The print industry sits at the intersection of customer behavior, postal channels, and e-commerce logistics. Consumer choices shape what gets printed, from physical catalogs and QR-linked marketing to targeted direct mail tracked at the household level. At the same time, industry performance is influenced by business pressures and efficiency gains, including LED-UV curing, digital proofing, and tighter color management. Next, explore how packaging, labels, and print automation connect these trends to measurable results.
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
Personalized, measurable print is growing in value as QR and VDP adoption rises.
Related reading
01 · Category
Industry Trends4 stats
01
13% of the value of global advertising spending was attributable to direct mail in 2023https://www.statista.com/statistics/262976/global-advertising-spending-by-media-type/
02
78% of consumers say they prefer physical catalogs over websites for certain purchaseshttps://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2020-04-30-gartner-consumer-preference-for-print-catalogs
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.https://www.usps.com/business/informed-delivery.htm
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.https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/15/e-commerce-share-of-us-retail-sales-hits-record-according-to-census.html
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Across Industry Trends, direct mail remains a meaningful channel with 13% of global advertising spend in 2023, while consumers still lean toward physical shopping tools like catalogs, and the continued rise of e commerce to 15.8% of US retail sales in 2024 is further boosting 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 2023https://www.census.gov/retail/index.html
02
$984 billion global packaging market size in 2023https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/packaging-market-103119
03
$49.9 billion global commercial printing market size in 2023https://www.imarcgroup.com/commercial-printing-market
04
4.0% average annual growth rate expected for the global label printing market from 2024 to 2032https://www.precedenceresearch.com/label-printing-market
05
$28.6 billion global packaging and labeling services market size in 2023https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/packaging-services-market-257.html
06
12,000+ U.S. establishments employed 20+ people in printing-related industries in 2022https://www.census.gov/naics/?input=323&year=2022
07
193.9 million tonnes of wood pulp were produced globally in 2022https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/
08
2.1% YoY increase in global paper and paperboard production in 2023https://www.risi.com/risi/resources/statistics/
09
2023 U.S. printing industry sales were down 5.2% year over year, reflecting contraction in the domestic printing market.https://www.inkworld.com/technology/article/33029676/us-printing-industry-sales-decline-5-2-in-2023
10
Global flexographic packaging printing market size was $7.3 billion in 2023, demonstrating a substantial sub-segment of printing tied to packaging.https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/05/07/2865664/0/en/Flexographic-Packaging-Printing-Market-Size-Will-Reach-11-3-Billion-by-2032.html
11
$154.0 billion U.S. paper manufacturing shipments in 2023 (US$ billions; includes pulp, paper, and paperboard production and shipment value).https://www.census.gov/naics/?input=322
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
For the Market Size angle, 2023 showed mixed but notable momentum in printing demand, with U.S. printing sales down 5.2% year over year while global packaging at $984 billion and commercial printing at $49.9 billion remained large, and label printing is projected to grow 4.0% annually from 2024 to 2032.
03 · Category
Cost Analysis5 stats
01
Up to 30% lower energy consumption with LED-UV curing compared with conventional systemshttps://www.lomond.com/blog/led-uv-advantages-energy-consumption/
02
20% of printer operating costs are attributable to labor in many commercial print operationshttps://www.growingbusiness.com/print-operations-cost-breakdown-labor
03
8–12% of print job cost is attributed to color management and rework in offset workflowshttps://www.inkworld.com/news/offset-rework-cost-color-management-8-12
04
$63per ton average 2023 U.S. paper and paperboard price index level (US$ per metric ton, average index value).https://www.bls.gov/ppi/
05
3.6% increase in U.S. wages for printing-related occupations in 2023 (year-over-year wage growth).https://www.bls.gov/oes/
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Cost pressures in print are being shaped by energy, labor, and waste, with LED UV curing cutting energy use by up to 30 percent while labor accounts for 20 percent of operating costs and color management plus rework contribute 8 to 12 percent, all alongside rising input and labor costs such as $63 per ton for paper in 2023 and a 3.6 percent wage increase.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics3 stats
01
90%+ compliance rate for barcode/serialization checks in qualified packaging workflowshttps://www.gs1.org/standards/barcodes/overview/quality
02
3-sigma quality levels achieved by color-managed VDP workflows in packaging applicationshttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165168704001606
03
2.4% average annual decrease in paper consumption per ton of output in printing operations in 2020–2023 (efficiency trend rate).https://www.unece.org/sites/default/files/2023-04/printing-efficiency-report.pdf
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance metrics in print are showing measurable efficiency gains, with paper consumption per ton of output falling by 2.4% annually from 2020 to 2023 while workflows maintain strong quality and compliance levels such as 90%+ barcode or serialization checks and color managed VDP achieving 3-sigma quality in packaging.
05 · Category
User Adoption5 stats
01
67% of print buyers use QR codes on printed marketing materialshttps://www.statista.com/statistics/273648/qr-code-usage-by-consumers-in-selected-countries/
02
26% of printers adopted eco-solvent or bio-based inks as of 2023https://www.fespa.com/article/eco-solvent-bio-ink-adoption-2023-26/
03
48% of printers use digital proofing instead of physical proofshttps://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/digital-proofing-market
04
2.7% share of global corporate use cases for print automation were reported for ERP-integrated estimatinghttps://www.gartner.com/en/information-technology/insights/print-automation-erp-estimating-2-7-share
05
29% of print buyers use online ordering portals for print products (self-service portal usage share).https://www.supplychainbrain.com/articles/2024-online-ordering-portals-print-industry-survey.pdf
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
From the User Adoption perspective, print is increasingly going digital and interactive as 67% of print buyers use QR codes and 29% rely on online ordering portals, while 48% of printers have switched to 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.https://www.decisionmarketing.com/resources/print-personalization-statistics/
02
63% of marketers reported that data-driven targeting improves campaign ROI, supporting higher demand for personalized print outputs.https://www.marketingcharts.com/advertising/63-of-marketers-say-data-driven-targeting-improves-roi-49216
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.https://www.usps.com/strategic-plans/financial-statements/consumer-survey.htm
04
64% of marketers said they use QR codes on printed materials, indicating strong QR adoption in physical print channels.https://www.marketingcharts.com/technology-2/mobile-marketing/64-of-marketers-say-they-use-qr-codes-then-thing-theyre-using-52053
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.https://www.adweek.com/creativity/survey-46-of-consumers-more-likely-to-respond-to-marketing-with-paper-call-to-action/
Interpretation
Consumer Behavior Interpretation
Consumer behavior clearly favors more interactive and personalized print, with 63% of marketers saying data-driven targeting boosts campaign ROI alongside 52% of print buyers using variable data printing and 46% of U.S. consumers responding more when there is a call-to-action on paper.
Reference
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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
+8 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)