Types of Corrugated Cardboard for Packaging

It’s strong, light and can be used in many different ways.  In fact, around 90% of products are shipped in corrugated cartons.

What you might not realise is that corrugated boxes and boards come in lots of different varieties.  We explain the most common ones here.

If you’d like to see images of different box shapes to help you decide which would suit you best, take a look at our Carton Styles page.

When most people think of corrugated cardboard – more properly known as corrugated fibreboard – they think of a top and bottom layer of board with a zig-zag piece in between. However, that’s just one type of corrugated sheet that can be used in packaging.

A single piece of linerboard with corrugations on top. This isn’t usually used to make cartons themselves, but is great for providing extra cushioning. It can be used for sleeves that wrap around bottles, for example.

The standard board we all know and love, with the corrugated medium sandwiched between top and bottom sheets of linerboard. It’s incredibly versatile, and can be used to make all manner of cartons and other packaging.

This has two layers of corrugations for extra strength. It’s great if you need to stack boxes on top of each other or for packaging heavy industrial items.

Three layers of corrugations mean this is a really heavy duty type of board. A carton made from this can be used as an alternative to a wooden crate. The high strength to weight ratio means you can save on shipping costs compared with heavier materials.

The corrugations or flutes that make up the wavy part of corrugated board act in a similar way to an arch, providing strength while keeping weight to a minimum. The dimensions of the flutes can be varied to change the properties of the board, and there are a number of standard sizes which are given letter names such as B, C, E, F and R.

B-flute is the most common type. Large flutes give the board better cushioning properties, whereas narrower flutes make the board more rigid and easier to print on.

With double and triple wall board, you can even combine different flute types into one material.

When ordering corrugated boxes, bear in mind that you’ll need to give the internal dimensions.