What to put on a hang tag is a question every new brand asks at the last minute – usually when the printer is already waiting for the file. A hang tag has two sides and two different jobs. The front sells the brand: it's the tiny billboard a shopper sees on the rail. The back sells the product: it carries the price, size, barcode and the details that help a customer decide and help the shop record the sale. Here's a detailed checklist for each side and three example layouts.
Front: the brand
The front should be recognisable in a second. The fewer elements there are, the stronger the impact.
Must-have on the front
- Logo or brand name – centred or in the upper half, with plenty of breathing room around it.
Optional
- Tagline or short message – five or six words at most, e.g. "Made in small batches".
- Collection or season name – useful if you sell several lines.
- A graphic element – a pattern, a symbol, foil, embossing. This is where premium finishes belong.
Tip: if your logo is horizontal and the tag is portrait, don't shrink it until it's unreadable. Use the symbol or monogram on the front and the full name on the back.
Woven label 8.5 cm x 7 cm – Gold effect, jacquard
Satin label 6 cm x 3 cm – printing on satin ribbon
Woven labels 6.5 cm x 3 cm – print on fabricBack: the commercial information
The back is the working side. It should be laid out like a table – shoppers and staff look for specific information in a specific place.
Back-side checklist
- Price – in euros. If the price varies between stockists, leave a blank space for a price sticker.
- Size – S/M/L, numeric (38, 40) or waist/length for jeans (W32 L34). Large type here saves everyone time.
- Colour – by name, not just a code.
- Style number (SKU) – your internal stock code, e.g. TS-024-BLK-M.
- EAN-13 barcode – a unique code for every style-colour-size combination. Nominal size is about 37 × 26 mm, with white quiet zones to the left and right.
- Composition summary – e.g. "100% cotton". Note: this is only a convenience. Legally, fibre composition must be on the sewn-in label, not only on a tag the customer will tear off.
- Country of origin – not required by the EU textile regulation, but many shoppers look for it.
- Website, QR code or social handles – a QR code can lead to the product page, a size chart or your brand story.
What must NOT live only on the hang tag
A hang tag is temporary – it comes off the first time the garment is worn. Anything that has to stay with the garment for its whole life goes on the sewn-in label:
- Fibre composition (mandatory under Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011, in the official language of the country where it's sold).
- Care symbols (washing, ironing, dry cleaning) – voluntary in the EU, but expected.
- Size – handy on the sewn-in label too, so it's still identifiable after washing.
For these labels, browse our satin and woven labels – satin is soft and well suited to printed text and care symbols.
Example layouts
Example 1: a basics T-shirt
Format: 45 × 75 mm, 300 gsm, uncoated board.
- Front: logo in black, nothing else.
- Back: size in large type, colour, SKU, barcode, "100% cotton", website.
The price goes on a separate sticker because the tee is also sold through stockists at different prices.
Example 2: jeans
Format: slim 40 × 110 mm, 400 gsm kraft, black foil.
- Front: vertical logo, with the fit name beneath it ("Slim 02").
- Back: W/L size, fit (slim, regular, wide), denim weight in ounces or gsm, composition, wash colour, barcode, price.
With jeans, the fit is the second most important detail after size – it's exactly what shoppers hunt for. Metal hardware such as buttons and rivets should match the tone of the foil.
Example 3: a handmade product
Format: 50 × 90 mm, 350 gsm uncoated board, cotton string.
- Front: logo and the words "Handmade".
- Back: two or three sentences of story ("Each piece is sewn from..."), composition, care notes, a space for a handwritten piece number, and a QR code to the website.
Here the tag tells a story, so more copy is appropriate – just keep the type size readable, at least 7 pt.
Hierarchy and legibility
- One main thing per side. The logo on the front, the size on the back.
- Minimum 6–7 pt for secondary information. Anything smaller is hard to read under shop lighting.
- Contrast. Dark text on a light background. Grey on kraft is practically invisible.
- White space. Keep at least 3–4 mm clear from the edges and around the hole.
- Keep the barcode away from the hole. The string or fastener must not cover the bars, or the scanner won't read them.
How not to overload the tag
The most common mistake is trying to say everything: story, values, care instructions in three languages, five social icons and a QR code. The result is a tag where nothing stands out. If you have a lot to say:
- use a QR code that links to a page with more detail;
- choose a folded, four-panel booklet tag;
- put the brand story on a separate card in the parcel rather than on the tag.
One design for the whole collection
The most economical approach is a single front design for the whole collection, with variable information on the back only. Size, colour, barcode and price are printed digitally or added with a sticker. That way you order one large run of the same base and the unit cost drops.
The tag and the rest of your trims
The hang tag, the sewn-in label and the hardware on the garment should speak the same language: the same typeface, the same colours, the same metal tone. If the tag logo is in gold foil but the snaps are black oxide, the sense of a coherent product is lost.
Bul-tex manufactures and supplies garment trims – woven, satin and metal labels, buttons, ribbons – and accepts custom orders for brands. If you need labels in your own design, drop us a line. You'll find more practical guides in our labels section.
