If you've ever requested quotes for custom cups, bags or stickers and seen prices jump between "one colour", "two colour" and "full colour" options, you've already run into one of the biggest, and least understood, levers for controlling your packaging budget. Printing method affects price far more than most business owners realise, and choosing the right one for each product can save a meaningful amount across a big order without making your packaging look cheap.
What Spot Colour Printing Actually Means
Spot colour (sometimes called "one colour" or "two colour") printing applies a small number of flat, solid ink colours, usually your logo colour plus maybe one accent, directly onto the packaging. Because the press only has to lay down one or two fixed inks rather than blending a full palette, it's faster and cheaper to run, especially at higher volumes. Our twisted handle paper bags and flat handle paper bags are good examples of products where one or two colour printing is the default, cost-effective option, since most logos only need one or two colours to stay instantly recognisable.
What Full Colour Printing Actually Means
Full colour (often called CMYK or four-colour process) printing blends cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink to reproduce photographs, gradients, complex illustrations and multi-colour designs. It costs more per unit because the press and the artwork setup are more complex, but it's the only realistic option if your brand uses photography, gradients, or more than two or three colours in a single design. Products like our clear cups and custom stickers are commonly printed full colour because brands use them to show off detailed artwork, seasonal designs or photography.
How to Choose Without Guessing
Ask: Does My Logo Actually Need More Than Two Colours?
Most logos are built around one or two core brand colours. If yours is, spot colour printing on bags, boxes and cups will usually look just as sharp as full colour, at a noticeably lower price, especially on larger runs.
Reserve Full Colour for Your "Hero" Items
You don't need every piece of packaging printed in full colour to look premium. A common cost-saving approach is to print full colour only on the items customers see most, like cups and stickers, and use one or two colour printing on higher-volume, lower-visibility items like bags and boxes.
Check Where the Price Breaks Actually Are
The cost gap between one colour and two colour printing is often small, while the jump to full colour process printing is larger. Ask your supplier for pricing at each colour tier before finalising artwork, rather than assuming full colour is always needed.
Get a Clear Quote Before You Commit
Because colour count changes the price per unit, it's worth deciding on your printing method before finalising order quantities, not after. A quick way to see the real difference is to compare quotes for the same product at one colour, two colour and full colour across a couple of order sizes.
Ready to print your brand the smart way? Explore our custom stickers, paper bags and cups to see colour and pricing options for your design.