📋 Quick Facts: Strapping & Film Market 2026
- Global strapping materials market: ≈ USD 9.8 billion in 2025, forecast ≈ USD 15.7 billion by 2033 (Grand View Research).
- Global stretch & shrink film market: USD 7.6–17.9 billion in 2025 depending on scope; ≈ 5.3–5.5% CAGR (GMI, Mordor Intelligence).
- Stretch film is the larger half of the film market (about 59–63% of revenue).
- LLDPE is the dominant film resin (about 48–52% share).
- Asia-Pacific is the largest and fastest-growing film region; Europe is roughly a quarter of the market.
- PET strapping keeps taking share from steel; EU PPWR rewards recyclable mono-material packaging.
Short answer: Both markets are growing at roughly 5–7% a year. Published estimates put the global strapping materials market near USD 10 billion and the stretch and shrink film market between USD 8 and 18 billion, depending on how each analyst defines it. The growth comes from e-commerce and palletised logistics, steel strapping being replaced by PET, and recyclability rules such as the EU PPWR.
Buyers search for "strapping market" and "stretch and shrink film market" figures when they plan budgets, judge supplier pricing, or build a case for changing materials. This guide gathers the publicly available headline numbers from the main market research publishers, explains why they disagree, and turns them into practical decisions for procurement teams in Europe, the US and other import markets. Greenstrix is a manufacturer and exporter of strapping and film, so where we add our own view we say so.
1. Strapping Market Size and Growth
According to Grand View Research, the global packaging strapping materials market was worth about USD 9.8 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach about USD 15.7 billion by 2033, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.8% from 2026 to 2033. The study splits the market into PET strap, PP strap, steel strap, polyester composite (cord) strap and others, and gives separate country figures for most major European markets, including Germany, the UK, France, Italy, Spain, Poland and the Netherlands.
Public summaries of these reports rarely give segment shares, but the direction is consistent across publishers:
- PET (polyester) strapping is the fastest-moving segment because it replaces steel in timber, bricks, metals, paper and beverage logistics.
- PP strapping stays the volume choice for light carton bundling, e-commerce and food, where low cost per strap matters more than strength.
- Steel strapping holds on in very heavy, sharp-edged or hot applications such as coil and some steel products, but loses share elsewhere.
- Composite cord strap grows with containerised heavy cargo, where EN 12195 and CTU Code securing rules apply.
Europe strapping market
Europe is a mature, regulation-led market. Strapping demand follows manufacturing output in Germany, Italy, Poland and France, and the port and logistics clusters in the Netherlands and Belgium. Two forces stand out in 2026: the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which pushes buyers toward recyclable mono-material strap, and continued cost pressure that makes importers compare European prices with Asian manufacturers. Steel-to-PET conversion is further along in Western Europe than in Central and Eastern Europe, so the CEE countries still have more conversion ahead.
US and the "manual grade" polyester strap market
In the US, palletised distribution and lumber, building products and beverage logistics drive PET demand. Hand-grade (manual) polyester strap — used with battery and manual tensioners rather than automatic machines — is a large share of the market for smaller warehouses, distributors and lumber yards, because it does not need an automatic strapping line. For buyers, hand grade and machine grade are not interchangeable: machine grade needs tighter width and thickness tolerance to feed without jams. Our strapping machine strap guide explains how to match them.
2. Stretch and Shrink Film Market Size
Film market estimates vary more than strapping estimates, mainly because publishers define the market differently (some include only industrial pallet and bundling film, others also count food and retail wrap):
| Publisher | 2025 size | Forecast | CAGR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mordor Intelligence | USD 17.93 billion | USD 24.74 billion (2031) | 5.51% (2026–2031) |
| Global Market Insights | USD 7.60 billion | USD 12.68 billion (2035) | 5.3% (2026–2035) |
The absolute figures differ by more than two times, but the growth rates agree at about 5–5.5% a year. When you see a single "market size" number quoted, always check the scope before using it in a business case.
What the film market is made of
- Stretch film is the bigger half: 63.11% of 2025 revenue according to Mordor Intelligence; GMI expects stretch film to be about 58.6% of the market by 2035, with shrink film growing slightly faster (6.2% CAGR).
- LLDPE dominates: 48.36% of sales (Mordor) or 52.0% (GMI). POF shrink film is about 10% of material share (GMI).
- Pallet wrapping is the largest application: 41.11% of revenue (Mordor); GMI values pallet unitisation at USD 3.19 billion in 2025, rising to USD 5.33 billion by 2035. Bundling is about 20% (GMI).
- Food and beverage leads end use: 33.28% of demand (Mordor).
- Thin gauges rule: conventional 15–25 µm films held 44.27% of sales (Mordor), and the trend is toward thinner, higher-performance films.
Regional picture
Mordor Intelligence reports Asia-Pacific as the largest region (41.25% of 2025 revenue) and the fastest growing (6.19% CAGR to 2031). GMI gives Europe about 24% of the global market in 2025, reaching about USD 2.60 billion by 2035, and North America about USD 2.43 billion in 2025. Germany, Poland, Italy and the Benelux countries are the largest European film consumers because of their manufacturing and distribution hubs.
3. The Five Trends Shaping 2026
Trend 1: PET keeps replacing steel strapping
PET strap holds tension as loads settle, does not rust or stain goods, weighs far less, and does not spring back dangerously when cut. For most loads up to heavy timber, bricks and paper reels, it does the job of steel at lower cost per load. See our PET vs steel strapping comparison and the steel-to-PET savings calculator.
Trend 2: Recyclability rules (EU PPWR)
The PPWR (Regulation (EU) 2025/40) applies to all packaging placed on the EU market, including transport packaging such as strap and pallet wrap. It favours mono-material PET, PP and PE products with clear material documentation, and it raises the importance of recycled content. Read our PPWR 2030 recyclability guide and the EN 15343 recycled plastics guide.
Trend 3: Down-gauging and pre-stretch film
Thinner, multi-layer co-extruded LLDPE films with high pre-stretch let warehouses use less film per pallet while keeping containment force. The saving only holds if the wrapper is set up correctly — see how to calibrate stretch film pre-stretch.
Trend 4: E-commerce and mixed pallets
Fulfilment centres ship more mixed, lighter and less stable pallets, which pushes demand for PP strap, thin stretch film and better load-stability practice. Our e-commerce packaging guide and pallet collapse guide cover the failure points.
Trend 5: Supplier diversification
After the supply shocks of recent years, more European and US importers keep at least two qualified sources for strap and film. India has become a common second source alongside China and local producers — compare the options in our India vs China packaging sourcing guide.
4. What This Means for Buyers: A 2026 Checklist
- Measure cost per pallet, not price per kg. A cheaper strap that needs more straps per load, or a film that needs more wraps, costs more. Use the packaging cost calculator.
- Review every steel strapping application. Most can move to PET or composite cord strap with lower cost and better safety.
- Ask for documentation now. Material declarations, recyclability statements and recycled-content certificates will matter more each year under PPWR.
- Qualify a second source. Trial a pallet, test it on your own machines, then move to container loads.
- Test thinner film. Down-gauge only after a containment force test — see how to measure containment force.
5. About the Figures in This Guide
The market figures above are taken from the public summaries published by Grand View Research, Mordor Intelligence and Global Market Insights, as available in October 2026. They are third-party estimates, not Greenstrix data, and the full reports may contain more detail. We will update this page when the publishers release new editions.
6. Related Guides & Products
Planning your 2026 strap and film budget? Email sales@greenstrix.com or WhatsApp +91 9090603966 for current export pricing on PET & PP strapping, cord strap and stretch & shrink film.