The same structure is sold under several names, and two boxes that look alike on a screen can behave very differently on a packing bench. This is the plain answer for each one: what it is, how it closes, and what it suits. If you already know the trade name, it is the first line of each entry. If you do not, the rest is written for you.
Folding cartons
Snap-Lock Tuck End
Also called snap lock bottom · snap-lock tuck top · 1-2-3 bottom · auto bottom carton · crash lock base
A tuck-top carton whose base locks itself. Two tongues cut into the bottom panels hook into each other as the carton is squared up, so the base holds without glue and without tape.
For a converter this is the structure to reach for when there is no gluer in the run, or when the customer wants to pack by hand: the blank ships dead flat and one person can set up a carton in a couple of seconds. For a buyer it means you can order a small quantity, fold them yourself as you need them, and store the rest flat.
It carries weight better than a plain tuck bottom because the locked tongues spread the load across the base rather than hanging it off one flap. Candles, jars, hardware and gift lines all sit well in it.
Set your own size for the snap-lock tuck end →
Self-Locking Flip Top
Also called self-locking flip top · flip top box · hinged lid carton · front tuck lid
A shallow tray with a lid hinged along the back, which locks itself shut at the front. No tape, no glue, no sticker to break.
It is chosen when the customer will open the box more than once — cosmetics sets, confectionery, jewellery, subscription boxes, anything a person keeps on a dressing table rather than throwing away. A lid that re-closes cleanly is a large part of how a pack feels expensive.
It sets up by hand and ships flat, so it suits both short runs and long ones.
Set your own size for the self-locking flip top →
STE 1
Also called straight tuck end · STE carton · same panel tuck end · straight tuck box
A tube carton whose two tuck flaps fold the SAME way, both hinged off the back panel. That is the one difference from a reverse tuck end, and it is the difference that matters on shelf: because both tucks come from behind, the front face has no flap edge crossing it, so artwork runs clean from top to bottom.
Choose it when the front of the pack is doing the selling — cosmetics, fragrance, premium supplements, anything with a full-bleed front. It costs a little more board than a reverse tuck because the blank nests less economically, and that is the trade you are making: a slightly dearer carton for an unbroken face.
It glues on a straight-line gluer like any tube carton, and it sets up by hand in one motion.
Set your own size for the ste 1 →
STE 2
Also called straight tuck end style 2 · STE 2 · tuck beside the seam · same panel tuck end style 2
The same carton as the straight tuck end, cut a different way round. Both tuck flaps still fold the same way off one panel, so the front face is still unbroken; what changes is where that panel sits on the flat sheet. Here it sits next to the glue flap, with the opposite panel left plain.
Folded up, this is the same box as the straight tuck end. Same panels, same flaps, same clearances, same board. The reason to pick it is what happens before folding: some gluers and some die layouts prefer the tucks beside the seam rather than across the sheet from it, and a converter who works that way will ask for this version by name.
If you are buying rather than making, either version gives you the same carton, so take whichever your converter asks for.
Set your own size for the ste 2 →
Reverse Tuck End
Also called reverse tuck end · RTE carton · reverse tuck box
The everyday retail folding carton. It is a straight tube with a tuck flap at each end, and the two flaps fold in from opposite panels — the top tucks from the back, the bottom from the front. That opposition is the whole point: it makes the blank nest tightly on the sheet, so more cartons come off the same board.
If you are choosing a box for a product that sits on a shelf — a cosmetic, a supplement, a small electrical item, a boxed gift — this is usually where to start. It is the cheapest structure to make, it glues on any straight-line gluer, and it ships flat.
Set your own size for the reverse tuck end →
Auto-Lock Bottom
Also called auto-lock bottom · crash lock bottom · auto bottom box · quick set bottom
A tube carton with a crash-lock base: the bottom is pre-glued flat, and it snaps square the moment the carton is opened out. No folding, no tucking, no second pair of hands.
This is the structure to pick when somebody is packing all day. A crash-lock is the difference between a packer doing two hundred units an hour and doing six hundred. It also takes weight well, so it suits anything dense — bottles, jars, tinned goods, tools.
The trade-off is that the base is glued at the converter, so the blank ships flat but not quite as flat as a plain tuck, and the gluer needs a crash-lock attachment.
Set your own size for the auto-lock bottom →
123-Bottom Tuck Top
Also called 1-2-3 bottom · 123 bottom tuck top · interlocking base carton
A tuck-top carton over a 1-2-3 base — three bottom flaps that fold over each other in order and hold by friction, no glue at all.
It is the short-run answer: quick to make, quick to hand-assemble, and it needs nothing from a gluer. Good for lighter retail goods, sample packs and anything where the order quantity does not justify setting up a machine.
It will not carry the weight a crash-lock will, so for heavier contents look at the auto-lock bottom or the snap-lock instead.
The base here is drawn from a reference set of thirty-five dies that run from a small retail carton up to two metres a side, so the lock keeps the same proportions whether the box is a sample pack or a shipper.
Set your own size for the 123-bottom tuck top →
Corrugated mailers and trays
Hinged Lid Tray
Also called FEFCO 0426 · hinged lid tray · self-locking tray with lid · 0426 tray
A one-piece tray with self-locking walls and a lid hinged along the back, closing with a front tuck. It is the FEFCO 0426, and it folds up from flat with no glue and no tape.
It is a favourite for gift sets, hampers, retail-ready produce and subscription packs — anything where the box is opened in front of the person it was sent to. The walls lock as you fold, so it goes together in one movement.
It runs on cardstock for retail presentation and on corrugated for shipping.
Set your own size for the hinged lid tray →
Mailer with Tuck Top
Also called mailer tuck top · E007 · tapered tuck top mailer · tuck top box · flat tuck mailer
The same mailer as the hinged-lid one, with the top changed. The rounded head and the two small flaps beside it are gone, and a tapered head with rounded shoulders takes their place. Everything below the lid crease is identical.
The plainer head is easier to tuck and easier to tuck again, so it is the one to pick when the box will be opened and re-closed — returns, rental, kit boxes and anything a customer sends back. It also leaves the front panel clear for print, because nothing overlaps it.
It runs on cardstock and on corrugated board, and the reliefs move with the board, so choose the board before the size.
Set your own size for the mailer with tuck top →
Self-Locking Tray
Also called self-locking tray · one piece tray · produce tray · shelf ready tray · display tray
An open tray folded from a single sheet, whose end walls carry wings that lock into slots cut in the base. No glue, no tape, and no separate parts.
It is what produce, bakery and shelf-ready retail run on: the trays ship flat, a person sets one up in seconds, and it stacks. The number of locks follows the width — a narrow tray needs one on each side, a wide one needs three — so the walls stay square whatever the size.
Corrugated is the usual board for shipping and display; cardstock suits smaller retail trays.
Set your own size for the self-locking tray →
Hinged-Lid Mailer
Also called hinged lid mailer · E005E · tuck top mailer box · e-commerce mailer · subscription box
A one-piece mailer that needs no tape and no glue. Each side wall carries slots, and the wing folded in behind it drops its own tabs into them, so the base locks itself square. The lid closes with a rounded tuck head that goes down inside the front wall.
It is the everyday e-commerce mailer: subscription boxes, gift sets, apparel, anything posted to a customer who will open it in front of somebody. It ships flat and is set up by hand in one movement, so it suits short runs as well as long ones.
It runs on cardstock and on corrugated board. The two are the same structure at different calipers, but several small reliefs move with the board, so choose the board before the size.
Set your own size for the hinged-lid mailer →
Bags, gable and pillow
Grocery Paper Bag (SOS)
Also called SOS bag · grocery paper bag · flat bottom paper bag · kraft bag
A flat-bottom paper sack with gusseted sides — the SOS bag, so called because it stands on its own. Flat for shipping, square once it is filled.
Carry-out, bakery counters, delis and retail. It is the cheapest way to hand somebody their purchase and still have a printed surface facing outward.
Kraft is the usual stock; the flat bottom is what lets it stand up loaded.
Set your own size for the grocery paper bag (sos) →
Pillow Box
Also called pillow box · curved end box · pillow pack
A single blank that curves into a pillow shape and closes at both ends by tension alone — no glue, no tape.
Gift cards, jewellery, small accessories, favours and sample sachets. It is the quickest way to make something small feel deliberately packaged, and it costs very little board.
It is not a structure for weight; it is a structure for presentation.
Set your own size for the pillow box →
Gable Box with Handle
Also called gable box · gable top box · party favour box · handle box
A carton with a gable-shaped top, a handle cut through the peak, and a locking base.
Takeaway meals, gift packs, party favours, wedding and event boxes. The handle is cut from the box itself, so there is nothing to attach — it ships flat and folds up into something that already looks like a present.
It runs on cardstock for retail and on lighter corrugated where it has to carry more weight.
Set your own size for the gable box with handle →
Food service and retail display
Triangular Tray
Also called triangular tray · slice tray · pizza slice tray · cake slice tray · wedge tray
The slice box tray with no lid over it. An equilateral triangle with a wall on each of its three edges, three lock slots and three tabs, folded from one flat sheet with no glue.
Counter display for cake and pizza slices, and service where the slice is eaten rather than carried. It is the same tray as the slice box, so a shop can run both off one board and one setup.
Board thickness makes no difference to this shape, which is why the cardstock and corrugated sheets are identical. Grease-resistant board is the usual choice for hot food.
Set your own size for the triangular tray →
Pizza and Cake Slice Box
Also called pizza slice box · cake slice box · triangular box · wedge box · slice wedge carton
A single slice box folded from one sheet, with no glue anywhere in it. The bottom is an equilateral triangle with a wall on each of its three edges, a back wall joins it to the lid, and the lid drops three tabs into three slots to close.
Pizza by the slice, cake and gateau slices, bakery counters and dessert counters. It takes a length and a height and nothing else, because the triangle is equilateral and its depth follows from the side, so a 300 mm slice needs one number and a wall depth.
The lid seats inside the tray rather than over it, which is what stops it springing open in a carrier bag. Grease-resistant board is the usual choice for hot food, and corrugated is the usual choice above a 300 mm side.
Set your own size for the pizza and cake slice box →
POS Display Box (Type 3)
Also called locking header display · counter display with locking top · POS display type 3 · self locking display box
The Type 2 counter display with one thing added: the header locks into the floor of the box. Two tabs stand proud of the header top edge and two slots are cut in the base where the back wall meets it, so the header is held square instead of relying on the fold alone.
It is the one to pick when the display will be handled: restocked, pushed along a shelf, knocked by a trolley. A header that cannot rock is a display that still looks new at the end of the week, and that is most of what a counter unit is being paid to do.
The hand cut in the riser is a single curve rather than a rounded rectangle, which is easier on the eye from the front and easier on the board at the fold.
The tab and its slot both take their width from the board, so the slot is slim on cardstock and wide on E-flute. Choose the board before the size.
Set your own size for the pos display box (type 3) →
Popcorn Box
Also called popcorn box · food tub · chip scoop · snack box
An open-top tub with tapered sides and a wide rim — the scoop-and-serve container.
Cinemas, fairgrounds, street food and event catering. The taper is what lets them nest inside each other, so a venue can store thousands in very little space and pull one off the stack with one hand.
Grease-resistant board is the usual choice for hot food.
Set your own size for the popcorn box →
