The global market for printed labels and packaging reached a value of $517.9 billion in 2024, with 14.3 trillion A4 equivalents produced, according to a new report from Smithers, a leading authority on the print industry.
Research detailed in The Future of Package Printing to 2029 indicates that market stability has returned. Growth resumed in 2024 and is projected to continue at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.6% through 2029. By then, the market is expected to reach $618.2 billion (at 2023 constant pricing), with output increasing to 17.1 trillion A4 prints.
The report analyzes the packaging print sector by material type, printing process, region, and key national markets. It highlights emerging technical and commercial trends, including the growing adoption of digital printing, enhanced automation in packaging production, shifting demographics and retail structures, sustainability demands from brands, and the use of AI in design.
Automation is transforming packaging and label printing, with prepress, printing, and finishing stages increasingly interconnected through advanced software. This trend is accelerating the adoption of digital and analog printing methods that integrate seamlessly into automated production lines, simplifying manufacturing processes.
Flexographic printing remains the dominant segment in both volume and value. Offset lithography and other analog methods follow in value, with litho printing widely used for cartons, corrugated preprints, and wet glue labels. Dry offset dominates metal packaging and rigid plastic printing.
Digital printing, already well-established for labels, is gaining ground in corrugated packaging. Single-pass inkjet systems support preprint and post-print operations, while multi-pass wide-format and flatbed machines cater to low-volume packaging. Digital methods are also advancing in carton printing, with toner systems handling short runs and new sheetfed presses replacing some offset machines for B2 and B1 formats.
