Running a coffee business can be an extremely fun and creative endeavor, from inventing delicious new blends to designing the coffee bag packaging. We work with coffee roasters all across the country, and we are blown away by the ingenuity and creativity we’ve seen in coffee bag packaging and design. We want to help your company create coffee bag labels that wow, so we’ve compiled a guide of suggested label sizes and materials to help get you started on the journey.
Types of Coffee Bags
Side-Gusseted Bag
Side-gusseted bags are typically tall, rectangular coffee bags that have more vertical real estate for labeling. Take advantage of the front and back panels by applying full labels to either side of the bag, or go minimal by applying a small custom shape label to the front.
Take inspiration from Andytown Coffee Roasters. They utilize bright colors on long vertical labels for a fun and whimsical look.
Suggested Sizes
- 2.250″ x 4.750″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 2.500″ x 1.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 2.500″ x 4.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 2.500″ x 5.500″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 3.500″ x 2.000″ Rectangle
- 2.250” x 5.000” Custom
- 2.500” x 6.625” Custom
Square Bottom Bag
Square bottom bags are sturdy and provide lots of surface area for your coffee bag labels. Because the front and back panels remain relatively flat after filling, the flexibility of your chosen label material is not as imperative as other coffee bag styles. Therefore, you have more freedom to choose a unique label material.
Take inspiration from Portrait Coffee’s original coffee bag labels. They elevate the simple white bag with an expertly designed label that covers most of the front panel.
Suggested Sizes
- 2.500″ x 1.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 3.500″ x 2.000″ Rectangle
- 3.750″ x 6.000″ Rectangle
- 4.000″ x 5.000″ Rectangle
- 4.000″ x 6.000″ Rectangle
- 4.000” x 4.000” Square
Stand-Up Pouch
Stand-up pouches spend a lot of time working on their comedy routine on the side, but you should be able to wrangle some for a gig as your coffee bags. Because these pouches do not have gusseted sides, the front and back panels curve and flex when filled. Therefore, you’ll either need to label the bags before filling with a flexible label material that will stay adhered to the curves and dips, or apply a smaller label to the flattest part of the filled bag. If you do choose a flexible label material, you can also apply a partial wrap label (see suggested size 3.000″ x 9.000″ below) for a front and back effect.
Take inspiration from Methodical Coffee. They utilize custom printed coffee bags and apply simple, elegantly designed labels with roast information to the front. The custom die-cut only adds to the creativity and intrigue of their packaging.
Suggested Sizes
- 2.500″ x 1.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 3.500″ x 2.000″ Rectangle
- 3.000″ x 9.000″ Rectangle
- 3.000″ x 3.000″ Square
- 3.500″ x 3.500″ Square
- 3.000″ x 2.625″ Custom
- 3.332″ x 3.332″ Custom
Aluminum Foil Bag
Aluminum foil bags are the most common type of coffee bag found in commercial grocery stores. Since these coffee bags have less structure than their stand-up counterparts, flexible label materials are a must.
Take inspiration from Rosalind Coffee. They cleverly use a wrap label around their printed bags to add customization as well as roast information.
Suggested Sizes
- 1.250″ x 9.100″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 2.500″ x 1.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 3.000″ x 9.000″ Rectangle
- 3.000″ x 3.000″ Square
- 3.500″ x 3.500″ Square
- 3.000″ x 2.625″ Custom
- 3.332″ x 3.332″ Custom
Poly Side-Gusseted Bags
Poly side-gusseted bags are used for large fulfillment orders, usually for coffee shops and businesses with caffeine-addicted employees (don’t look at us…). These large coffee bags provide considerable surface area for labeling, but sometimes less is more with packaging of this size.
Take inspiration from Ninth Street Espresso. They combine form and function with Estate paper labels to brand and seal their coffee bags.
- 2.000″ x 8.000″ Rectangle Square Corners
- 2.000″ x 9.000″ Rectangle
- 3.000″ x 9.000″ Rectangle
- 3.500″ x 4.000″ Rectangle
- 3.500″ x 3.500″ Square
Best Materials for Coffee Bag Labels
- White Paper is an economical label material that is perfect for disposable food packaging like coffee bags. Pair with a gloss finish to boost your design colors or choose a matte finish for an understated look. A matte finish also allows you to write roast information in permanent marker if you so choose. White Paper is not as flexible as other materials, so it is best suited for side-gusseted and square bottom coffee bag labels.
- Avon Classic Crest is a premium white paper that’s a favorite in the coffee industry. The smooth, unlaminated surface of Avon gives your packaging an artisan feel, even allowing you to handwrite or stamp roast names and dates directly onto the label.
- Estate 4 is an elegantly textured unlaminated white paper well suited for coffee bag labels. Since the coffee experience is highly sensory, choosing a label material that provides a tactile experience for your customers is a no-brainer. The Estate 4 material can also be stamped or handwritten to include roast names and dates for further customization.
- Black Vellum is an extremely unique material in that it is rich black throughout, even on the sides and adhesive backing. Black Vellum is the perfect coffee bag label material for roasters who take pride in how dark and robust their blends are. Black Vellum also provides an eye-catching canvas for designers who wish to expertly utilize high-contrast and negative space with their coffee bag label designs.
- White Plastic is a highly versatile, flexible label material. If you are using a stand-up pouch or aluminum coffee bag, White Plastic will be the best label material option for you because it will move and flex with the curves of the filled bag. A gloss laminate saturates label design colors and helps the label blend into a glossy bag, while a matte finish provides an artisan feel and allows you to add additional roast information in permanent marker.
Let Us Help
We know a thing or two about coffee (and it’s not just because we drink a lot of it). The Experience Team is always ready to talk everything coffee bag labels, so give us a call or chat to get the conversation started today!
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