Flexo and Gravure: A Market Outlook
Print industry consultant Sean Smyth assesses the current state of play in flexo and gravure in this expert Q&A.
New report highlights shifting dynamics between flexo & gravure
Total market value for flexographic and gravure printing is projected to reach $358.5 billion in 2026, according to Smithers, the leading global authority on the print industry.
Data in its newly published report, The Future of Flexo vs Gravure to 2030, reveal that flexo is worth $250.7 billion in 2026. It is forecast to reach $284 billion in 2030, representing a growth rate of 3.2% CAGR. Meanwhile, gravure is a market valued at $107.8 billion in 2026, and will grow by 3.6% CAGR to 2030, reaching a total value of $124.7 billion.
While flexo printing continues to win market share wherever it competes directly with gravure, gravure printing is growing faster in overall global volume – driven by its dominance in rapidly expanding Asian packaging markets and industrial print sectors.
The analysis, covering applications across packaging, publication, labels, décor and functional printing, finds that gravure’s strength in high-growth Asian markets and decorative printing offsets flexo’s competitive gains in Europe and North America. In Asia, gravure has historically been the process of choice due to its superior reproduction of fine Kanji characters, though this advantage is narrowing as flexo quality improves.
Flexo remains the larger market in both value and volume globally, and holds clear advantages in prepress flexibility and sustainability. Modern flexo presses increasingly incorporate machine learning, robotics and AI-driven automation – reducing waste, accelerating makeready and cutting costs as run lengths shorten. The transition away from solvent-based inks and plates to water-based and UV-curable alternatives is also positioning flexo more favourably against tightening environmental regulations.
Gravure, meanwhile, retains its position as the highest-quality print process and continues to dominate in printed electronics and in décor printing, where colour fidelity across reprints is critical. However, the process faces growing challenges: the complexity and cost of cylinder preparation, the use of hazardous hexavalent chromium in plating, and the difficulty of taking prepress in-house all limit its agility as brands demand faster turnaround and shorter runs.
Publication rotogravure is in terminal decline as magazine and catalogue print runs shrink, while both technologies face increasing pressure from digital and hybrid inkjet solutions in labels and flexible packaging.
The report concludes that flexo is better positioned to meet future sustainability demands, while gravure’s installed base and dominance in décor and industrial print will sustain its global relevance for the foreseeable future.
The Future of Flexo vs Gravure to 2030 assesses the competition between these print processes, and provides quantitative market sizes and forecasts, split by process, end-use application, and geography. Expert insight based on primary research maps out future technology developments, and forecasts how each print process will develop over the next five years.
The report is available to purchase now from Smithers priced $6,750 (€6.350, £5,475).