Envelopes

Envelopes are an integral part of every busy office. Regular correspondence is key for keeping up important communication. That is why it’s important to ensure there is a regular stock of envelopes to hand. The choice of envelopes is varied. With so many shapes and styles of envelopes, it’s important to choose the right envelope for its purpose.

Below, we separate envelopes into their intended purposes below and give recommendations of particular styles. Depending on what you want to send and to the intended receiver, there will be different requirements. Our envelope prices are always competitive to ensure you get the best value for your money.

Best envelope choices for different requirements

Service envelopes for business mail

You can use service envelopes for sending invoices, information messages or other paperwork. Brown manila envelopes are also quite popular and are generally used for either low-cost mailings or filing and document keeping because of their less-transparent quality. We also have special window envelopes, with a transparent window for the address details on the letter. Large contracts that may not be folded in half should be sent in a deed envelope.  

Standard white envelopes for personal mail

If you’re sending regular letters or cards to friends and family, standard white envelopes are the most popular choice. If you want to add some creativity to your personal mail, you can also use coloured envelopes, for example during specific holidays. Use their favourite colour for their birthday, for example, or a red coloured envelope for Christmas.  

Transparent envelopes for promotional use

Transparent envelopes are ideal for sending promotional material. This is because the window allows you to design a sneak preview of the inside content. It gives the opportunity to capture their attention without having to open the letter.

As we know, advertising material can often be discarded without being given a read. Envelopes with a transparent window immediately show your message and/or logo. For brand catalogues or brand brochures, there are also special tear-resistant variants of envelopes that are slightly sturdier.

You can also use coloured envelopes for advertising purposes to make your mail stand out and convey a certain message. A coloured envelope may be used to highlight your brand colours or evoke a certain emotional response. Using colour to make your mail stand is a great advertising tool.  

Padded envelopes for fragile mail

Mail that has a fragile nature requires additional care when packaging and some extra protection during its journey. Use padded envelopes with bubble wrap (also known as bubble envelopes) or board-backed envelopes with a cardboard back for mail with fragile contents. The extra padding will ensure your mail arrives undamaged to the recipient.  

Determining envelopes by paper size

Knowing the size of the paper you want to send is the best guide when choosing envelope size. We recommend choosing one that is about 5 to 10 millimetres larger than the paper you want to send. In addition, it is useful to know that most sizes correspond to the paper sizes.

For example, an A4 paper fits into a C4 envelope, an A5 paper fits into a C5 envelope and an A6 paper fits into a C6 envelope.   If you want to fold the paper that you’re sending, the formats will be slightly different. If you fold an A4 paper in half once, for example, it’s the A5 format you need so, therefore, you need a C5 envelope.

 If you fold an A4 paper lengthways into thirds, then you’ll need a DL envelope. 

See the table below, to see which size fits the different paper sizes.  
 

Envelope sizes	Paper dimensions	Paper size
EA4 or C4 envelope	210 x 297mm	A4
EA5 or C5 envelope	148 x 210mm	A5, A4 in half
EA6 or C6 envelope	105 x 148mm	A6, A5 in half, A4 in quarters
DL envelope	210 x 99mm	A4 in thirds

Envelope paper weights and their uses

The type of paper weight you choose for your envelopes will depend on its purpose and the recipient. You can easily reference the recommended guidelines below. 
 

Paper weight	Mailing use
80-90 gsm	Used for everyday standard low-cost & high volume mailings
100-120 gsm	Used for high quality, deluxe feel mailings
120-30 gsm	Used for additional protection for fragile or high-security mailings

Useful products for sending business correspondence

If you need to print address labels for your business mail, or store your envelopes in a letter tray, we have many valuable products below to assist you when sending important letters.
 

Common questions