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A header card is the printed card folded over the top of a bag, pouch or sleeve, with a hole so the product can hang on a retail peg. We print header cards at our Wenzhou factory from 100 pcs, with free design and free proofing. Quotes come back within 24 hours, physical samples in 1–3 business days and bulk in 7–15 business days. If you need the header card matched to your packaging bag or your hang tag, both come from the same plant.

What a Header Card Has To Do

A header card is a retail fixture, and it has three jobs that all have to work at once.

The first is to hang. The card folds over the bag’s top edge or the sleeve’s mouth, and a punched hole takes the peg. If the hole sits too close to the fold, the card tears under the product’s weight; if the fold is too tight for the bag thickness, the card will not close. We therefore ask for the bag’s top width and its film thickness before we size the fold.

The second is to sell. A header card is often the only surface a shopper sees on a peg, because the product itself is inside a bag or a pouch. That makes it the place for the brand, the product name, the size and any short benefit line. It also means the card has to read from a distance, so small type and dense paragraphs are usually a mistake.

The third is to protect. A folded header card stiffens the top of a bag and stops a soft pouch collapsing on the peg. On light film bags it also reduces the chance of the bag tearing at the peg hole during handling.

Retail Header Card Formats for Bags, Pouches and Sleeves

The header card format is decided by what it hangs on, and four shapes cover most orders.

A standard folded header card folds in half over the bag’s top edge and is stapled, glued or simply pinched closed. It is the cheapest format and the most common for light retail bags.

A single-panel header card is glued or stapled to the front of the bag rather than folded over it. It is used when the bag is too thick to fold around, or when the whole front panel needs print.

A hanging sleeve or wrap is a printed band that wraps the top of the bag and carries the peg hole. It gives a larger print area than a folded card and is used on heavier products where the bag needs more support.

A hang tag header combines the header card with a tag: a smaller tag is attached to the card or the peg by a loop or a tie, usually to carry the size, the price or a second brand line.

Which one is right depends on the bag, the weight of the product and how much print the brand needs. Send us the bag’s top edge and the product weight and we will recommend the format rather than defaulting to the cheapest one.

Header Cards and Display Cards: Where the Two Meet

A header card and a display card are often used together and are sometimes confused.

A display card mounts the product for a counter stand or a case; it holds the product itself. A header card hangs the product in its bag and holds nothing but the bag. When a brand sells the same product both ways, the two cards usually share a look — the same stock, the same foil logo, the same type — so the product reads consistently whether it is on a peg or on a counter.

There is a practical reason to plan them together. If both cards are produced here in one job, they share the same colour and the same stock, and one proofing round covers both. If they are ordered separately from different suppliers, the foil and the white point rarely match, and the difference shows the moment the two sit on the same shelf.

A third related piece is the hang tag — a small tag that carries the size, the price or a care line and hangs from the same peg or loop. Many brands add a hang tag to a header card rather than printing everything on one card, because it lets the size or the price change without reprinting the header.

Printing and Finishing a Header Card

A header card is produced and finished like a small carton, and the finish is where most of the perceived quality comes from.

Hot foil stamping — gold, silver, red gold or laser silver — is the most common request, usually on the logo or the brand line. On a small card a single foil element reads as premium; a large foil field scuffs when cards are stacked for shipping.

Matte or gloss lamination protects the card from handling and from the rub of a peg rail. Matte and soft-touch finishes hide fingerprints and suit jewellery, skincare and gift packaging; gloss lamination is used where the design depends on colour depth.

UV spot coating adds a gloss contrast against a matte background without a second foil pass, and it is the cheapest way to lift one element.

Embossing raises the logo or a repeated pattern and is read as texture rather than colour. It is often used on a header card where the front panel would otherwise be plain.

We print on coated paper, kraft, silver card and synthetic stock. For a header card, the stock has to be stiff enough to hang without curling, so we will tell you if a chosen stock is too light for the product’s weight rather than finding out after the run.

MOQ 100 pcs and How a Header Card Order Runs

Our cards start at 100 pcs; labels start at 1,000 pcs. For a brand testing a new retail format, 100 cards is enough to hang a real product, photograph it and see whether the fold and the peg hole behave, without committing to several thousand.

The sequence for a first order:

1. Send the bag’s top width, its film thickness, the product weight and the quantity.
2. We return a dieline and a quote within 24 hours, including the fold size and the recommended stock.
3. Free design. Send artwork and we place it on the dieline and return a proof. If you have only a logo, we propose one to three layouts, normally within two to three days, and revise until it is right.
4. Physical sample in 1–3 business days, folded and punched, so you can hang a real product on a real peg.
5. Bulk production in 7–15 business days after approval, behind four quality gates: incoming material, first article, in-process random sampling and final AQL inspection with defects isolated.
6. Delivery by sea, air or express to the regions we serve. Payment is by T/T with a 30–50% deposit.

FAQ

What is the difference between a header card and a hang tag header?
A header card folds over the top of a bag and holds it on a peg. A hang tag header adds a smaller tag to the same peg or loop, usually to carry the size or the price so it can change without reprinting the card.

Can a retail header card be glued to a pouch instead of folded over it?
Yes. A single-panel header is glued or stapled to the front of the bag when the bag is too thick to fold around or when the whole front panel needs print.

What is the minimum order for header cards?
100 pcs. Cards, boxes and plastic trays start at 100 pcs; labels start at 1,000 pcs. Samples are separate and take 1–3 business days.

Are header cards the same as display cards?
They are related but different. A display card holds the product on a counter or in a case; a header card hangs the product in its bag. Brands often produce both together so the two match in stock, foil and colour.

What stock should I use so the card does not curl on the peg?
A stiffer coated or synthetic stock is usually needed for a heavier product. Send the product weight and the bag’s top width and we will recommend a stock that hangs flat.

What do you need from me to quote?
The bag’s top width and thickness, the product weight, the card size you have in mind and the quantity. Artwork is helpful but not required to start.

Start a header card project — send your bag dimensions, product weight and target quantity, and you will have a dieline and a price within 24 hours. Free design and free proofing; cards from 100 pcs; samples in 1–3 business days.