Custom Drone Boxes & Drone Packaging
A drone is fragile in a very specific way. The body is usually fine, it is the propeller arm, the gimbal and the camera that break, and they break because something shifted inside the box during transit. So the drone box we build for you is really an engineering problem dressed up as a print job. We handle a good amount of drone packaging at ZEE Packaging and this is what actually matters.
Start With What Moves
Before board or print, we map every component that goes in the drone box.
- The airframe itself, arms folded or extended
- Battery, and often two or three spares
- Propeller set plus a spare set
- Controller or remote
- Charger, cable and adapter
- Gimbal guard and lens cover
- Manual, warranty card and prop tool
Each of these needs its own well. A loose battery sliding into a gimbal during shipping is the most common damage we hear about, and good drone packaging simply does not let that happen.
- Rigid lid and base the premium drone box, feels like the product cost what it costs
- Magnetic book style opens flat, great for retail display drone packaging
- Corrugated mailer direct to customer, our most ordered ecommerce drone box
- Two piece tray and hood tray holds the insert, hood slides over
- Sleeve over a printed tray used for mid range drone packaging
- Double wall shipper outer carton when the drone box travels alone
Sizes We Run Often
Every drone box is built to your product, but these come up a lot:
- 9" x 7" x 4" for a folding mini drone
- 12" x 9" x 5" for a standard consumer drone box
- 14" x 11" x 6" for prosumer with controller and spares
- 16" x 12" x 7" for a full kit drone packaging with charging hub
- 20" x 16" x 8" for larger commercial airframe
Send us the drone folded, the controller and every accessory dimension. We build the dieline and the insert layout around that.
Board And Protection
- Rigid greyboard 36pt or 48pt for retail drone box
- Corrugated B flute or double wall for shipping
- SBS C1S laminated to corrugated for print quality with strength
- Kraft corrugated for trade and bulk drone packaging
Inside, the insert is doing the real work:
- Die cut paperboard cradle, recyclable and increasingly requested
- EVA or EPE foam for high value airframe
- Molded pulp tray, eco friendly and it absorbs shock well
- Corrugated dividers for battery and accessory bays
Print And Finish
- Soft touch lamination, most requested for premium drone box
- Matte film with spot UV over the logo
- Foil stamping for flagship drone packaging
- Emboss or deboss on the lid
- Printed interior, this gets filmed in every unboxing video
- Window patch if you want the airframe visible
What The Panel Needs
- Flight time, range and camera spec on the front
- Battery capacity in mAh and Wh
- Lithium battery shipping mark, UN3481 where applicable
- FCC or CE compliance mark
- QR code to setup guide or firmware page
- Barcode with proper quiet zone
Our prepress team checks all of this on the dieline so nothing gets trimmed at the edge.
Greener Choices
- Recycled corrugated drone box with no film
- Molded pulp instead of foam
- FSC certified board, certificate on request
- Soy based ink
- Right sized drone packaging so you ship less air
How We Work
- 100 unit minimum on any drone box design
- Free 3D mockup and flat proof
- Free dieline and insert layout from our team
- 5 to 8 business day urgent turnaround
- Free shipping worldwide
Frequently Asked Questions
Foam or paperboard insert?
Foam protects better on high value airframe. Paperboard recycles easier and costs less. Plenty of brands now run molded pulp as the middle ground.
How do we stop the gimbal getting damaged?
Give it a dedicated recess with clearance, and never let a battery or charger share the same bay. That is where most gimbal damage comes from.
What is the price of a drone box?
Rough estimate is $1.60 to $3.80 per unit for corrugated with paperboard insert, $2.50 to $5.50 for printed mailer with foam and $4.00 to $12.00 for rigid retail at moderate quantity. Insert complexity swings it more than anything else. Shipping is included in our price. This is estimate only, so ask our team for an exact quote.
Can you print lithium battery shipping marks?
Yes. Send us the applicable UN number and mark and we place it on the correct panel per your requirement.
Do you build the insert as well as the box?
We do, and we prefer to. When one team designs both, the tolerances line up properly.
Can the retail box double as the shipper?
It can with double wall corrugated, but for high value drone packaging we usually recommend a plain outer shipper over the printed box.
Will the printed box survive courier handling?
Matte lamination resists scuff far better than gloss on large panels, and that is what we normally suggest.
