What with the decline in single-use plastic bags and an increased interest in eco-friendly materials, paper bags are coming back in a big way. That’s great for businesses since paper bags are so easy to brand. Of course, you’ll need to make a few decisions when you’re picking out your paper bags, and one of the main challenges will be choosing between laminated and unlaminated.

Both types of paper bag hold their own pros and cons, but here are just a few reasons why you might want to invest in unlaminated over laminated.

1. Eco-Friendly Appearance

Paper bags already make a wonderfully eco-friendly option. They represent a great way to cut down on your footprint, but there are benefits beyond helping Mother Earth – customers often respond well to their authentic charm and environmental responsibility. Unlaminated paper feels more natural, so customers often prefer it, especially when the products you sell are natural themselves.

2. Low Cost

Paper bags are never going to be expensive, but they become a little harder on your bottom line when you choose laminated – that’s a whole new process the bags need to undergo. If you want to keep your costs down as low as possible, choosing unlaminated bags makes sense.

3. Easier to Reuse

There are a whole host of ways to reuse paper bags. You can use them in arts and crafts projects with your kids, repurpose them to help out in the garden, or simply use them to make fruit ripen faster. Just search online and you’ll find more repurposing ideas than you can imagine. Thing is, you’ll generally need unlaminated bags for these projects. You want your customers to keep them around as long as possible and keep getting the most from them, so unlaminated is usually where it’s at.

4. Easier to Recycle

Lamination doesn’t mean paper cannot be recycled, so don’t worry too much if you need them laminated. That said, unlaminated paper bags are much easier to recycle than laminated bags.