Decals vs Stickers — What's The Difference?

Here’s the scoop and it may surprise you. . . Every decal is a sticker, but every sticker isn’t a decal. You might wonder what the heck I mean. Let’s clear the confusion in the decal vs sticker mind trip and leave it behind us.

The Decal vs Sticker Debate Is On!

You may be wondering— are decals the same as stickers? Yes, they are (in some ways! Every vinyl transfer decal is sticker because it’s got a sticky back. It’s probably also got an eye-catching design (hopefully), and maybe your business info. All decals are stickers, so you’re learning— and sticker decals are usually decorative (or for car advertising) and often used outside. Many businesses use decals for advertising their products and services.

Check out Custom Decal Sizes, Shapes, and Pricing

Use Custom Printed Decals And Stickers To Promote Your Business

When you put heavy duty vinyl stickers with your company information on your personal or company car, it’s instant branding. But you wouldn’t want to put a regular sticker on your vehicle for promoting your business.

Dig Into More Of The Decal vs Sticker Debate Some More!

Stickers can be decals, and decals are usually a heavy duty vinyl stickers. But all stickers are not made alike. Stickers can be made from a variety of materials, and all are not alike. You can have labels made of paper, vinyl, or polyester material. Stickers can have a matte or glossy finish. If you want to have long-lasting sticker decals, you’ll want to opt for the vinyl transfer decal material, and not a paper sticker. If you go with paper stickers, these are things like labels people use at garage sales to put prices on junk. Paper stickers are used for indoor craft projects and are not as durable as heavy duty vinyl stickers.

What Is A Die Cut Decal?

A die cut custom decal is when the paper backing and the sticker are cut to the same shape as your design. These are great vinyl decals stickers ideas to get your brand out into the public's eye!

Kisscut Decals

Kisscuts are very similar to Die cut decals. Die cut decals are cut all the way through the vinyl and paper in the shape of your design. Kiss cuts are cut through the vinyl but not all the way through the paper. Leaving your unique shape sticker to be unveiled after it is removed from the paper backing. For more information about what kiss cutting is click here.

decals vs stickers advertising

Decals Stickers

Many things are sticker decals, and many are just plain stickers. Vehicle adverting, cookie packages, gold stars in grade school and body product labels are all sticker decals Other regular paper stickers can be used for name tags at conferences, and shipping labels you print at home. These are best for indoor use only. If you want something that lasts you'll need a vinyl transfer decal instead. Sticker decals are much more durable than paper stickers. They can fall apart much more easily than a vinyl transfer decal. Custom vinyl decals will last for about 3 years when used outside (but can be less if exposed to extreme heat or weather). At Printmoz you can choose just about any size and shape. Your stickers will be 3.4 mil vinyl decals stickers thickness. You'll get plenty of attention with Custom printed decals. No matter where you go!

Custom Printed Decal - Can They Damage Car Paint?

This answer to this questions is generally no. Whew. Now you can sleep at night instead of worrying about your custom vinyl decals ruining your paint job. Unless you have a low-quality paint or already have chips or damage to the paint, you should be in the clear.

Custom Vinyl Decals - Removal

Generally, a heat gun or hair dryer quickly removes custom vinyl decals easily. This will loosen the adhesive grip to the surface of the paint. Warm up the heavy duty vinyl stickers then remove by slowing peeling. Remove any other leftover sticky stuff with an adhesive remover or rubbing alcohol. You can get this at just about any home improvement stores.

Test Adhesive Remover Somewhere Inconspicuous On Your Car, Only To Be Safe In The Decal vs Sticker Removal Rat Race.

Then when you're ready to remove any extra stickiness add the adhesive remover to any sticky stuff, let it set and use a paper towel to remove any excess. You can repeat this process if necessary. When you're deciding what kind of custom printed decals you should get, go for the durable if custom vinyl decals so your brand or design will last for years to come. However, the massive heavy duty vinyl stickers will act as a sunscreen. See perforated window signs for a safer vinyl decal that designed to allow light and vision through the back window. So if you put vinyl decals stickers on your car, bus, truck or van, and leave it on for three years, the paint around it could look a little faded. So if you put your vinyl transfer decal on your car’s with cut out letters of your business— You could have it on there for a while. If you think you’ll be changing your business name, or selling your car soon, an easy workaround is to put the vinyl decal on your windows instead of on the paint. Your back windshield or side windows will also be highly visible.

Types Of Decals You Probably Didn’t Even Know About!

There are stickers (or decals) that have a transparent background. It’s clear, and you can see through it. The area where there is no design will show the knowledge of where you put it. So if you have a red car and the sticker has a transparent area, your red car with the show through the unprinted gaps. If you don’t want the background surface to show up, you’ll want to get a contour cut. This is the most popular at Printmoz.

Customizable Stickers "Contour Cut" - Cut To ANY Shape

When the graphics part of your sticker is printed, the exact outline is cut around your shape. So you’re only left with the designed piece. It can be an angular contour cut, wavy gravy, geometric, a perfect circle shape, or any crazy shape you can imagine. Another part of being a decal maker consists of stickers with a translucent background. When using translucent vinyl for material for your label, it allows light to shimmer its way through giving it a bit of a glow. However, it’s not totally see through. These are great to put on lighted signs. These types of decals can be used to advertise anything from pizza driver lights to giant LED road signs with your business info.

When You’re Looking For A Decal Maker Follow These Tips:

You’ll want to check out their reviews. Make sure they use quality products. Are their stickers weatherproof? Do they offer full color? Are their stickers made of vinyl? Also, check out how long their production time and shipping time takes. So you’re sure to get your decals by the time you need them. And don’t forget about the cost of the job and estimated shipping cost so you can stay within the budget.