If you are costing a dates or chocolate corporate gift box in the UAE, here is the number that actually matters: the box. A plain printed gift box is AED 5.40 to AED 7 each at 50 pieces, a food-grade 400 gsm printed box is AED 33.60 each at 100 pieces, and a rigid magnetic-lock box on Kappa board is AED 73.50 each at 100 pieces. Add ribbon at roughly AED 90 a roll, gold-foil tags at AED 0.85 each and foiled stickers from AED 0.46. One clarification up front, because it changes how you brief: we supply the packaging, the printing and the assembly — not the dates or the chocolate. You buy the confectionery from a date house or chocolatier; we build and brand everything around it.
Why the box is the decision, not the dates
Most buyers invert this. They spend three weeks tasting dates and two days on packaging, then discover the box costs more than the contents and the lead time is the binding constraint.
Two things drive that. First, a premium rigid box is a manufactured object — die-cut, laminated, hand-pasted, with a magnet set into the flap — so a fully custom one at 100 pieces costs AED 73.50 while a stock-size gift box at 50 pieces costs AED 6. That is a twelvefold spread on a decision most people treat as an afterthought. Second, the dates can usually be bought the week you need them, whereas a printed box needs artwork, a die, a proof and five working days after final approval. The box sets your calendar.
The food-contact question that decides your spec
This is the single most expensive specification in the category, and most briefs get it wrong. Ask one question: will the dates or chocolate touch the board?
- If yes — the contents sit loose in the box, or on a paper liner — you need food-grade board. Our 100 custom boxes at 35 × 25 × 10 cm on 400 gsm food-grade board, printed both sides with matte lamination and supplied flat-packed, are AED 3,360 — AED 33.60 per box.
- If no — and this is the common case, because dates are nearly always supplied in a sealed plastic tray, pouch or individual cups — you do not need food board at all. A standard printed box does the job, and you save roughly AED 18 to AED 28 per unit.
On a 500-box Ramadan run that one question is a difference of AED 9,000 to AED 14,000. Confirm with your date supplier how the product arrives before you specify the board.
Real prices (AED, VAT inclusive)
Live store prices. Packs are priced as sold; the per-unit figure is calculated for comparison.
| Item | Specification | Pack price | Per unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 Square Packaging Box | Stock size, printed | 270 | 5.40 |
| 50 Gift Packaging Box | Stock size, printed | 300 | 6.00 |
| 50 White Gift Packaging Box | White stock, printed | 320 | 6.40 |
| 50 Rectangular Packaging Box | Stock size, printed | 350 | 7.00 |
| 100 Corrugated Box | 35 × 25 × 10 cm, corrugated, black print, die-cut | 1,500 | 15.00 |
| 50 Plantable Kit, GHAF Seeds | Kraft box, seed kit | 790 | 15.80 |
| Gift Set Packaging, Magnet Closing (Large) | 35.5 × 28 × 10.5 cm, flat-packs, 3M corners | — | 26.00 |
| 100 Custom Box, Food Board | 35 × 25 × 10 cm, 400 gsm food grade, matt lam, flat-packed | 3,360 | 33.60 |
| 50 Black Gift Box, Magnetic Closure XL | 260 × 105 × 285 mm, cardboard, 5 working days | 1,900 | 38.00 |
| 50 Black Gift Box A3, Magnetic Closure | 420 × 297 × 100 mm, cardboard | 2,200 | 44.00 |
| 50 Luxury Wooden Gift Box XL | 280 × 280 × 95 mm, wood, velvet interior | 2,550 | 51.00 |
| 100 Hard Case Magnet Box | 35 × 25 × 10 cm, 170 gsm art on 1500 gsm Kappa, magnetic lock | 7,350 | 73.50 |
| Foldable Box | 36 × 29.5 × 6.5 cm, 157 g art on 3 mm board, EVA foam inserts | — | 85.50 |
| 1,000 Economy Custom Stickers | 80 gsm, glossy laminated | 370 | 0.37 |
| 1,000 Economy Gold Foil Stickers | 80 gsm, glossy laminated, foiled | 460 | 0.46 |
| 1,000 Die-Cut Gold Foil Stickers | 80 gsm, glossy laminated, custom shape | 510 | 0.51 |
| 500 Ramadan Stickers, Gold Foil | Ready design, foiled | 400 | 0.80 |
| 500 Ramadan Tags, Gold Foil | Black or white, foiled | 425 | 0.85 |
| 500 PVC Stickers 3 × 3 cm | Transparent with foiling | 575 | 1.15 |
| 100 Paper Stickers 7 × 7 cm | Matt or glossy lamination | 230 | 2.30 |
| 5 Rolls Ramadan Ribbon, Gold Foil | 1 inch × 25 yards per roll, ready stock | 450 | 90.00/roll |
Browse the full custom box printing range and the corporate gift sets collection for current sizes.
Choosing a format: four real scenarios
Mass client gifting, 300–1,000 units, AED 10–20 per box
The corrugated box at 35 × 25 × 10 cm for AED 15 is the honest pick. Corrugated handles weight — and dates are heavy, roughly 1 kg for a 500 g box of contents plus tray — which matters when boxes are stacked on a pallet or couriered. Print one colour, add a gold-foil sticker at AED 0.46 as the brand mark, and the finished unit reads far better than its cost.
Key accounts, 50–150 units, AED 35–45 per box
The black magnetic-closure box at 260 × 105 × 285 mm, AED 38 in packs of 50 is the sweet spot of this category. Magnetic closure gives the opening moment that justifies a premium gift, the stock size means no die cost, and 50 is a realistic MOQ for a key-account list. Brand it with a foiled sticker or a printed sleeve rather than full-surface print and the unit cost stays flat.
Board, VIP and government gifting, AED 51–85 per box
Two options at this level. The luxury wooden box at 280 × 280 × 95 mm with velvet interior, AED 51 is the one people keep — a wooden box with a laser-engraved lid stays on a desk after the dates are gone. The foldable box at AED 85.50 takes a different approach: 157 g art paper on 3 mm board with three EVA foam inserts, built to hold three or more items securely. Specify this one when the dates are a component in a larger kit rather than the whole gift.
Fully bespoke, 100+ units, AED 73.50 per box
The hard-case magnet box at AED 7,350 for 100 is the top of the range: 170 gsm art matt paper pasted onto 1500 gsm Kappa board, printed and matt-laminated both sides, with die making, die cutting and pasting included, and a magnetic lock. This is the retail-grade construction. It is worth the money when the box carries the brand on its own — a hotel, a bank, a developer presenting to buyers — and it is a waste on a mass staff run.
MOQs, and why they sit where they do
The pattern across the catalogue is consistent and it is not arbitrary.
- Stock-size gift boxes: 50 pieces. The box already exists in a standard size, so there is no die to make. Your branding goes on via sticker, tag, ribbon or a surface print.
- Fully custom printed boxes: 100 pieces. A custom size needs a steel cutting die, and the die is a one-time cost absorbed into the run. At 100 units it is bearable per box; at 20 it would dominate the price. This is why there is no 20-piece custom box.
- Ribbon: 5 rolls. At 25 yards per 1-inch roll, five rolls is 125 yards — enough to tie several hundred boxes, which is why it is the minimum.
- Stickers and tags: 100 to 1,000. Economy stickers drop to AED 0.37 at 1,000 because the sheet is ganged. Buying 100 of the 7 × 7 cm size costs AED 2.30 each — six times as much per sticker.
Our guide on how printing MOQs work in Dubai covers the mechanics in more detail.
The costs people forget
Four line items regularly appear after the budget has been signed off.
- The insert or tray. Loose dates sliding around a 35 × 25 cm box look cheap. A die-cut tray or EVA foam insert is quoted separately — the foldable box includes foam, most others do not.
- Assembly. Flat-packed boxes arrive flat. Someone has to fold, glue, fill, tie and tag several hundred of them. If that is not your team, say so and we quote kitting per unit.
- Weight-driven delivery. A box of dates with its tray runs close to a kilogram. Three hundred of them is 300 kg. Delivery is free within Dubai above AED 800, but outside Dubai and across the GCC shipping is charged by destination and quantity — and weight is what drives it here, not volume.
- Chocolate and heat. Between May and September, chocolate in an uncooled vehicle is a real risk. Plan the delivery date and the storage, and prefer dates to chocolate for anything shipped in summer.
How to order
- Confirm how the confectionery arrives — loose, in a sealed tray, or in individual cups. This decides food-grade board versus standard board, which is the biggest single cost swing.
- Give us the filled dimensions and weight, not just the box size you imagined. Tray footprint plus height plus a few millimetres of clearance determines the real box size.
- Pick stock size or custom. Stock sizes start at 50 pieces with no die; custom sizes start at 100. If your volume is under 100, use a stock size and put the money into the sticker, tag and ribbon.
- Send vector artwork (AI, EPS or PDF with fonts outlined) plus Pantone references. We prepare the artwork free and show you a proof before production.
- Allow 5 working days after final design approval for printed boxes, plus kitting time if we assemble. Ready-stock ribbon ships in 1 working day. For Ramadan, book the boxes six weeks out — the two weeks before Ramadan are the single busiest period of the UAE print year. See our Ramadan packaging timeline.
FAQ
Do you supply the dates and chocolate as well?
No. We supply and brand the packaging — boxes, sleeves, trays, ribbons, tags and stickers — and we can assemble the finished gift if you deliver the contents to us. Source the dates or chocolate from a specialist supplier; food sourcing carries shelf-life, storage and labelling obligations that belong with a food business, not a printer.
What is the cheapest credible dates gift box?
A stock printed gift box at AED 5.40 to AED 7 in packs of 50, finished with a gold-foil sticker at AED 0.46 and a ribbon. Under AED 8 in packaging, it looks considered because the foil does the work. For anything that needs to survive stacking or courier handling, move up to the corrugated box at AED 15.
Does my box need food-grade board?
Only if the food touches the board. Dates supplied in a sealed tray, pouch or paper cups do not require it, and skipping food board saves roughly AED 18 to AED 28 per box. Ask your date supplier how the product is packed before you specify.
Can you print in Arabic and English on the same box?
Yes, and for Ramadan and Eid gifting it is usually the right call. Supply both language versions as outlined vector text and tell us which is the primary reading direction so the layout mirrors correctly. Our Eid gift boxes guide covers the foiling options that work for bilingual lids.
What is the real difference between a magnetic box and a rigid magnetic box?
Construction, and it shows. The AED 38 magnetic box in packs of 50 is cardboard — good, stock-size, closes with a satisfying snap. The AED 73.50 hard-case box is 170 gsm art paper pasted onto 1500 gsm Kappa board: thicker walls, sharper edges, no flex. Hold both and the gap is obvious; in a photograph it is not. Budget accordingly.
How many ribbon rolls do I need for 300 boxes?
One 25-yard roll ties roughly 70 to 90 boxes on a standard gift box, depending on bow size and box depth, so budget four rolls for 300 and order five — the minimum is five rolls anyway and ribbon waste is normal. At AED 450 for five rolls that is AED 1.50 per box in ribbon.
Do prices include VAT and delivery?
All displayed prices include 5% VAT. Delivery is free within Dubai on orders over AED 800; outside Dubai and across the GCC, shipping is charged by destination and quantity, and filled date boxes are heavy enough that weight drives the cost. Collection is available from 32 Sheikh Zayed Road, Office 706, Dubai, open daily except Sunday, 09:00–21:00.
Get your gift box priced
Send us the filled dimensions and weight, your quantity, whether the contents touch the board, and whether you need us to assemble — we will come back with a per-box price including print and a production date. WhatsApp +971 52 210 0909 or call 052 210 0909, or start from the custom box collection. If you are still choosing a construction, our guide to magnetic, rigid and corrugated gift boxes compared goes deeper on the build types.
