Indicative floors via partner factories already tooled for small runs: a stock roll-on bottle with ball and cap from ~500 pieces (7–25 days); sprayed matte colour on a roll-on or stick 2,000–5,000 per shape (30–40 days); a twist-up stick in moulded-in colour 5,000–10,000 (15–25 days plus 3–15 for masterbatch); a spray bottle with a stock fine-mist sprayer and printed logo ~2,000; anodised aluminium 5,000–10,000; electroplated caps ~10,000; a private mould 3,000–10,000 plus RMB 25,000–70,000 (≈ USD 3,500–9,700) per component tool, 45–60 days. The published industry floor is 5,000–10,000 per item, and a twist-up stick is 4–5 moulded parts, each a separate minimum.
Three formats, three floors
A roll-on is a 30–100 ml PP, PET or glass bottle, a 19–35 mm ball in a snap-fit housing, and a screw overcap — three parts, but the ball and housing are stock and the bottle is a stock blow mould, so the whole thing reaches the 500 floor. A twist-up stick of 50–75 g (typical partner-factory range) is a barrel, a base, a propel-repel elevator, a carrier cup and a cap — four or five injection-moulded parts, each with its own tool and minimum — which is why stock sticks sit in the low thousands and moulded-in colour at 5,000–10,000. A spray is a stock glass, PET or aluminium bottle plus a stock fine-mist sprayer of 12.5–24 mm; sprayer tooling is costly, so nobody tools one for a launch, and the minimum is the bottle print at ~2,000. The formats are on deodorant packaging.
MOQ and lead time by route, 2026
| Route | Indicative MOQ | Tooling / set-up | Lead time (factory gate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock roll-on (bottle + ball + cap), stock colour, undecorated | From about 500 pcs via partner factories | None | 7–25 days (7–10 if in stock; 15–25 if a run is needed) |
| Stock roll-on or stick + screen-printed logo | ~2,000 pcs | Screen per colour; a cylindrical roll-on counts as one colour | +5–7 days on the base cycle |
| Stock roll-on or stick + sprayed matte / soft-touch colour | 2,000–5,000 pcs per shape | Spray line per tone | 30–40 days; colour approved on a sprayed sample first |
| Stock stick, moulded-in colour | 5,000–10,000 pcs | Masterbatch and purge | 15–25 days plus 3–15 days masterbatch |
| Stock spray bottle + stock fine-mist sprayer | ~2,000 with screen print; sprayer from stock | Sprayer tooling is costly — stock units are the default | 7–25 days bottle; +5–7 print; sprayer in parallel |
| Aluminium stick shell or bottle, anodised | 5,000–10,000 (typical partner-factory range) | Anodising fixtures; a sealed control sample for colour | 25–40 days |
| Electroplated or metallic caps and collars | ~10,000 | Plating line per tone; exterior parts only, no nickel on skin contact | 25–40 days including plating queue |
| Paperboard push-up stick | Low thousands (typical partner-factory range) | Cutting die and print plates | 15–25 days after artwork approval |
| Private mould (your stick or bottle shape) | 3,000–10,000 pcs plus tooling | RMB 25,000–70,000 ≈ USD 3,500–9,700 per component tool; elevator and cup are separate tools | 45–60 days mould only; 90–120 days full programme |
| Buffer | — | — | Quoted cycle × 1.3; +15 days across Chinese New Year; sea 18–35 days |
The published industry floor for cosmetic packaging from China is 5,000–10,000 pieces per item; the lower figures above are reachable only where a partner factory is already tooled for small runs and are indicative, not a commitment. Across sixteen formats, the same logic is on the MOQ index 2026 and the lead time index 2026.
Why the stick minimum is really five minimums
A twist-up stick body can be quoted at 3,000. The elevator inside it comes from a different tool, often a different factory; the carrier cup from another; the cap from a fourth; and if the base is a separate part, a fifth. Each part is moulded to a masterbatch lot, so “moulded-in colour at 5,000” means 5,000 of each part from one lot so that barrel, base and cap match. A supplier who quotes “stick MOQ 3,000” is quoting the barrel. Ask for the bill of materials with a minimum against every line — it is the single question that separates an honest deodorant quote from a low headline. The same per-component arithmetic is what makes electroplating vanish below 10,000 pieces; the process-by-process minimums are on decoration process comparison.
Three decisions that move the number
- Sprayed or moulded-in colour. Sprayed matte on a stock stick is 2,000–5,000 per shape and gives the soft-touch natural brands want; moulded-in is cheaper per piece and matches across parts from one lot, but starts at 5,000–10,000. Never mix the two on one product — sprayed white and moulded-in white are two different whites.
- Aluminium or plastic. An anodised aluminium shell reads premium and plates beautifully, at 5,000–10,000 and 25–40 days, and a second anodising batch rarely matches the first without a sealed control sample. A PP or ABS barrel tolerates drops, scratches, and reaches the 2,000 spray floor.
- Stock or private shape. A private stick is 3,000–10,000 pieces plus RMB 25,000–70,000 per component tool — and a stick is four or five components. The mould belongs to the brand that paid for it, in writing; see mould cost and ownership.
Costs to expect
Unit prices are ranges by size, material and decoration; the set-ups are what move the effective price between 2,000 and 5,000 pieces.
| Cost line | Indicative range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Stock plastic roll-on or stick, light decoration | ≈ USD 0.20–0.80 per piece | Same band as other plastic bottles and jars; roll-on includes ball and cap |
| Anodised aluminium stick shell | Above the plastic band (typical partner-factory range) | Batch-based colour; retain a sealed control sample |
| Screen print | Set-up per colour | Cylindrical roll-on counts as one colour |
| Sprayed matte / soft-touch | Set-up per tone per shape | Batch with shampoo and body wash to share the run |
| Electroplating | Plating line per tone; ~10,000 floor | Exterior parts only; no nickel on skin contact |
| Private mould | RMB 25,000–70,000 ≈ USD 3,500–9,700 per component tool | Paid 30/40/30; brand-owned in writing |
The wider model is in how much cosmetic packaging costs.
The tests inside the minimum
Whatever the route, the filled samples pass: vacuum leak at −0.06 MPa (−0.08 MPa for 15 min, loss ≤0.5% for alcohol-based roll-ons and sprays); 24 h inverted no leak; sprayer ≥1,500 actuations at 0.1–0.2 ml per shot within 0.02 g; stick elevator full up-and-down cycles with no jam or skip; 48°C oven 24–48 h (a 45°C lorry in summer deforms a poorly formulated stick) and −15°C; 76 cm to 1.5 m drop onto concrete; 3M 810 cross-hatch on sprayed coatings; the actual formula at 48°C for 30 days — natural deodorants with baking soda or high oil content react with some plastics; colour at ΔE under D65; heavy metals ≤100 ppm. The gates are on cosmetic packaging quality standards.
A low-MOQ deodorant launch
The lowest credible first order is a stock roll-on in natural or white with a BOPP label at ~500 pieces, or a stock PP stick screen-printed at ~2,000. Sprayed family colour comes at 2,000–5,000 per shape on reorder, and the deodorant is batched into the same spray run as the shampoo and body wash so the line matches — the coordination logic is in the haircare and bodycare packaging solution. Mechanism, ball, elevator and sprayer choices by formula are in roll-on vs stick vs spray deodorant packaging.
Vella is a Guangzhou-based beauty packaging solutions provider — a sourcing partner, not a factory — that routes briefs like this one to vetted partner factories operating to ISO 22716 / GMP, matches the components as one set, and runs the tests above on filled samples before any production run. Ask any supplier the questions in how to evaluate a China packaging supplier — starting with the per-part bill of materials — or send the brief through the contact page for a per-component quote.
Common questions
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