Smart, Accessible, and Engaging: 7 Packaging Trends Shaping 2025

1. QR Codes Become Even More Important For Customer Experience — And Packaging Design

QR codes have experienced a resurgence — and they’re not going away. In fact, a 2024 GS1 U.S. consumer survey showed that 79% of shoppers are more likely to buy a product with a QR code that provides the information they want. Brands that use QR codes on their packaging:

• Boost customer engagement and loyalty with interactive games, contests, campaigns, and special promotions.
• Enhance the customer experience by giving easy access to additional content, including product information, recipes, and stories that communicate brand values.
• Free up space for impactful designs and the information required on your packaging.
• Improve accessibility based on a customer’s personal device, which has options for different languages, font sizes, and audio and visual aids.
• Can keep information shared via the code updated, keeping campaigns fresh and relevant and even delivering recall information if needed.

2. Brands Prepare For a Shift to 2D Barcodes

Another reason more brands are using QR codes is because of the global shift to 2D barcodes under GS1 Sunrise 2027. QR codes are a type of 2D barcode that can store much more data than traditional ones. 

Sunrise 2027 is encouraging retailers to upgrade their point-of-sale (POS) scanners to read 1D (EAN/UPC) and 2D barcodes by the end of 2027. What does this mean for you? If the promise of Sunrise 2027 holds true, your packaging will soon only need one 2D barcode that is scannable at checkout and by customers for additional product information and brand engagement.

However, many retailers aren’t ready for you to replace your traditional barcode quite yet. Adding a QR code to your packaging allows you to experiment with how you’ll engage your customers when 2D barcodes become the industry standard.

3. AI Brings Personalization to Packaging

You are undoubtedly thinking about how AI impacts your particular industry. In packaging, we see the most significant innovations in how brands personalize the content they deliver to customers via QR codes. (Those QR codes again!) Smart QR codes powered by AI let brands deliver tailored content, promotions, and experiences based on customer preferences.

For example, if influencer marketing is a big part of your strategy, you may want consumers to be able to scan your QR code to hear directly from an influencer. However, the message you want the influencer to share may differ based on various factors, like the customer’s location or even the weather forecast. Using generative AI, you can personalize the message the customer receives.

4. Consumers Demand Transparency — And Packaging Should Reflect That

Consumers are increasingly looking for products that emphasize clean ingredients, sustainability, and ethical sourcing. In fact, according to Nielsen, 76% of shoppers want brands to be transparent about health practices and sustainability in their marketing and labeling.

These consumer demands for transparency directly impact packaging design trends. Brands that communicate clear, honest product details will build trust and win loyal customers. To communicate transparency in your packaging, consider: 

• Using minimalist designs that imply fewer ingredients and simple, clean products.
• Identifying ways to show customers the product inside with the creative use of windows.
• Using QR codes to move less critical information off the packaging to draw greater attention to elements that reinforce transparency, including ingredient lists, certifications, and more.
• Helping consumers make eco-friendly choices by enhancing packaging sustainability and clearly highlighting sustainable business practices when they align with the brand and customer values.

5. Your Packaging Needs to Be Easy to Access By All Customers

If you want customers to continue to buy your products, they need to function well. That includes your packaging. Inclusive packaging ensures your products are accessible to diverse audiences, including those with vision, hearing, or mobility limitations. Here are a few examples of inclusive packaging features: 

• QR codes that, when scanned, read aloud important product information, like ingredients or allergens.
• Braille labeling to identify the product and the most important information.
• Lids that are easy to open for people with arthritis or dexterity challenges.
• Tactile varnishes or embossments that cue users into where to grip the product for easier opening and help people with vision impairment differentiate between products by feel.
• High-contrast colors that make packaging and labels easier to read.

6. E-Commerce Packaging Needs to Shine Online — And In Person

E-commerce has experienced rapid growth in recent years, with reports predicting it will capture 41% of global retail sales in 2027 — up from just 18% in 2017. Sell online? Keep these considerations in mind to stand out on digital marketplaces and deliver a solid in-person experience: 

• Your product packaging has to look appealing in an online 3D rendering to capture attention, but it also has to look and feel good when your customers receive it via mail.
• Your packaging must withstand shipping and delivery without damage, making factors like packaging headspace and durability key. Partner with your packaging partner to qualify your packaging to ensure it adequately protects your product.
• Unboxing is your customer’s first real interaction with your brand. Make it count. Use it to tell your brand story and reinforce your values. For example, luxury goods need premium packaging materials, and sustainable brands require eco-friendly packaging.

7. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Begins to Impact Brands

Consumers don’t just increasingly want to buy from sustainable brands. Businesses are also under increasing regulatory pressure to take responsibility for the environmental impact of their packaging. One major development shaping the packaging landscape is Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). 

EPR shifts the cost of packaging waste management onto the brands that produce and sell packaged products in certain states. Oregon, California, and Colorado have enacted laws requiring brand owners and private label retailers to pay fees based on packaging materials used to help the states fund recycling and waste management programs.

An Innovative Packaging Partner Helps You Thrive

In packaging, staying ahead means continually innovating. At Belmark, we don’t just meet today’s packaging needs. We anticipate tomorrow’s needs and invest in technology, materials, and process improvements that will help your business grow. 

We are not ones to settle for what’s working today. We always look for ways to enhance quality, efficiency, and sustainability because your success is our top priority. When you partner with Belmark, you don’t just get packaging. You get a team who is always working toward something better — with you in mind. 

Ready to design packaging that moves your business forward? Let’s discuss.