Popcorn box maker
Popcorn box template
The movie-night snack box: a small floor, four walls that lean out and a wide open top. Type the opening's width and depth and the height.
How to fold it
Print at 100% on cardstock; 200 gsm or heavier keeps the flared walls from bowing when the box is full.
Cut the outline. The four corners between the walls are open wedges: cut right into them, round the grey tabs.
Crease the four floor edges and the four slanted tab creases.
Fold the front and back walls up and turn their four grey tabs inward.
Fold each side wall up over two tabs and glue them from inside, holding each corner until the glue grips.
Fill it up to the rim. Stacked one inside another, empty boxes store in a short pile.
How the template is drawn
Opening, not floor
The width and depth you type are the open top, inside. The floor is smaller by the lean of the walls: 2.75 in (69.8 mm) by 1.75 in (44.4 mm) at 3.5 × 2.5 × 5 in.
How far the walls lean
Each wall leans out 9.6 mm (0.38 in) over its height: a tenth of the height, and never more than 15% of the narrower side, so the floor keeps at least 70% of the opening. That is 4.3° from upright here.
Slanted walls are longer
A leaning wall is longer than the box is tall: 127.6 mm (5.02 in) from floor to rim here, the square root of the height² plus the lean².
Tabs in the corner wedges
The 12 mm (0.47 in) glue tabs sit in the open wedge between two walls. Where the wedge is narrowest, at the floor, each tab is cut back so it never overlaps the side wall on the sheet.
Tab angle
Because the walls lean, two neighbouring walls meet at slightly more than a right angle, and each tab folds by slightly less than 90° to lie flat against the side wall.
Movie nights, parties and snack bars
Print a set on red and white stripes for a film night, or give each guest a box with their name. The box is always at least as tall as it is wide; for a low snack tray, use the box with lid as a tray alone.
For popcorn that has to travel closed, use the tuck end box with the ready-made popcorn size. A gable box carries treats by the handle, a pillow box holds a few sweets, and a box with lid keeps a gift hidden.
Fill the box just before you serve it, so the popcorn stays crisp rather than softening in the open top. The leaning walls make the opening wider than the floor, so a hand slides in easily and guests can reach the bottom without tipping the box.
