Label Material Guide
We stock thirteen label materials covering everything from everyday product labels to premium wine bottles and freezer-grade packaging. Most customers can stop reading after the next two cards — but the rest of this guide is here when you need it.
Two stocks cover most jobs
If you're not sure where to start, pick one of these. They handle the majority of what we print.
Our most-ordered material. Smooth coated paper with a soft sheen — great print quality, clean look, perfect for candles, beauty, food, and most everyday product labels. The default choice for a reason.
See all paper options →When you need a label that survives. Waterproof, oil-resistant, tear-resistant plastic film — the right choice for anything that gets wet, refrigerated, squeezed, or handled often.
See all film options →All 13 materials at a glance
| Material | Best For | Wet? | Look |
|---|---|---|---|
| White SemiglossPopular Coated paper | Candles, beauty, food, everyday labels | Light splash only | Soft sheen, smooth |
| White High Gloss Coated paper | Vibrant photo-heavy artwork | Light splash only | Mirror-bright shine |
| Wine / Estate #8 Premium uncoated paper | Wine, spirits, premium goods | Wet-strength — ice bucket safe | Bright white, lightly textured |
| Wine / Estate #9 Premium uncoated paper | Wine, gourmet, vintage branding | Wet-strength — ice bucket safe | Warm cream, vellum texture |
| Freezer-Grade White Cold-temp paper | Frozen foods, ice cream | Yes — freezer/refrigerator | Matte white |
| White BOPP FilmPopular Plastic film | Anything that gets wet or handled | Yes — fully waterproof | Bright white, glossy |
| Clear BOPP FilmPopular Plastic film | "No-label look" on glass & clear bottles | Yes — fully waterproof | Transparent |
| Silver Metalized FilmPopular Plastic film | Beer cans, premium beverages | Yes — fully waterproof | Shiny chrome / silver |
| Freezer Grade White Film Plastic film | Frozen products needing waterproof + cold | Yes — freezer-safe + waterproof | Bright white, glossy |
| Silver Foil Specialty foil | Premium accents, luxury feel | Limited — keep mostly dry | Reflective metallic silver |
| Gold Foil Specialty foil | Premium accents, luxury feel | Limited — keep mostly dry | Reflective metallic gold |
| Cover Up Opaque White Specialty paper | Relabeling over existing labels | Light splash only | Solid opaque white |
| Thermal Transfer Specialty paper | Shipping, asset, lab labels | No — printer-applied | Matte white |
Paper Stocks
Five stocks from everyday to estate-grade
Paper stocks are the right choice for products that live indoors and don't get wet — candles, dry goods, beauty products, wine, gourmet foods. They give you the warmth and tactile feel that plastic films can't match. Two are coated (semigloss and high gloss) for vibrant printing; two are uncoated estate papers for premium wine-style branding; one is freezer-rated for cold storage.
White Semigloss
#1 Most PopularOur most-ordered stock. Start here if you're not sure.
A smooth coated paper with a soft sheen — not as flat as matte, not as shiny as high gloss. The semigloss coating gives you sharp, vibrant color reproduction without being so reflective that it fights with your design. It's the default choice for most customers because it works for almost everything.
- Crisp full-color printing
- Soft sheen, not mirror-shiny
- Bright white base
- Best for indoor, dry-environment products
White High Gloss
Maximum shineWhen you want maximum visual punch on the shelf.
Same coated paper construction as semigloss, but with a higher-shine finish. The mirror-bright surface makes colors pop and gives photo-heavy artwork extra dimension. Great for hot sauces, condiments, candy, and any product where you want shelf appeal turned all the way up.
- Reflective, mirror-shiny finish
- Maximum color vibrancy
- Best for photo-heavy designs
- Indoor, dry-environment products
Wine / Estate #8
PremiumBright white estate paper with light texture.
An uncoated, lightly textured premium paper engineered for wine and spirits labels. Wet-strength treated, so it survives ice buckets and humid cellars without falling apart. The bright white base gives you a clean, modern, gallery-shelf look that pairs beautifully with foil stamping or simple typography.
- Bright white, vellum-like texture
- Wet-strength — ice bucket safe
- Pairs beautifully with foil
- Modern, premium, design-forward
Wine / Estate #9
PremiumWarm cream estate paper with vintage character.
The same wet-strength estate construction as #8, but on a warm cream base instead of bright white. The cream tone gives your label vintage, old-world character — great for vineyards, gourmet condiments, heirloom branding, and anything that wants to read traditional or artisan-made.
- Warm cream tone
- Wet-strength — ice bucket safe
- Vintage, old-world feel
- Excellent with traditional typography
Freezer-Grade White
Cold-ratedPaper that holds up in the freezer.
A matte white paper with adhesive engineered for low-temperature applications. Standard label adhesives turn brittle and fail in freezer conditions — this one stays put down to deep-freeze temps. The right choice for ice cream, frozen meals, frozen meats, and anything else that's going straight from your line into a cold chain.
- Matte white finish
- Cold-temperature adhesive
- Stays adhered in freezers
- For frozen and refrigerated products
BOPP Film Stocks
Four films built to take a beating
BOPP — biaxially oriented polypropylene — is a thin plastic film that prints beautifully and resists everything paper struggles with: water, oils, abrasion, condensation, refrigeration. If your product gets wet, handled often, refrigerated, or lives outside, you want a BOPP film. We stock four: white, clear, silver-metalized, and a freezer-grade variant.
White BOPP Film
#2 Most PopularThe durable choice for anything that gets wet.
Bright white plastic film with a glossy finish. Waterproof, oil-resistant, tear-resistant. Sticks reliably to glass, plastic, metal, and most container surfaces. This is the right pick when paper isn't tough enough — shampoo bottles, condiment jars, refrigerated drinks, anything that gets squeezed, splashed, or rough-handled.
- Bright white, glossy finish
- Fully waterproof and oil-resistant
- Tear-resistant plastic film
- Sticks to glass, plastic, metal
Clear BOPP Film
PopularThe "no-label look" for glass and clear bottles.
Transparent plastic film that virtually disappears once applied, letting the color of your container or product show through. Beloved by clean-beauty brands, premium beverages, and modern minimalist packaging. Same waterproof durability as white BOPP — just see-through.
- Transparent — container shows through
- Same waterproof durability as white BOPP
- Cosmetics, beverages, natural products
- Modern minimalist branding
Silver Metalized Film
PopularChrome-bright film for premium beverage cans.
BOPP film with a metalized chrome surface that reads as bright reflective silver. Lets you skip foil stamping for an all-over metallic effect — the metalized surface itself does the work. Most popular for craft beer cans, hard seltzers, premium spirits, and any product that wants a polished, high-end metallic look at scale.
- Reflective chrome surface
- Same waterproof durability as other BOPP
- Beer cans, hard seltzers, spirits
- Premium look without foil-stamping cost
Freezer Grade White Film
Cold + WetWhen your product needs both waterproof and freezer-safe.
The toughest stock we carry. Combines BOPP's waterproof durability with a cold-temperature adhesive that holds in freezer conditions. The right pick when paper-based freezer stock isn't enough — ice cream pints handled with wet hands, frozen seafood that thaws and refreezes, anything in a humid cold chain.
- Bright white plastic film
- Waterproof + freezer-rated adhesive
- Survives condensation and ice
- Ice cream, frozen seafood, frozen meats
Specialty Stocks
Foils, relabeling, and printer-ready
Four stocks for jobs the everyday materials can't handle: Silver and Gold Foil for premium accents and luxury branding, Cover Up Opaque White for relabeling over existing packaging, and Thermal Transfer for shipping and asset labels you'll print yourself.
Silver Foil
PremiumReflective metallic silver for luxury accents.
A genuine foil-faced label stock that reads as polished silver. Different from silver metalized BOPP — this is a paper-based foil with deeper, jewelry-like reflectivity. Choose this for high-end products where the label itself becomes part of the premium experience: spirits, perfume, gift packaging, luxury candles.
- Reflective metallic silver finish
- Deeper shine than metalized BOPP
- Spirits, perfume, gift, luxury candles
- Best for indoor, dry environments
Gold Foil
PremiumReflective metallic gold for the highest-end feel.
The same foil-faced construction as our silver foil, in classic warm gold. Reads as luxury, heirloom, gift-quality — the kind of label that makes a customer pause on the shelf. Pair with deep colors and minimal typography for maximum impact.
- Reflective metallic gold finish
- Premium gift and luxury branding
- Excellent with dark backgrounds
- Best for indoor, dry environments
Cover Up Opaque White
RelabelingHides the old label completely so you can rebrand.
An extra-opaque white paper engineered specifically for relabeling. The dense white face fully blocks whatever's printed on the existing label underneath, so your new artwork shows up cleanly without ghost-text or color bleed-through. Use it for product rebrands, batch corrections, regulatory updates, or any time you need to put a new face on existing inventory.
- Fully opaque white — no bleed-through
- Strong adhesive sticks over existing labels
- Brand changes, batch corrections, recalls
- Regulatory and compliance updates
Thermal Transfer
Print on demandBlank labels you print yourself with a thermal printer.
Different from everything else in this guide. Thermal transfer labels ship blank — you print them on demand using a thermal transfer printer (Zebra, Datamax, SATO, etc.). Right for variable data: shipping labels, lot codes, expiration dates, asset tags, lab specimens, anything where the content changes label-to-label and you need to print at the moment of use.
- Ships blank for in-house printing
- Requires a thermal transfer printer + ribbon
- Shipping, asset, lab, and lot-code labels
- Variable data and barcode applications
Things to think about when you choose
Want to feel them in person?
We'll send you a free sample pack with all 13 materials so you can see and touch the difference before you order.