The best examples of 3 minimalist packaging design ideas (and how to steal them smartly)

Real examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design in the wild

Let’s start with what everyone actually wants: real packages, real brands, and real-world constraints. When people search for examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design, they’re usually trying to figure out: Can I make my packaging look clean, eco-friendly, and still sell more stuff? Short answer: yes, if you’re willing to strip away the fluff.

Here are three core minimalist approaches, each backed by multiple brands doing it well:

• ultra-simple graphics and typography
• material-light structures
• refillable or reusable formats with almost no visual noise

Within those three, you’ll see 6–8 concrete examples of brands making minimalist packaging work in 2024–2025.

Example of ultra-simple graphics: Apple, Brandless, and Muji

When people talk about the best examples of minimalist packaging design, Apple always shows up first, and honestly, it deserves the hype. Apple’s product boxes are mostly white space, a single product image, tiny typography, and a small logo. What you don’t see is just as important as what you do see: no giant slogans, no walls of text, and no visual chaos.

This kind of minimalist packaging design isn’t just about aesthetics. Fewer ink colors and fewer printed surfaces generally mean less resource use and easier recyclability. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, packaging and containers make up a significant portion of municipal solid waste, and reducing materials at the design stage is one of the most effective waste-prevention strategies (EPA source). Apple has steadily shrunk its packaging volume and removed plastic wraps from many boxes, showing how minimalist visuals can pair with material reduction.

Brandless took this idea in a different direction: simple colored background, white label, plain product name, and almost nothing else. It looked like a design student’s final project in the best way. The message was: you’re paying for what’s inside, not for a fireworks show on the outside. That stripped-down look also made it easier to standardize packaging formats and reduce waste.

Muji has been quietly doing this for decades. Clear or unbleached containers, simple kraft paper, and tiny, functional labels. Muji’s packaging is a live example of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design principles at once:

• minimal color
• minimal printing
• minimal structural complexity

The result: packaging that is easy to recycle, cheap to produce, and visually calming.

Material-light minimalist packaging: Everlane, Who Gives A Crap, and Public Goods

Some of the best examples of minimalist packaging design are less about what’s printed and more about what’s missing physically.

Everlane ships clothing in slim, right-sized mailers with minimal branding and simple black text on a neutral background. No shiny coating, no wild graphics. This approach saves on materials, reduces shipping weight, and usually makes recycling easier. It also aligns with the brand’s transparency story: if you’re going to publish your cost breakdowns, it makes sense that your packaging isn’t over the top.

Toilet paper brand Who Gives A Crap takes a playful approach while still staying relatively minimalist structurally. The rolls are wrapped in paper, not plastic, with bold but simple patterns and limited colors. The outer shipping box is plain cardboard with simple line illustrations and short copy. The design feels fun, but the structure is basic and material-light. It’s a good example of minimalist packaging design that doesn’t have to be visually silent to be environmentally smart.

Public Goods goes even more stripped down. Their bottles and boxes are typically one solid color (often white or neutral), a short product name in a clean font, and minimal extra text. The structures are simple cylinders, rectangles, or pouches. No custom die-cuts, no excessive inserts. It’s a real-world example of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design ideas working together: simple shapes, minimal artwork, and standardized components across the product line.

From a sustainability standpoint, using simpler mono-material packaging can help improve recyclability, which is a recurring recommendation from agencies like the EPA and organizations such as the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC overview). Minimalist design often nudges brands toward those simpler, more recyclable structures.

Refillable and reusable minimalist packaging: Lush, Fenty Skin, and Blueland

If you’re looking for examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design that also push waste reduction further, refillable systems are where things get interesting.

Lush sells many products “naked” (no packaging at all) or in simple black pots designed to be returned and reused. The graphics are stark: black container, white handwritten-style type, very limited extra decoration. By stripping the visuals down, Lush keeps the focus on the product and the reuse story. It’s a bold example of minimalist packaging design where the absence of packaging is part of the brand identity.

Fenty Skin introduced refillable components with smooth, pastel-toned outer shells and very little text. The cartridges inside are plain and functional. The outer packaging is meant to be kept; the inner refills are as minimal as possible. This two-part system is a modern example of minimalist packaging design where the visible part is aesthetically refined and the hidden part is material-efficient.

Blueland’s cleaning tablets arrive in tiny, minimal paper-based packets that pair with reusable, branded bottles. The packets are nearly bare: small logo, product name, and basic instructions. This shows how examples include not only how the final retail box looks, but also how refills and secondary packaging are treated.

The U.S. EPA and many sustainability researchers highlight source reduction and reuse as top strategies for cutting packaging waste (EPA source reduction overview). Refillable minimalist systems like these are practical examples of that hierarchy in action.

Minimalist packaging trends for 2024–2025

Minimalist packaging isn’t a passing aesthetic; it’s evolving as regulations, consumer expectations, and material science shift. When you look for examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design in 2024–2025, a few clear trends pop up:

1. Less plastic, more paper and mono-materials

Brands are swapping complex multilayer plastics for paperboard, molded fiber, or single-type plastics that are easier to recycle. Minimalist design makes this easier because you’re not trying to engineer elaborate structures just to stand out visually.

You’ll see more:

• uncoated or lightly coated cardboard
• molded pulp trays instead of plastic inserts
• paper-based tapes and labels

This shift aligns with broader efforts to reduce plastic waste, which is an ongoing concern in environmental health and sustainability research (NIH environmental health topic overview).

2. Radical reduction in printing and color

One of the best examples of minimalist packaging trends is the move toward single-color or two-color printing. Brands are:

• using one ink color on kraft or white stock
• relying on typography and layout instead of illustrations
• embracing blank space as a design element

This cuts ink use and often simplifies recycling, since some heavily printed or heavily coated papers are harder to process.

3. QR codes instead of cluttered panels

Regulatory information, ingredients, sourcing details, and marketing copy used to cover every surface. Now, many minimalist packages keep the front and sides clean and move the heavy text load to a QR code or website.

This gives you a clearer front panel while still providing the transparency consumers expect. It also means you can update information digitally instead of reprinting every time regulations or claims change.

4. Standardized shapes, custom labels

Instead of custom-molded bottles for every product, more brands are:

• using the same jar or bottle shape across categories
• differentiating products through labels and caps

This standardization reduces tooling costs, simplifies logistics, and can reduce overall material use. It’s another subtle example of minimalist packaging design working backstage on the operations side.

How to apply these examples of minimalist packaging design to your brand

Let’s translate these real examples into something you can actually use. When you study examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design—Apple’s boxes, Muji’s labels, Blueland’s refills—you can pull out a few practical moves.

Strip your front panel down to the bare minimum

Ask yourself: if you could only keep three things on the front of your package, what would they be? Most brands land on:

• product name
• brand name or logo
• one short benefit or descriptor

Everything else can move to the back, side, or a QR code. This instantly makes your design feel calmer and more premium.

Limit your color palette

Pick one primary color, one neutral (white, black, or kraft), and maybe one accent. Many of the best examples of minimalist packaging design stick to two or three colors total. This:

• cuts printing costs
• can reduce environmental impact from inks
• makes your brand instantly recognizable on the shelf

Standardize your structures

Look at your product line and see where you can standardize:

• same bottle type for multiple SKUs
• one or two box sizes
• shared closures or pumps

This echoes what you see in real examples like Public Goods and Muji. It also makes future design updates much easier.

Choose materials with the end of life in mind

Minimalist packaging that looks clean but is impossible to recycle isn’t really minimalist in spirit. Aim for:

• mono-material designs (all paper or all one type of plastic)
• clearly labeled materials
• avoiding mixed materials that are hard to separate

Government and academic resources, such as the EPA’s recycling guidelines and university sustainability centers, consistently stress the importance of designing for recyclability from the start (EPA recycling basics).

FAQs about minimalist packaging (with real examples)

What are some real examples of minimalist packaging design that are also eco-friendly?

Real-world examples include Apple’s increasingly plastic-free product boxes, Muji’s simple kraft and clear packaging, Everlane’s low-ink shipping mailers, Lush’s “naked” products and reusable black pots, and Blueland’s tiny refill packets paired with long-lasting bottles. These examples include both visual simplicity and material reduction.

Can minimalist packaging still stand out on the shelf?

Yes. Many of the best examples of minimalist packaging design stand out because they’re quiet. In a sea of loud colors and crowded labels, a calm, simple design reads as confident and modern. Think of Brandless or Public Goods products: they’re almost aggressively simple, which makes them memorable.

Is there an example of minimalist packaging that completely eliminates packaging?

Lush’s naked products are a strong example. Solid shampoo bars, soaps, and bath bombs are often sold with no traditional packaging at all, or with only a small paper band. This is an extreme form of minimalist packaging design where the product itself is the “package.”

What industries are best suited for minimalist packaging?

Personal care, cosmetics, home cleaning, and electronics are full of examples of minimalist packaging design that work well. Food and beverage brands are also leaning into it, especially for coffee, tea, and pantry staples. That said, almost any industry can adopt minimalist elements: simpler graphics, fewer materials, and cleaner information hierarchy.

How do I know if I’m overdoing minimalism?

If customers are confused about what the product is, how to use it, or what’s inside, you’ve gone too far. The best examples of minimalist packaging design keep things clear and legible. Minimal doesn’t mean mysterious; it means intentional.

Minimalist packaging design isn’t about stripping away personality; it’s about stripping away waste—visual and physical. When you look at strong examples of 3 examples of minimalist packaging design in 2024–2025, you see the same pattern over and over: fewer materials, fewer distractions, and more thoughtful choices. Start small, test one product or one line, and let your packaging breathe a little. Your brand—and the recycling bin—will thank you.