The Best Printable Vinyl for Stickers

Are you looking for the best printable vinyl for stickers? Are you making stickers but not getting the results that you want? Choosing the right paper or vinyl for your sticker project is key to getting the best looking, best sticking, and most durable stickers possible. This is most important if you are selling them but can be just as important if you are really into making your own.

Today, we’re focusing on printable vinyl only. I’m going to talk about 9 brands of printable vinyl and how they measure up against each other. I’ll reveal a winner and runner-up in the matte and glossy category and one budget pick. I’ll talk about how they printed and cut, their sturdiness and stickiness, and how they held up with water.

Let’s get started!

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Tested Printable Vinyl

We tested 10 printable vinyl brands: four glossy and five matte, and one holographic sticker paper just for the fun of it.

1. AIVA (Glossy)
2. Silhouette (Matte)
3. Joyeza (Matte)
4. Zicoto (Glossy)
5. J&J Packaging (Glossy)
6. Uokho (Holographic)
7. Expressions Vinyl (Matte)
8. Cricut (Matte)
9. Orajet 1917 (Matte)
10. HTVRont (Glossy)

Printable Vinyl Winners

I had some trouble choosing the best printable vinyl winner and runner-up for the glossies, but we did get it done. I enlisted some other opinions because my eye was not as discerning as others.

The Zicoto. has a high gloss and nice vibrancy, and it cuts beautifully on the rice paper setting with more pressure.

For the best matte printable vinyl, choose the Silhouette brand. Although it’s a bit pricey, overall, it’s a fantastic printable vinyl from a brand you can trust.

If you like a more demi-gloss, go for the HTVRONT. It, too, prints and cuts great and looks beautiful.

If you’re on a budget, try the J&J Packaging brand. It has a super high sheen to it if you want some extra gloss. It’s more expensive than the HTVRONT but it is a little better quality overall in sturdiness.

Overall, try the Zicoto unless you need a blank backing. Otherwise, try HTVRONT and J&J Packaging and see which one you like best.

General Characteristics

• All of the brands are vinyl except the Uokhu holographic. It is paper and indicated as waterproof.
• The Zicoto and AIVA are listed as water resistant.
• J&J Packaging is listed as tear and scratch-resistant.
• All are quite popular, highly rated, and used by many.

So how do they feel? Well, the ones with the highest sheen tended to feel a bit rougher than the ones with a bit less sheen.

• The J&J Packaging and HTVRONT felt nice and smooth and the best of the glossies.
• The matte vinyl felt the same, as there was no gloss to make them feel slicker.
• The AIVA and HTVRONT vinyl were surprisingly tacky (as in sticky) when using a brayer to press it to the cutting mat.
• The Zicoto, Orajet 1917, and Cricut Printable Vinyl had non-blank backings.

I want to especially mention the Cricut Printable Vinyl. The first thing I noticed was the ink feathering and bleeding. Also, some of the straight lines were blurred. I cut it on the rice paper setting, and the kiss cut came out fine. I cut another sheet on the washi tape 0.06 mm setting with more pressure, and it cut well also. But when I printed on it, it came out wet and required drying time. It’s the only paper that came out wet. A few spots were missing ink, and the lines were not sharp.

So give the washi tape setting a try if the rice paper setting doesn’t work well for you. The reason I went with rice paper this time is because I haven’t had the best luck in the past with the regular washi tape setting, so I was surprised at how well it worked with this vinyl. But from now on, I think my go-to setting will be the washi tape 0.06mm setting.

Vibrancy

Let’s cover vibrancy, or how they looked—the matte first, as it was the most interesting. I’ll get right to it; one paper stood leaps and bounds above the rest, and I was surprised that there was that much of a difference. It was the Silhouette brand.

What caught my attention was the van windshield sticker with yellow streaks. They were almost imperceptible in all of the other brands except two, and it was very visible in Silhouette. So, I compared the windshield and other stickers to the other brands, and the Silhouette brand sticker was more saturated and brighter than the others. The only other vinyl that came close was the Expressions Vinyl brand.

You’ll pay for the quality of these two brands, though. Silhouette printable vinyl is the most expensive, and Expressions Vinyl brand is $1.99 per sheet. But if you’re serious about stickers, you won’t balk at the price tag of the Silhouette brand because there’s no comparison to be had.

And if you’re selling stickers, the quality of your stickers will be superb. There’s no loss of quality either with a transparent vinyl liner on top to give it gloss and protection, so take that into consideration when you choose your sticker brand.

Want to learn more about vinyl? Check out my post on The Best Permanent Vinyl for Cricut!

Pricing

The vinyl ranges in price from 40¢ to $1.99 per sheet. Some have really great packaging that can be reused, and some have terrible packaging that needs to be replaced after opening.

The *cost of the printable vinyl brands breaks down as follows:

1. Uokho (Holographic): 20 sheets for $8.99.
2. Zicoto (Glossy): 15 sheets for $9.99.
3. AIVA (Glossy): 15 sheets for $13.95.
4. HTVRONT (Glossy): 40 sheets for $15.99.
5. J&J Packaging (Glossy): 15 sheets for $7.64.
6. Orajet 1917 (Matte): 25 sheets for $49.99.
7. Cricut (Matte): 10 sheets for $7.49.
8. Joyeza (Matte): 25 sheets for $12.97.
9. Expressions Vinyl (Matte): $1.99 per sheet.
10. Silhouette (Matte): 8 sheets for $9.05.

*Prices updated November 2023. All prices are listed in USD.

Now that we’ve covered the best printable vinyl winners, runners-up, and pricing, let’s get more specific.

Printing

My printer is the Canon TS9521C All-In-One Wireless Crafting Photo Printer. I really like this printer. It does use ink quickly, though, but I find it not to be too expensive. I printed on photo glossy, high quality.

All of the glossies came out dry except the Cricut brand; all but the Cricut brand needed additional time out of the printer. I do have a rear feeding tray and I used that for all of them because some of the vinyl is a little thicker or has thicker backing than others. I’ve heard that some sticker vinyl doesn’t feed well from the tray and I can believe it. Some of these vinyl with backing were pretty thick. Also, I wouldn’t want to bend them. So, I recommend a printer with a rear feed tray. I didn’t have any issues with bleed or poor printing, such as fuzzy lines, except with the Cricut brand.

Cutting

As for cutting, I used the rice paper setting, or rice paper setting with more pressure, for all the vinyl except when I put transparent vinyl on top for waterproofing, which was Oracal 651 or Craftables Transparent Vinyl. Then I used the glossy vinyl, permanent setting. The rice paper setting asked for the deep cut blade, but I didn’t use it; I used the fine point blade instead since I wanted kiss cuts.

I used a Cricut Maker 3, and it read the registration marks on all of the glossy vinyl, but I was in normal light with some shadowing. On one, I cut a glossy sheet in high-level lighting, and it still read the registration marks just fine. I used more pressure on the Zicoto, HTVRont, and AIVA. The Uokho wouldn’t cut correctly with more pressure and two passes, so I ended up cutting it on sticker paper, which gave it a die cut or a cut all the way through, making individual stickers.

For many, the cut was fine. But for two, even with more pressure, it wasn’t quite enough to make it easy to peel the stickers off.

The glossy vinyl Zicoto and HTVRont are thin stickers no matter how thick or thin their backing paper is, and the rice paper setting with more pressure was perfect for them. Both were cut with more pressure. Of course, their thinness becomes less of an issue when you put transparent vinyl on top, but it still made them perfect for thinner materials like paper and phone cases

The AIVA and Silhouette needed second passes on the rice paper setting with more pressure. I tried the Silhouette vinyl a second time on the Washi 0.06 mm washi tape setting with more pressure, and it came out very similar to Rice paper with more pressure; maybe a tiny bit cleaner, but it only needed one pass. So, I would recommend this setting instead of rice paper with more pressure.

The matte vinyl Orajet 1917 wasn’t anything to write home about, especially with its cost, but the rice paper setting worked well for it. We already discussed the Cricut brand, and the Joyeza was very comparable to the J&J Packaging and Expressions Vinyl. The J&J Packaging vinyl won out over Joyeza because it is a bit less expensive and just a bit glossier. But you would be hard-pressed to dislike it, even side-by-side, and if you can’t get J&J packaging because it is out of stock, Joyeza would make a fine substitute as a backup brand.

A note about the transparent vinyl I used: I found the Craftables brand easier to work with than the Oracal 651. I didn’t try any laminate this time, only because the Avery brand that most people use was out of stock for a while, and I couldn’t get my hands on it. I also liked the fact that I could try Oracal 651, which has some UV protection to it.

Oracal also makes Oracal 210 and Oracal 236 UV protection laminating film that may be worth trying. Oracal 210 is lighter, and Oracal 236 is rated for harsher outdoor weather. If you have tried it, please let us know your experience with either or both in the comments.

Sturdiness

I ran a number of sturdiness tests a couple of ways. The items I chose to put the stickers on were the back of an iPad, a phone case, some envelopes, a tumbler, and a glass jar. I tested for peeling, tearing, scratching, and indenting, how hard it was to remove from its backing, and how hard it was to remove from the item.

When I talk about our best printable vinyl winners and runners-up, Zicoto, HTVRont, Silhouette, and Expressions Vinyl, I am talking about those with transparent vinyl on them. Because in almost every case, you are going to want to use the sticker with the vinyl on it for waterproofing, or to make them glossy. If it’s one of the winning vinyl without the transparent vinyl on top, I’ll mention it.

To test for peeling, I picked at each sticker with my fingernails hard. I was able to get a few to lift. Most people wouldn’t be doing this, so it’s more representative of how sturdy the sticker is over time getting knocked around. And I picked at them very, very hard. Of our winners, the HTVRont, Expressions Vinyl, and Silhouette would not peel. The Zicoto and J&J Packaging peeled, as did the Uokho holographic. So those are a little more sensitive than the others.

As for tearing, I couldn’t at all tear the Zicoto or the Silhouette. They would rather have stretched out than tear, and I gave it all my might. The Expressions Vinyl was extremely difficult to tear also. But the HTVRont tore easily, even with the transparent vinyl on it. I also couldn’t tear the budget pick, J&J Packaging, even without the transparent vinyl. The Cricut printable vinyl tore like paper, and the Orajet 1917 wouldn’t tear at all. I couldn’t tear the Joyeza also.

As for scratching and indenting, it was a mixed bag. I can’t recommend the holographic Uokho at all. The scratching and indents were so bad I immediately gave it a non-recommendation. The Zicoto had almost no scratching and no idents, while the HTVRont had no scratches, and it was hard to indent it. I couldn’t scratch the Expressions Vinyl, and there were little to no indentations when I tried, and the Silhouette had little or no scratches and almost no indentations when I tried to destroy it. As for the others, The AIVA looked good with no scratching but had a moderate number of indentations. J&J Packaging had no scratches but an average amount of indentations, Orajet 1917 had scratches but no indentations. Cricut had both, and Joyeza had neither.

How hard was it to remove these stickers from their backing? Well, most of these were cut on the rice paper setting, some with more pressure. The easiest ones were the Zicoto, HTVRont, Silhouette, J&J Packaging and Joyeza. The one that was really difficult was the Expressions Vinyl with and without transparent vinyl on top. It really needed a different setting than rice paper with more pressure without the transparent vinyl and the glossy permanent vinyl setting with the transparent vinyl topper. It’s a thick vinyl, and it becomes super thick with transparent vinyl on top. I might have cardstock with less pressure next. I didn’t get the opportunity to try, as I only had two sheets.

As for removing stickers from the objects, the only one of the winners and runners-up that I could not get off was the Expressions Vinyl. That sticker was on to stay. The rest removed after a bit of work. This included the Zicoto, AIVA, HTVRont, J&J Packaging, and Silhouette.

Water Resistance and Waterproofing

Last, the water tests. I let all of the stickers set for 24 hours, then I tested heavy water resistance and water proofing. For water resistance, I sprinkled water all over the tumbler several times and let it bead up and dry naturally in between and took notes. Then, I hand-washed them for a long time three separate times, let them dry in between, and took notes.

For waterproof testing, I submerged the phone case for five minutes in a tub of water. I only tested the stickers with the transparent vinyl topper on for waterproofing, as the only product that indicated waterproofing was the Uokho holographic, and I had already ruled them out as a decent sticker option.

From the very first water test (sprinkle), the Silhouette sticker without the transparent vinyl on top lost all of its ink. If you are going to use Silhouette stickers (and they are superior in vibrancy), you will want to use laminate or transparent vinyl over them to make them water-resistant and waterproof.

From there, the other stickers that did not have transparent vinyl—HTVRont, Zicoto, Expressions Vinyl—all of them did not bead, but their ink didn’t run either. They also didn’t feel wet, and no water got underneath them. So they showed pretty good water resistance.

The stickers that did have transparent vinyl, other copies of Zicoto, HTVRont, Expressions Vinyl, and Silhouette behaved as expected. They all beaded up beautifully and did not run. No water got underneath them. Overall, the only sticker that did not meet the test was the Silhouette without any protective cover, such as transparent vinyl or laminate.

The Expressions Vinyl sticker is super thick, so I felt like it wasn’t a good fit on the tumbler. I liked the HTVRont with the transparent vinyl. It had a nice gloss, and it’s a thin sticker, so it felt good on. The Zicoto is a little thicker but also feels good on the tumbler with the transparent vinyl topper.

Now, let’s talk about waterproofing. I tested the four best printable vinyl winners and runners-up that have transparent vinyl as a topper. I submerged them in water on a phone case for 5 full minutes. I pulled it out and dried it off. I further let it dry completely because I learned that AIVA, without any transparent vinyl or laminate on top, will scratch off unless you let it dry set again.

Here are my findings for the four best printable vinyl winners and runners-up. All four produced the same results. There was no lifting, peeling or loss of color. I couldn’t scratch anything off of them. I couldn’t pull them off the phone case. They were stuck there just as they were before. They looked great and were shiny and glossy. Everything was just as it was before I put them in water. The only thing I learned is that maybe some stickers (AIVA, which was not a winner or runner-up) will reset their colors after a big dunk if you let them dry long enough—and that was by accident.

The paper behaved as expected. As an envelope backing, they worked great. Perfect for closing wedding or party invitations and adding a little flair, for example. When I tried to open the envelopes, I tried very hard to keep them intact, but they tore. I couldn’t get one to remove in one piece. So, if you’re going to use any planner stickers, you may want to take a look at some that are specifically removable.

So, what did I learn? Well, I learned that if you want great stickers, you’re going to pay for them. I learned that glossy stickers are cheaper than matte and that most stickers are pretty hardy except for tearing. I was surprised at how easily the ones that tore did, and was really surprised at how hard it was to tear the ones that wouldn’t or couldn’t be torn. There really was no middle ground. Almost all of the stickers had problems with indentations but not with scratching the color off. That surprised me, too.

In the water department, I was surprised at how well the stickers with no topper stood up with water resistance, even when they weren’t listed as water resistant.

Conclusion

Overall, for the best printable vinyl, I’m most satisfied with, and like the Silhouette brand for matte and the Zicoto brand for glossies, but as a backup, I will use the J&J Packaging if I can’t get the Zicoto brand.

But there are several other options as runner-up that are almost as good. The HTVRont is a great choice, but I will use it with laminate or transparent vinyl to give it extra support. It does have a fabulous price point.

The Expressions Vinyl brand is a really good vinyl as well, and it would be my number one choice for heavy-duty stickers, like bumper stickers or anything that requires weatherproofing or outdoor use, particularly when you add an outdoor transparent vinyl like Oracle 651. But I won’t use it indoors because it is so thick.

If you have any comments or I’ve left anything out, please comment. I love to hear from y’all. Until then, happy happy crafting!

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