Pharmaceutical packaging can look complete in an artwork file and still become difficult to use once it reaches a patient, caregiver, pharmacist, or healthcare professional.
Older people with declining eyesight may find it difficult to read the small print on labels; packaging that looks similar may make it hard to distinguish between different medicines or strengths; and when medicine bottles are removed from their outer packaging, they may lack the information needed to clearly identify the product.
Good pharmaceutical packaging design meets the needs of the people using the medicine, makes different products and strengths easy to distinguish, and keeps essential information available after opening. It also protects the product throughout use, reduces unnecessary packaging waste, and is tested with intended users to identify practical difficulties.
Designing for the People Who Actually Use the Medicine
A useful starting point is not the box. It is the person who will handle it.
The people handling a medicine may have different abilities and needs. Older adults with declining eyesight may struggle to read small print on a carton or label, while users who are blind or have low vision depend on tactile identifiers that must be positioned away from creases and flaps. These limitations may influence the packaging design.
For folding cartons, the structure should make the product easy to access and remove. Carton dimensions, flap design, and the arrangement of any inserts should allow users to take out the product and leaflet. For pharmaceutical labels, limited space makes information priorities especially important. Medicine names and strengths should be easy to locate, with readable text, clear contrast, and enough spacing to separate key details. Reducing decorative elements can free up space before resorting to smaller type.
A Recognizable Brand, Clearly Different Medicines
Consistent typography, logos, and layouts help people recognize a pharmaceutical brand. However, when shared brand elements dominate the design, differences between medicines, strengths, or dosage forms can become easy to overlook.
The FDA’s guidance on container labels and carton labeling advises companies to consider whether their brand presentation makes products within the same range difficult to distinguish. The guidance addresses US human prescription drugs and biological products. For both folding cartons and product labels, the design challenge is to preserve a familiar brand identity while making each medicine’s identifying information prominent.
A consistent layout can help by placing medicine names and strengths where users expect to find them. Logos and brand typography can remain uniform, while prominent strength text, borders, or contrasting panels emphasize differences between products. Color can reinforce these distinctions, but it should not be the only cue: people perceive colors differently, and lighting can alter their appearance.
Essential Information After the Pack Is Opened
A carton, label, and leaflet may be reviewed together during design, but they can become separated during use. Once a bottle or vial is removed from its outer box, users still need to identify the product from the information that remains attached to it.
Pharmaceutical cartons provide space for more detailed information, while small labels must accommodate essential identification within a limited area. These components should be planned together so that the information needed is not left only on the carton. The specific content required on each component depends on the product, packaging format, and applicable market requirements.
Keeping information available also depends on the label remaining intact. CNN Package encountered this issue with a small peptide vial label measuring only 40 × 20 mm. The artwork contained relatively detailed text and graphics, so paper was initially selected because it produced clear printed details. However, the vial was intended for an environment where the label could come into contact with water, and testing showed that moisture could cause the paper and adhesive layers to separate.
The solution involved more than simply changing the label stock. The information was simplified so that the limited label area focused on the most important content, while the material was changed to a synthetic paper better suited to moisture exposure. This allowed the essential information to remain clear and attached to the vial under the expected conditions of use.
This experience highlights the importance of considering the label’s expected environment alongside its artwork. A label may look clear immediately after printing, but good pharmaceutical packaging design also considers whether essential information will remain readable and physically attached to the product throughout its intended use.
Product Protection Through Everyday Use
Pharmaceutical packaging needs to protect products during storage, delivery, and everyday handling. For folding cartons, this means considering the box dimensions and any inserts together. A suitable fit helps limit unnecessary movement while allowing the product to be packed and removed without excessive force or friction.
Protection also includes controlling access and showing whether a package has been opened or disturbed. Child-resistant packaging makes access more difficult for young children while remaining usable by adults. Tamper-evident features, such as seals that visibly break when opened, help reveal interference.
Sustainable Packaging Beyond Material Choice
Good pharmaceutical packaging design also considers environmental impact. Choosing recyclable materials where suitable, reducing excess space, and removing unnecessary packaging components can help reduce waste while maintaining product protection. For cartons and mailers, this means using an appropriate size and choosing structures that provide the required protection without adding unnecessary bulk.
Reducing packaging does not always mean removing protection. In some cases, it means redesigning how that protection is provided. For example, a small glass vial may be held in place with a folded corrugated paperboard insert that supports the neck and base instead of using a foam insert. A carton designed with a plastic window to display the product may also be reconsidered if the same purpose can be achieved by printing a clear product image on the carton instead.
These choices can also bring practical benefits. More compact packaging takes up less storage and shipping space, while reducing excess material and filler may lower packaging costs. Making different components easy to separate can also help users sort them for recycling where suitable facilities are available.
Testing the Design With Real Users
A design team knows where to find information and how the packaging opens. Someone seeing it for the first time may struggle with details the team takes for granted. Testing physical samples with intended users can reveal these difficulties before the design is finalized.
Ask participants to identify a medicine and its strength, find specific information on the label, and open the carton to remove the product. Observe where they hesitate, misread text, or have difficulty handling the packaging. NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service recommends testing instructions with representative users in realistic scenarios where appropriate. A similar approach can help assess how clearly the packaging communicates and how easily it can be used.
The findings should guide specific changes. A frequently overlooked strength may need greater visual emphasis, while difficulty removing the product may call for changes to the carton or insert. Trying the revised sample with users helps establish whether those changes resolve the problem.
Good Pharmaceutical Packaging Design Works as a System
Good pharmaceutical packaging design brings structure, materials, and printed information together so people can identify the medicine, access it easily, and find essential details throughout use. The design should provide appropriate protection and avoid unnecessary waste, with user feedback helping reveal where improvements are needed.
Planning pharmaceutical cartons, labels, or outer shipping packaging? Explore CNN Package’s healthcare and pharmaceutical packaging solutions and share your product dimensions, artwork, and intended use conditions to discuss suitable packaging options.
