Choose white vinyl unless you have a reason not to. It's our default, and it suits most stickers. The other five materials each solve a specific problem: High-Tack grips surfaces that standard vinyl won't, Clear lets the surface show through, and Holographic, Glitter, and Chrome add shine.
Try it
Click through the six materials below, then take one apart to see what it's made of. How to see what's inside a sticker explains every control.
White vinyl: the default
White vinyl is thick vinyl with a protective laminate, and it's what Custom Stickers are printed on unless you choose otherwise. Your colors print on a white base, so they look as designed, and the unprinted parts are white because that is the material.
It lasts 3 to 5 years outdoors before the print starts to fade, and it peels off cleanly without residue.
High-Tack: for surfaces that resist stickers
High-Tack Stickers are the same print with a much stronger adhesive. Choose High-Tack when standard vinyl won't grip: rough or textured surfaces, powder coating, and low-energy plastics that stickers slide off.
The stronger adhesive is harder to remove and can leave residue, so use it where the sticker should stay put. When you need High-Tack has more.
Clear: when the surface should show through
Clear Stickers are printed on clear film, so whatever is behind the sticker becomes part of the design. On glass or a painted panel, a clear sticker can look printed straight onto the surface.
The thing to understand is white ink. Without white behind them, colors on clear let light through, like stained glass. With white behind them, they look solid. Deciding which parts get white is the main design choice on a clear sticker. If you're torn, clear or white vinyl compares the two.
Holographic: a rainbow shimmer that shifts as you move
Holographic Stickers are printed onto holographic film. The effect shows anywhere you leave the white ink out, so it appears in the open areas of your design and through your colors, not under solid color.
Gloss gives the full shine. Matte gives a softer version that still looks holographic.
Glitter: sparkle through the whole sticker
Glitter Stickers have the sparkle in the material itself, not printed on, so it catches light from every angle. Like Clear, Holographic, and Chrome, glitter takes white ink under the parts that should look like solid color.
Chrome: a mirror finish
Chrome Stickers are printed onto a mirror-finish film. Bare chrome looks silver, and colors printed over it without white ink look metallic. Can you print gold or metallic colors? explains how.
Gloss gives the most reflection. Matte softens the shine without losing the metallic look.
To compare the three shiny films side by side, read holographic, glitter, or chrome. For the finish on any of them, read gloss or matte.
Bold artwork suits the specialty films
Chrome, Holographic, Glitter, and Clear are films we print onto, so the material shows through the artwork instead of sitting behind it. That has one practical result: specialty films suit bolder artwork. Fine detail competes with the shimmer underneath it, and loses. A clean, confident shape looks striking on holographic, while a delicate line drawing on it mostly looks busy.
If your design is intricate, white vinyl will show it better than any of them.
Seeing the materials before a big order
Photos can't show what holographic and chrome do as you move them, so a small first run is the way to see a specialty film. The 15 Custom Sticker Sample prints your design on white vinyl only, gloss or matte.
Roll labels use different materials, White Plastic BOPP and White Satin Paper, covered in roll label materials. For something not listed here, like reflective, glow-in-the-dark, or magnets, read things to ask us about.