Banners are a go-to tool for promotion and display at events, and if you look closely on the street you'll notice they come in a surprising range of materials — each with its own strengths. So which one is actually right for you?
Most people aren't all that familiar with banner materials to begin with, so every time they order a banner from a print shop they get hit with the same question: "Which banner material do you want?"
To a print shop, "banner" usually means a vinyl (canvas) banner — and even vinyl comes in several finishes (gloss, matte, blackback). In some situations vinyl isn't the best fit, and you'll want a different fabric instead. This article breaks down the main banner materials so you understand what each one is good for — and never have to guess at the counter again.
Common Banner Materials
Gloss Vinyl Banner
Durability: Low (best for short-term / one-off use) · Price: Cheap (HKD 3/sq ft) · Feature: None
Printing Banana's gloss banner is our most affordable workhorse material. It's made from 520 vinyl, whose fibre density is relatively low, so it isn't as durable as heavier vinyls. Lower-density fabric has weaker tensile strength and stands up less well to wind — but for short-term use, gloss vinyl is genuinely cheap and cheerful. A 2m × 1m gloss banner costs just HKD 66, so it's great value for rough-and-ready jobs.
Uses: student event banners, councillor street banners, tour group banners, study tour banners
Matte Vinyl Banner
Durability: High (suited to long-term use) · Price: Affordable (HKD 5/sq ft) · Feature: matte finish resists glare, so it stays readable
Matte banners are made from 550 vinyl, which is more durable and wind-resistant than 520, making it better suited to long spells outdoors. For a campaign or display running longer than two months, matte vinyl is the clear pick. Information-heavy banners that people actually need to read work better in matte than gloss — there's no sunlight glare washing out the content. And if the banner will appear in photos, matte won't throw back the reflections that gloss does.
Uses: backdrop banners, exhibition banners, tour group banners, study tour banners, councillor street banners
Matte Blackback Vinyl Banner
Durability: High (suited to long-term use) · Price: Affordable (HKD 5/sq ft) · Feature: black backing blocks light bleeding through from behind
The blackback banner's big selling point is that light from behind won't wash out the image on the front. The reverse carries a black coating that effectively blocks any light source behind it. Because the outdoors throws up so many uncontrollable variables, blackback sees a lot of outdoor use — you don't have to worry about how the display will read. The colours run slightly darker than on other banners because of that black backing, but image quality is barely affected.
Uses: outdoor backdrop banners, exhibition banners, outdoor events / promotions, outdoor advertising banners, signboard banners
Flag Cloth / Feather-Flag Fabric
Durability: High (suited to long-term use) · Price: Expensive (HKD 12/sq ft) · Feature: lightweight and easy to carry
Flag cloth is the lightest of all the banner fabrics and very easy to carry. Because it's thin, colour can show through to the reverse side; if you want to avoid that see-through effect, choose a double-sided flag fabric for a cleaner result. It's so light you can fold it into a backpack — far more convenient than a vinyl banner. For travel, a vinyl banner is simply too heavy and awkward to bring along.
Uses: outdoor events / promotions, feather flags, straight flags, tour group banners, study tour banners
Lightbox Banners
Lightbox Banner
Durability: around 2 years · Price: HKD 3–5/sq ft · Feature: translucent (backlit)
Lightbox banner fabric is made for exactly that — lightboxes. It lets light pass through so the artwork looks brighter and sharper, much like a backlit film. Because film is more expensive and comes with tighter width limits, large lightboxes usually use lightbox fabric instead. Film is also fragile and doesn't cope well with wind, which causes plenty of problems outdoors. For long-term use, Printing Banana recommends UV-printed lightbox fabric — UV ink is far more durable than conventional ink and won't fade even after heavy use.
Uses: lightboxes only
Further reading: What is UV printing? How is it different from regular printing? Demystifying UV print
Outdoor Banners
Coated (Scrim) Banner
Durability: Highest (suited to long-term use) · Price: Expensive (HKD 8/sq ft) · Feature: wind-proof, tear-resistant, tough
Coated scrim is the favourite for large-format advertising, mainly because its high density and toughness resist scratching and won't easily tear even in strong wind. Its smooth surface absorbs ink well and holds onto it firmly, gripping both solvent- and water-based inks with high adhesion. It's also physically and chemically stable, giving it solid resistance to oxidation, acids and alkalis, and cold. Most large outdoor banners are made from coated scrim.
Uses: outdoor banners, large outdoor advertising, street-hung advertising
Mesh Banner
Durability: Highest (suited to long-term use) · Price: Expensive (HKD 12/sq ft) · Feature: withstands strong wind
Mesh banner is made from a perforated PVC material — printed on one side, white on the other. Beyond shrugging off strong wind, it has a neat trick: from behind the print you can see out to the view, while from outside people only see the printed artwork, working much like one-way glass. That makes mesh great for partitioning space — it keeps interiors private while leaving the view from inside open.
Uses: outdoor banners, large outdoor advertising, interior decoration
Still unsure which fabric fits your job? We print every banner material above, with delivery across Hong Kong and Macau. Browse our banner options, or WhatsApp us at +852 3001 5678 (English is fine) and we'll point you to the right one.