size work above means fewer cubic inches and fewer pounds hauled per order.
- Fewer shipments. Send a multi-item order in one box, and when an item is backordered ask the customer whether they'd rather wait and get one delivery.
- Ground instead of air. In the EPA's current emission factors for product transport, moving a ton of freight one mile by aircraft emits about 1.09 kg of CO2 against about 0.19 kg by medium- and heavy-duty truck, so an overnight air shipment that could have gone by ground is the biggest single jump a package can take.
- Shorter distance. Stock near your customers, or in the middle of the country, so most orders travel by ground for a few days rather than across it.
A carbon offset is a payment to a project that is meant to remove or avoid emissions somewhere else, such as a forestry or landfill-methane project, to balance emissions you still produce. It doesn't change what the delivery truck emits. If a carrier or shipping app offers an offset add-on, ask what the money funds and who verifies that the reduction happened before you pay for it.
If you then call your shipping "carbon neutral" because you bought offsets, the Green Guides' offset rule applies. Under 16 CFR 260.5, the quantity you claim needs competent and reliable scientific and accounting methods behind it, you must disclose clearly and prominently if the reductions won't happen for two years or more, and you can't count a reduction that the law already required. Reduce first, offset what's left if you want to, and keep the receipts and the math.
Where to buy
Two suppliers sell several of these materials (product ranges checked October 7, 2026). EcoEnclose sells paper and plastic mailers, padded and flat, along with corrugated mailer boxes and inner packaging. noissue sells custom-printed compostable mailers and tissue paper. For mycelium inserts, go to Mushroom Packaging directly. Get current prices and minimums from each supplier, since both change.
If a 3PL packs your orders
If you outsource packing, ask what your 3PL stocks. Simpl stocks recycled mailers, recycled bubble and standard boxes, and can source specific eco materials on request. Simpl's ecommerce fulfillment is priced starting at $7/order, with packaging included in the per-order rate, and a $750/month minimum billed pay-the-difference (roughly 90 to 100 orders a month for light packages on standard shipping; heavier, larger or faster shipments reach it with fewer orders). See pricing for the details. Whoever packs for you, ask three things: what they stock and whether they'll source the material you want, whether packaging is in the per-order price or billed on top, and how they pick a box size for a multi-item order.