Packaging guide
Pizza Box Sizes: Inches, Millimetres and Board
How pizza box sizes work, which board to pick and how to stop soggy bases on delivery.
How are pizza box sizes described?
Pizza boxes are named after the pizza they hold, in inches. A 12 inch box holds a 12 inch pizza. That sounds simple, but the box itself is always a little bigger than its name.
The inside of the box needs space for the pizza to sit without touching the walls. If the crust touches, it picks up moisture from the board and goes soft at the edge.
This guide converts the common sizes to millimetres, explains depth and board, and covers how to keep a base crisp on the way to the door.
What are the inside sizes for common pizza boxes?
A good rule is to add about 10 mm to the cooked pizza's diameter for the inside of the box. One inch is 25.4 mm, so a 12 inch pizza is about 305 mm and its box about 310 to 315 mm inside.
The table gives typical inside sizes. Every box we make is to your size, so use these as a starting point, not a fixed list.
| Pizza | Pizza in mm | Box inside, roughly | Typical dough ball |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 inch | 178 mm | 185 x 185 mm | About 150 g |
| 9 inch | 229 mm | 235 x 235 mm | About 180 g |
| 10 inch | 254 mm | 260 x 260 mm | About 200 g |
| 12 inch | 305 mm | 310 x 310 mm | About 250 g |
| 14 inch | 356 mm | 360 x 360 mm | About 300 g |
| 16 inch | 406 mm | 410 x 410 mm | About 350 to 400 g |
| 18 inch | 457 mm | 465 x 465 mm | About 450 g |
Why measure the cooked pizza, not the menu size?
Hand-stretched dough is rarely a perfect circle. A pizza called 12 inch on the menu can come out at 11.5 or 12.5 inches. It depends on who stretched it and how busy the night was.
Thick crusts also spread in the oven. A pizza with a big, puffy crust can measure 10 to 15 mm wider than the base it was stretched to.
Measure the finished pizza at its widest point, across several pizzas from a real service. Size the box to the largest one you would happily send out.
- Pull five pizzas of the same size during a busy service.
- Measure each across its widest point, crust included.
- Note the largest figure in millimetres.
- Add about 10 mm for the inside of the box.
- Repeat for each size on your menu.
How deep should a pizza box be?
Most pizza boxes are around 40 to 50 mm deep inside. That clears a standard pizza with cheese and toppings without leaving too much air above it.
Deep-pan and loaded pizzas may need 50 to 60 mm. Very thin bases can sit in a shallower box, which also stacks better in a delivery bag.
Too much depth lets heat escape into the empty space. Too little lets the lid touch the cheese, which pulls toppings off when the customer opens it.
Check your tallest topping, not your average one. A pizza with whole basil leaves, burrata or a pile of rocket added after baking can stand 15 mm higher than a plain margherita.
Should you choose E flute or B flute board?
Pizza boxes are made from corrugated board, which comes in different flute sizes. The flute is the wavy layer in the middle.
E flute is about 1.5 mm thick. It prints sharply and is light, so it suits 7 to 12 inch pizzas. B flute is about 3 mm thick. It is stiffer, holds heat for longer and copes better with large sizes and tall stacks.
As a rough guide, many pizzerias use E flute up to 12 inch and B flute from 14 inch upwards. Long delivery runs or stacks of five or more boxes are another reason to choose B flute. You can compare options in our pizza boxes and slice trays range.
- E flute: 7 to 12 inch, short runs, sharp print
- B flute: 14 inch and up, long runs, tall stacks
- White outer layer: brighter print colours
- Kraft outer layer: warmer look, hides marks
Does a round or octagonal box change the sizing?
The rule stays the same: size the inside to the cooked pizza plus about 10 mm. What changes is the shape of the empty space around it.
A square box leaves four corners of unused space. On a 12 inch pizza, those corners add up to a fair area where the pizza can slide if the driver brakes hard.
Round boxes follow the pizza closely, so there is very little room for movement. Octagonal boxes sit in between. They trim the corners but still fold and stack much like a square box.
When you ask for round or shaped boxes, give us the cooked diameter. We set the box size from that, then confirm it on your quote and proof.
How do you stop the base going soggy on delivery?
A fresh pizza gives off steam for several minutes. Inside a closed box, that steam condenses on the lid and the floor and softens the base from below.
Venting is the main fix. Small holes in the lid or side walls let steam escape while the board keeps most of the heat in. Many pizzerias also leave the lid unlatched for the first few seconds before closing.
A liner is the second fix. A sheet of greaseproof paper under the pizza keeps the base off the board and soaks up oil. Pizza box liners cut to your box are sized about 5 mm smaller than the inside floor.
Avoid stacking hot boxes for long before the driver leaves. The bottom box takes the weight and the heat of everything above it.
What sizes suit slices, sides and small pizzas?
Slice boxes and trays are sized from the slice, which depends on the pizza it was cut from. A slice from a 16 inch pizza cut in eight is about 200 mm long from crust to tip.
Garlic bread and flatbread boxes are long and shallow, often around 300 x 120 mm for a standard garlic bread. Sharing flatbreads can need 500 mm.
Small pizzas for children and lunch deals usually sit between 6 and 9 inches. A dedicated small box saves board and stops the pizza sliding. See small pizza boxes for personal pizzas for common sizes.
How many pizza box sizes should you carry?
Most pizzerias sell three to five sizes. Each needs its own box, so every extra size on the menu adds a stack to store and a line to reorder.
Look at your sales before ordering. If 12 inch accounts for most orders, order more of that size and fewer of the rest. Running out of your best seller on a Friday is worse than holding a few spare of a slow size.
Boxes arrive flat and stack in bundles. Check how much storage space you have, as a few hundred 16 inch boxes take up more room than many kitchens expect.
If space is tight, ask for your largest size in a smaller quantity and reorder it more often. Smaller boxes are easier to store in bulk.
How do you order pizza boxes in the right size?
Send us your pizza sizes in inches or millimetres, the depth you need and rough quantities for each size. Tell us whether you want E flute or B flute, kraft or white, and how many print colours.
We send a written quote from £0.25 per unit and a free design proof. Production takes 4 to 6 business days after approval, and free tracked delivery to any UK address takes 2 to 3 business days.
If you want your logo on the lid, our printed pizza boxes with your logo can share one artwork across every size.
