The U.S. printing industry sales declined 5.2% in 2023, but packaging reached a $984 billion global market. Direct mail still represented 13% of global advertising spend that year. This data shows where print retains its strength and where major shifts are occurring.
Key Takeaways
- 13% of the value of global advertising spending was attributable to direct mail in 2023
- 78% of consumers say they prefer physical catalogs over websites for certain purchases
- USPS Informed Visibility data show that mail volume continues to be tracked at the household level, enabling measurable targeting and supporting print marketing operations.
- 5.2% year-over-year decline in U.S. printing industry sales in 2023
- $984 billion global packaging market size in 2023
- $49.9 billion global commercial printing market size in 2023
- Up to 30% lower energy consumption with LED-UV curing compared with conventional systems
- 20% of printer operating costs are attributable to labor in many commercial print operations
- 8–12% of print job cost is attributed to color management and rework in offset workflows
- 90%+ compliance rate for barcode/serialization checks in qualified packaging workflows
- 3-sigma quality levels achieved by color-managed VDP workflows in packaging applications
- 2.4% average annual decrease in paper consumption per ton of output in printing operations in 2020–2023 (efficiency trend rate).
- 67% of print buyers use QR codes on printed marketing materials
- 26% of printers adopted eco-solvent or bio-based inks as of 2023
- 48% of printers use digital proofing instead of physical proofs
Direct mail and personalized print remain strong, even as U.S. printing sales declined in 2023.
Related reading
01 · Category
Industry Trends4 stats
01
13% of the value of global advertising spending was attributable to direct mail in 2023
02
78% of consumers say they prefer physical catalogs over websites for certain purchases
03
USPS Informed Visibility data show that mail volume continues to be tracked at the household level, enabling measurable targeting and supporting print marketing operations.
04
E-commerce accounted for 15.8% of total retail sales in the United States in 2024, increasing demand for packaging print and shipping labels.
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends data show that direct mail still represents 13% of global advertising spend in 2023, while 78% of consumers prefer physical catalogs for certain purchases and e-commerce growth pushing retail sales to 15.8% in 2024 is fueling demand for packaging print and shipping labels.
02 · Category
Market Size11 stats
01
5.2% year-over-year decline in U.S. printing industry sales in 2023
02
$984 billion global packaging market size in 2023
03
$49.9 billion global commercial printing market size in 2023
04
4.0% average annual growth rate expected for the global label printing market from 2024 to 2032
05
$28.6 billion global packaging and labeling services market size in 2023
06
12,000+ U.S. establishments employed 20+ people in printing-related industries in 2022
07
193.9 million tonnes of wood pulp were produced globally in 2022
08
2.1% YoY increase in global paper and paperboard production in 2023
09
2023 U.S. printing industry sales were down 5.2% year over year, reflecting contraction in the domestic printing market.
10
Global flexographic packaging printing market size was $7.3 billion in 2023, demonstrating a substantial sub-segment of printing tied to packaging.
11
$154.0 billion U.S. paper manufacturing shipments in 2023 (US$ billions; includes pulp, paper, and paperboard production and shipment value).
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In the market size view of the print industry, 2023 showed clear pressure on traditional demand with U.S. printing industry sales down 5.2% year over year while global packaging alone hit $984 billion, underscoring how much growth and scale in printing are increasingly concentrated in packaging and related segments.
03 · Category
Cost Analysis5 stats
01
Up to 30% lower energy consumption with LED-UV curing compared with conventional systems
02
20% of printer operating costs are attributable to labor in many commercial print operations
03
8–12% of print job cost is attributed to color management and rework in offset workflows
04
$63per ton average 2023 U.S. paper and paperboard price index level (US$ per metric ton, average index value).
05
3.6% increase in U.S. wages for printing-related occupations in 2023 (year-over-year wage growth).
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a cost analysis perspective, shifting to LED UV curing can cut energy use by up to 30%, but labor and rework remain major cost drivers at 20% of operating costs for labor and 8 to 12% of job costs for color management and rework.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics3 stats
01
90%+ compliance rate for barcode/serialization checks in qualified packaging workflows
02
3-sigma quality levels achieved by color-managed VDP workflows in packaging applications
03
2.4% average annual decrease in paper consumption per ton of output in printing operations in 2020–2023 (efficiency trend rate).
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
The performance metrics show strong and measurable improvement, with 90%+ compliance in barcode and serialization checks, 3-sigma quality maintained through color-managed VDP workflows, and a 2.4% average annual efficiency gain in paper use per ton of output from 2020 to 2023.
05 · Category
User Adoption5 stats
01
67% of print buyers use QR codes on printed marketing materials
02
26% of printers adopted eco-solvent or bio-based inks as of 2023
03
48% of printers use digital proofing instead of physical proofs
04
2.7% share of global corporate use cases for print automation were reported for ERP-integrated estimating
05
29% of print buyers use online ordering portals for print products (self-service portal usage share).
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
User Adoption in print is being driven by digital, with 67% of print buyers using QR codes and 29% ordering through online portals, while printers increasingly modernize workflows as 48% use digital proofing and 26% have adopted eco-solvent or bio-based inks.
06 · Category
Consumer Behavior5 stats
01
52% of print buyers report they use variable data printing (VDP) to personalize marketing messages, showing high utilization of print personalization.
02
63% of marketers reported that data-driven targeting improves campaign ROI, supporting higher demand for personalized print outputs.
03
27% of U.S. consumers said they would prefer to receive information about products and services on paper rather than digitally when making purchase decisions.
04
64% of marketers said they use QR codes on printed materials, indicating strong QR adoption in physical print channels.
05
46% of U.S. consumers say they are more likely to respond to marketing that includes a call-to-action on paper, supporting print effectiveness.
Interpretation
Consumer Behavior Interpretation
From a consumer behavior perspective, the strongest trend is that print still drives action, with 46% of U.S. consumers saying they are more likely to respond to marketing that includes a call to action on paper, reinforced by 27% preferring paper for purchase decisions.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Min-ji Park. (2026, February 13). Print Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/print-industry-statistics
MLA
Min-ji Park. "Print Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/print-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Min-ji Park. 2026. "Print Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/print-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
33 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+8 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)