Where can I buy affordable tall shipping boxes for Etsy plant orders?

Hi! For that 6 × 6 × 30" size, most Etsy sellers who get their per-box cost under ~$2 are either (1) buying from packaging wholesalers that discount hard at 100–500+ quantities, or (2) buying a longer “stock” box (like 6 × 6 × 36") and cutting it down to 30" so they’re not paying the “specialty tall box” premium.

Here are reliable places to check (and how sellers usually use them):

• Packaging wholesalers (best for low per-box in bulk): Interplas, WebstaurantStore (Lavex brand), SupplyLand, Benchmark, Uline. These typically have 6 × 6 × 30" “tall boxes” (or 30 × 6 × 6 long boxes that work the same), and the price usually drops a lot at 100/250/500/1000+ quantities. The big “gotcha” is shipping/freight, so always compare delivered cost, not just the box price.
• Office/retail (good for emergencies, usually pricier): Staples can carry 6 × 6 × 30" bundles, often with store pickup, but it’s commonly more expensive per box than wholesale.
• Local pickup / free sources (surprisingly good for tall plant boxes):
  • Lighting stores (floor lamp boxes), golf shops (club boxes), carpet/flooring stores (long/tall cartons), hydroponic/grow shops, and sometimes nurseries (ask for “tall narrow corrugated” they’re recycling).
  • Search locally for “packaging supplies / corrugated boxes” distributors—many will let you do will-call pickup, which is where you can save the most versus paying shipping on bulky cartons.

A few reliable ways to reduce your per-box cost without compromising protection:

• Buy 6 × 6 × 36" (or similar) and cut down to 30". If you can get the longer box cheaper/more available, you can trim 6" off and re-score/fold for a clean factory-style seam. Sellers do this a lot for plants because it keeps the seedlings upright and makes the size “flexible.”
• Standardize to 1–2 box sizes total. The moment you’re buying 5 different “almost the same” tall boxes, you lose volume discounts fast.
• Check delivered price by case size. Sometimes a slightly higher per-box listing ends up cheaper if the seller’s shipping rates are better (or they ship from closer to you).
• Ask for a quote once you’re near 250–500+ boxes. Many suppliers will beat the website price when you’re buying by the bale/pallet, especially if you’re flexible on exact style (regular slotted vs “tall box” that opens on the end).

If you tell me roughly how many tall boxes you go through per month and whether you need them to be exactly 30" (or “up to 30"), I can suggest the most cost-effective buy strategy (bundle size + whether cutting down longer boxes will actually save you money after labor).