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The Best Promotional Product Stores

Where is the Best Place to Find Promotional Products?

They say it takes around 8 touch points with a potential customer before they decide to buy your product or sign up for your organization. This means they'll need multiple interactions with your brand, like seeing it on a billboard, on a banner plastered to the bus that drives by, or with information on a flyer they pick up at the grocery store.

Every company has to utilize promotional products in multiple ways to have the best chance of getting their name out there to build their business. If you pay attention to the branding that's all around, you'll realize that there are nearly infinite ways to promote your school, business, or organization. Companies give out swag like t-shirts, wristbands, stress balls, or even ice cream scoops to make sure they stay at the forefront of your mind throughout the day.

Sunday, February 9th

2025 Promotional Product Store Reviews

Top Consumer Reviews Best-In-Class Blue Ribbon Award AnyPromo Review 5 Star Rating

AnyPromo

5 Star Rating
  • 110% price match guarantee
  • Quantity discounts
  • 24-hour rush shipping available
  • Free shipping on many items
  • Free samples
  • Worry-free guarantee
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating
Top Consumer Reviews Best-In-Class Blue Ribbon Award

AnyPromo helps brands find the most perfect promotional swag on the market. Their business started in 2008 and they are based out of Ontario, California. Some major brands you'll recognize who have used AnyPromo for their company include Google, Adidas, eBay, Nikon, Pfizer, The Ritz-Carlton, The Home Depot, Fox Sports, and over 200,000 other customers. If these companies trust AnyPromo with their brand, you shouldn't have to think twice.

Easily find what you're looking for

For a quick glance at some of the most popular items AnyPromo sells, you can visit their best sellers page and browse through cooler sleeves, sunglasses, tote bags, towels, sticky notes, golf tees, fanny packs, and over 250 other items. This would give you a good starting point and let you glance over the price points of these products. You can also sort through many of their categories including apparel, auto, bags & luggage, housewares, drinkware, office, outdoor & leisure, pens & writing, and tradeshows & events. You can also sort by all items that ship for free, qualify for rush shipping, are eco-friendly, don't have minimums, and cost less than $1.

Numberless inventory

You can't even put a number on the amount of promotional products you can choose from at AnyPromo. Some cool things we found that we'd be excited to get are wireless chargers, a branded potted plant, pretty glass food containers, or a car air freshener. You can find something unique here, rather than just pens and sticky notes like companies so often fall back on. They'd make great employee gifts, prizes, or swag to sell.

Best Promotional Products

Lowest prices guaranteed

You'll be able to score quantity discounts from AnyPromo. When you select a product, you'll be shown pricing depending on the amount you order along with the estimated delivery date. Pricing is completely dependent on the product you're interested in. You can easily buy pens for $0.55 or a nice Columbia softshell jacket for $92.56 a piece. Because of the huge range here, surely there are plenty of items in your budget. If you're worried about getting a better deal on your items elsewhere, AnyPromo has you covered with their 110% price match guarantee. This means if you find a lower price advertised on their products anywhere else, they'll match the price and take off 10%.

Multiple points of contact

If you need help with designing your swag, you can view the helpful Artwork guides that AnyPromo provides or contact their customer service. They list a phone number, email address, and also have a chat box right on their website you can utilize. They don't necessarily specialize in having a 1-on-1 person walk you through designing a logo or brand artwork, but they have plenty of tools to get you on your way.

Rush shipping options

AnyPromo ensures that you won't show up empty handed to a promotional event by providing a worry-free guarantee. Tracking information is available within 24 hours of placing an order and shipments usually take 1-5 business days to arrive. However, they offer a 24-hour rush shipping service as well as a 3-day rush service if you need your items urgently. Their customer care team can assist you in selecting the right shipping method if you're concerned about your timeframe and they can also split your order and ship to multiple locations if you need to.

Best Promotional Products

Try a sample

To make sure your final order is exactly like you want, AnyPromo will send you a digital preview of your items. You can also design your items and order a sample to see it in person before you order in bulk. You'll still pay for the item and shipping, but it's a good way to make sure that AnyPromo's quality appears the same way in real life as it does online.

5 stars across the board

AnyPromo boasts an "A+” rating from the Better Business Bureau as well as tens of thousands of customer reviews on third-party sites and individual items. We've almost never seen reviews so good. The vast majority give a 5 out of 5 star rating for excellent communication, quick quotes, speedy shipping, professional service, and so much more. We couldn't find a single bad thing about the company, which is extremely rare. You're truly in good hands here.

Look no further

Look no further for a promotional company to help your brand boom. AnyPromo has exceeded our expectations with price, customer satisfaction, generous customer policies, and a great variety of products. You'll have nothing short of a fabulous experience here, so they've earned our highest rating.

VistaPrint Review 4.5 Star Rating

VistaPrint

4.5 Star Rating
  • Over 2,600 items
  • Handy browsing tools
  • Unfiltered customer reviews
  • Expedited shipping options
  • Free shipping on orders over $100
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

VistaPrint helps customers create up-to-date, expertly designed marketing to help them feel professional and prepared. They're primarily known for their business cards but they also have an enormous assortment of printable items like labels, banners, invitations, calendars, clothing, wedding items, and promotional products. VistaPrint began in 1995 and knows its way around customization.

Over 2,600 items

There are over 2,600 results for promotional products from VistaPrint. This includes all types of clothing, bags, drinkware, tech products, writing utensils, and even snacks and candy. You might start by browsing their "no minimum order quantity” category, and view the new arrivals, bestsellers, products that qualify for express shipping, or engraved products. There are so many things to choose from that it may take a little digging to find the perfect thing.

Shop a sale

We evaluated the cost of Port Authority's soft shell jacket between all retailers, just to see how the prices varied. From VistaPrint, the cost is $62.18, but could be as low as $43.34 with a high volume order. This is slightly more expensive than most other places, but still within the same general range. VistaPrint always seems to be running one sale or another, so if you check their page frequently, you will likely get some sort of code to take a percentage off your order and that could help big time.

Best Promotional Products

Browse everything with your logo

We really like that VistaPrint has a unique tool where you can upload the design you want on your products and it will apply it to everything you're browsing. Then you can scroll through all the product options and see it customized the way you want it without having to go item-by-item and do the design process. We wish all promo companies were doing this.

Couldn't be simpler

When you select a product you want, you can either use your brand logo or artwork to customize however you want, or use one of their templates. Either way, you can add text, graphics, tables, and colors to your design to make it your own. Their tools couldn't be simpler, so we like the flexibility people have here.

Free shipping on orders over $100

When you're viewing a product, VistaPrint provides two shipping dates. One is if you want to expedite shipping and get it within just a few days. This will be an important option for some people who need items right away. For others who are willing to wait, we love that VistaPrint ships orders free if they are over $100 and it usually only takes a few days more than the expedited shipping anyway.

Best Promotional Products

Contact with concerns

If for any reason you aren't happy with your purchase from VistaPrint after it arrives, they ask that you email and report a product issue. Within 24 hours, their product specialist will review the report and respond to you. VistaPrint will work with you to come to a resolution and do what they can to make it right. In general, companies that sell customized products don't accept returns in the event that you just change your mind. Unless there is a serious manufacturing issue, we wouldn't expect that you can send anything back to VistaPrint.

Plenty of buyer feedback

There's no shortage of feedback to go off of when you're considering ordering promotional products from VistaPrint. They have reviews on every single product and many of them have thousands. They're completely unfiltered so you know you're getting truthful information. On top of this, the Better Business Bureau gives them an "A+” rating, which is great. Some products perform better than others among customers, so stick with something that's highly rated and you shouldn't have any problems.

They've earned their good reputation

VistaPrint is a well-known brand, and for good reason. They make it as easy as possible to find affordable promotional products you'll want to purchase, give you full liberty to customize them how you want, and quickly ship them out to you (for free). What's not to like? This is definitely a top option for promotional products.

Custom Ink Review 4.5 Star Rating

Custom Ink

4.5 Star Rating
  • Many name-brand clothing and product options
  • Easy design process
  • Volume discounts
  • Free standard shipping
  • Rush shipping options available
  • Satisfaction guarantee
  • Unfiltered product reviews
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

Custom Ink was started by three former college classmates in 1999. The first draft of the company let people upload graphics onto a t-shirt and buy them as special keepsakes. Although they were initially known for their branded t-shirts, they now offer a much wider selection than just that. Here you can plaster your branding onto tech accessories, drinkware, bags, outdoor equipment, uniforms, kids' clothes, and so much more.

Big brands

Some of the major brands you can use for your promotional products from Custom Ink include Gildan, Carhartt, Stanley, Ogio, Cotopaxi, Skull Candy, The North Face, Travis Mathew, and Nike. You can view a full list of well-known brands straight on the website, which might be a good way to start the design process if you don't already have products in mind. We also like that they carry so many top brands because we know you can get high-quality products here, not just cheap off-brand t-shirts or knock-off water bottles.

Wide range of products and pricing

The pricing of products from Custom Ink is similar to what we've seen through other companies. The soft shell jacket we were interested in was $56.29 but could be more depending on if there's a name-brand logo attached to it. You can get a 10' branded canopy tent for $1,043.86 which makes a great addition to any sports team, your group's booth at an event, or as a seller at a farmer's market. You might want to give employees a laser-engraved bluetooth speaker with a wireless charger for $40.77. Or you can stick to the basics and get a truckload of branded pens that you can hand out all day long for just $0.88 each. There is a great variety of products here and surely something to fit everyone's budget.

Best Promotional Products

Customizable and sleek design process

At Custom Ink, we designed a tote bag and found the process to be really sleek. First you'll pick the item you want, select the color, and start designing. You can upload photos or art from your computer, search for artwork already in Custom Ink's system, and then drag everything around to where it fits best. You can change colors, fonts, sizes, shapes, outline, rotation, and every other detail to make the design completely your own. Once you're done, you can either buy the products and ship them to one or multiple addresses or start a fundraiser through Custom Ink where you'll sell your designs online to raise money for a cause. Through the site, you can set up a campaign for people to purchase through without risk or needing to maintain an inventory.

Free shipping and volume discounts

If you choose to purchase your items outright, you'll be given a delivery date with free shipping. There are rush delivery dates available at checkout if you're willing to spend a bit more and need your products right away. You'll input the quantity of the products you're ordering and if you're buying in bulk (usually over 125 items), you'll save with a volume discount. If you buy over 200 you'll save even more. The volume required to receive a discount will vary a bit depending on the product.

No customer service bots

We love that Custom Ink's contact information always says, "Talk to a real person” or "Chat with a real person” with a link to their phone number or chat box. How rare is it nowadays to quickly get a human on the line when you have a question? You can reach out to Custom Ink within 15 days if your items come flawed, later than promised, or differ materially from what you created and they'll give you a full refund.

Best Promotional Products

Many repeat customers

Custom Ink has an "A+” from the Better Business Bureau and tens of thousands of excellent reviews from customers. They even have hundreds of reviews attached to each product to give you a solid idea of the quality of any given item and how well the designs are transferred. For the most part, people claim that their items come exactly as promised and are delivered on time, the design process is easy, the printing quality is sharp, and customer service is great to work with. This is a company that people go back to over and over again because they are never let down.

Products people will love

Custom Ink is one of our top choices for promotional products, especially if you're in the market for branded clothing. We like that they have a great selection and high-quality goods like Nike clothing, Stanley tumblers, Ogio gym bags, or The North Face beanies. These are all things people would be excited to buy or receive from an organization. If you need something simpler, there are plenty of options for that too, so Custom Ink can take care of all your promotional needs. We trust that this company delivers on time and customers will have no problem designing their gear exactly the way they want, so Custom Ink is one of our favorite places to get our promotional products.

Pinnacle Promotions Review 4 Star Rating

Pinnacle Promotions

4 Star Rating
  • Price-match guarantee
  • Get 20% off your first order with email signup
  • Volume discounts
  • Satisfaction guarantee
  • Free 24-hour rush production
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

You could say that Pinnacle Promotions began clear back in 1960 when the two founders and brothers, Mitch and Dave, were born. Despite one of them graduating with an MBA and the other going to law school, they found excitement in what began as a small business venture selling promotional products in college. This took off and they gained an award-winning reputation for being a forward-thinking, brand-aware, and speed-conscious promotional product company. Pinnacle Promotions officially launched in 1994 and has grown to over 100 employees.

Come for inspiration

If you come to Pinnacle Promotions without clear direction about what types of products will serve your organization, they have an "ideas” tab to get you started. Here you can browse sustainable items, find products tailored to your industry, or look through their expert guides of curated collections. You could also shop brands like Yeti, Carhartt, JBL, Stanley, Columbia, Patagonia, Koozie, Nike, Oakley, and over 100 others.

Free 24-hour rush shipping

There are over 3,100 results for products that qualify for free 24-hour rush shipping. That means if you got put in charge of a last-minute project or you procrastinated (no judgment!) then you can breathe easy and order from Pinnacle Promotions to get your branded merch on time. The company guarantees that your order will arrive on time and exactly as you approved it or they'll re-run your order.

Compare pricing

To ensure you're getting the best deals possible, Pinnacle Promotions has a price-match guarantee. This means if you find an identical item somewhere else within 30 days of purchase, they'll match it. You'll find items here that are similar to what you might find through a competitor, so it's worth checking pricing everywhere to see if you can get a discount. A Port Authority soft shell jacket ranges from $33.69 to $42.52 a piece depending on how many you buy. This is a common item, so look around at what it costs elsewhere. Same goes for things like mood stadium cups starting at $1.54, a Port Authority half bistro apron starting at $12.89 or a simple LED keychain starting at $1.06.

Best Promotional Products

Design features are nothing fancy

When you land on an item you know your fans or organization's members will love, you can start customizing it right away. There are varying product-specific options you can select like the color and imprinting. Next you can add any text you want and/or upload your own graphics straight from your phone or computer. We wish you could see the changes being made to the item as you go, though, which is the biggest bummer. They don't let you change the font colors or get too fancy with moving around graphics and words. They'll send you a proof before the order is officially placed to ensure you're completely satisfied with how the items will look.

Sky-high satisfaction

Pinnacle Promotions earns an "A+” rating from the Better Business Bureau and they've got tons of happy customers to boot. People say that they receive superior service to help them meet tight deadlines and the quality is exceptional. Customers have come back to Pinnacle over and over again when they need promotional products, so you can rely on their unchanging commitment to quality.

They'll get it done

We're thrilled to find a place that tries so hard to offer customizable products to buyers in a pinch. Their incredible selection of items leaves nothing out. We like that Pinnacle offers low pricing, but the only thing we wish was that their design system was a bit more robust. If you just need the basics for your promo products, stick with Pinnacle and they'll get the job done.

Swag Review 4 Star Rating

Swag

4 Star Rating
  • Modern, sleek, fun website
  • Unique, high quality gifts
  • Name-brand items
  • Streamlined design process
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

Swag has one simple goal: "to be the best place to buy and manage quality promotional products that people actually want to keep.” They find what they deem the best products out there and streamline the buying and distribution process. Their belief is that thoughtful, quality swag builds company culture and can communicate the core values of your brand. Swag knows that poor promo merchandise is a waste of money, and all its power rests in quality. They're the fastest-growing promotional products company, landing them on the Inc. 500 list two years in a row.

Products that are unique and useful

When Swag sets out to add to their inventory, they only choose products that they know people would be proud to show off. The categories they landed on include apparel, drinkware, tech, office, bags, wellness, and home & garden. Although these categories aren't unique to just Swag, some of the brands and individual products they carry are. Just a few of the brands you may recognize include tile, MiiR, Moleskine, Serene House, Lumecube, Cambelbak, and quite a few others. A few of the products we thought were pretty sweet here include a water bottle with a built-in tripod (genius for hiking or being on-the-go when you need a steady place for your camera!), a beautiful 3-piece cheese set, a classy picnic blanket, a fiberglass pickleball paddle set, a practice putting green, and a mini personal mister. That's just a tiny sample of unique, useful products you'll find here.

A website winner

Swag's website is by far the most modern, sleek, and easy-to-browse of any we've found. Everything is organized neatly and aesthetically. When you see a product listing, you'll right away be able to see the price range (varies by the quantity you purchase), and the minimum quantity you can buy. There are plenty of choices in each category, but it doesn't feel like a jungle maze of a mess trying to take them all in since there are just over 1,260 options in apparel, 647 in drinkware, 293 in tech, 443 in office, 690 in bags, 264 in wellness, and 265 in home & garden. This may seem like a lot, but it's actually quite a bit less than some other places have. This shows us that Swag truly has narrowed down what they believe to be only the best, most exciting, and useful products.

Worth the price

A simple Port Authority soft shell zip jacket starts at $83.43 through Swag. We've seen it as low as in the $30 range from some other retailers, but some also list it around $50, so Swag is clearly more expensive for some things. However, with this jacket example we aren't comparing perfect apples-to-apples since the type of products and material do vary a bit from retailer to retailer. The water bottle tripod we mentioned earlier starts at $90.85 if you do a minimum order, a nice North Face laptop backpack starts at $69.05, a velour beach towel goes for $61.52, and a custom golf bag cooler is listed starting at $48.42. There are, of course, cheaper items like pens and notepads you can get here too. However, you aren't going to shop at Swag looking for cheap garbage. If you come here, you're wanting meaningful things you can give or sell to people that they'll be really excited to own and they'll want to use for years to come, even if they've left your company or organization. This is the best way to make your swag work for you.

Best Promotional Products

Streamlined design process

Once you've nailed down the awesome item(s) you want to customize from Swag, it's as easy as selecting the color of the product and uploading your vector art. You'll see it right on the product and you can adjust it in the print area however you prefer. This means zooming it in or out, tilting it, and moving it around. You'll need to come to Swag with your art fully prepared since you won't be "creating” it through their program. This way it's quick and easy to see exactly how it will look before ordering.

Varying shipping windows

You'll receive a production mockup within 48 hours of submitting your order and you can cancel it if you're not satisfied with the design. From there, production will begin and the estimated time is listed individually on each item. For example, a 34 oz. Ocean Bottle water bottle had an 18-day production time. A recycled Dopp Kitt pouch was shorter at 10 days. There are delivery windows at the checkout point of the process to tell you approximately when you can expect to receive your items. Swag doesn't promise that deliveries will be right on time or even mention what happens if they're late. So if you're going to buy from here, make sure you do it well ahead of the date that you'll need your order.

Huge setup fee

The major kicker here is the setup fee. We designed a fanny pack by uploading our design and adding 120 of them to our cart. The "setup fee” was a whopping $304. In the future, if you reorder here with the same print, the setup fee is free, but still. We can't imagine what this extra cost is actually for and we didn't see it from anyone else. Also, you won't see shipping costs until checkout (if you don't already know this about us by now, we don't like this!). You'll input your name, email, and address, and then be taken to the final page where you see all the pricing and provide payment. Our batch of 120 fanny packs was going to cost $24.82 to ship based on our address. This isn't astronomical, but it would be nice to see it earlier on in the process.

Best Promotional Products

No returns

There are no returns on items here since everything is customized and you approve a mockup before it goes into production. However, Swag says that if you have any questions or concerns about your order, feel free to give them a call.

Good ratings all around

The Better Business Bureau gives Swag an "A+” rating. We wish customers could leave unfiltered reviews straight on the site, but all of them were hand-selected and posted by the company. However, reviews from buyers that we found elsewhere reflect highly on the company and its customer service. People are thrilled with the selection and say everything comes exactly as pictured. Clients say that orders are delivered within the specified time window and there are no issues, so they often order from Swag again and again.

For the cool kids

Swag is definitely where the "cool kids” go to shop for promotional products. You'll get high-quality items here and we like that you can see exactly what they'll look like as you design them straight from the website. You might pay a bit more, but that's what you can expect if you're getting name-brand, unique items. The main things that we're hung up on with Swag are their non-transparent shipping costs and the setup fees. Outside of this, Swag has the best website and our favorite selection of products, so they've earned a high rating from us.

ePromos Review 3.5 Star Rating

ePromos

3.5 Star Rating
  • Over 15,000 products
  • More than 2,000 1-day shipping items
  • Bulk discounts
  • Art and logo creation services
  • On-time delivery or your order is free
  • Low price guarantee

The story of ePromos begins in a New York City apartment in 1997. Its founder, Jason Robbins, wanted to help people capitalize on the power of promotional products and got to work on his own company. The website first launched in 1998 and the company has been hitting milestones ever since with their 90+ employees. You'll be able to personalize items from categories ranging from stress balls and games to camping tents when you shop at ePromos.

Varying production timelines

There are over 15,000 products available through ePromos and 2,000 of them can be shipped out in as little as 1 business day. Standard production time varies by product, so pay attention to what's listed on a product page. We couldn't resist designing some Hershey's Kisses while visiting ePromos (they would make a great wedding handout!) and found that the production time for these was 7 business days. They offered bigger discounts when we bought 1,000 of them, then 2,500, 5,000, and so on. The biggest price drop (from $0.47 to $0.32/piece) came if we wanted to have Hershey's Kisses to eat for the rest of our lives and buy 25,000 or more of them.

Pricing for all budgets

You'll find products in every price range through ePromos. A basic softshell jacket with the Port Authority brand is as low as $33.99 a piece. Or you could go for a Spyder jacket at $144.63 each. There are cheaper and more expensive options of any item you find at ePromos to fit your budget. Also, if you find a lower price on an identical item sold through ePromos within 30 days of purchase, they'll credit the difference and take 10% off your next order.

Get help from a graphic designer

The customization process through ePromos is similar to what we've seen with other places. You can add text and/or upload your own graphics to add to the item you're personalizing. They don't have clipart here though, so be sure to come with some images you want to use. In the event that you come to ePromos without a logo design at all, you can have one of their graphic design artists do it for you. With any purchase, they'll give you 5 unique ideas and 2 revisions for $300. They can also help with designing artwork for your organization if you give them a sketch or file describing what you're looking for.

Best Promotional Products

Steep shipping costs

When it comes to promotional products, delivery timeframes are key. ePromos promises that you'll get the correct item on time or your order will be free. We wish shipping costs were listed upfront instead of us having to design our order and get all the way to the checkout to find out what we'd be paying. Shipping is based on your zip code and it is EXPENSIVE. This is a bummer since other places offer free shipping. Our Hershey's Kisses were $25 to ship; just for fun, we checked pricing on phone wallets and a BBQ tool set which ended up being an additional $22.59 and $46.08. That's almost $100 in shipping alone.

Mixed reviews

ePromos is not rated by the Better Business Bureau, but luckily customers have plenty of things to say. For the most part, people design the swag they want, get it ordered, are happy with the end result, and go on their merry way. People like working with the customer service team at ePromos and have good things to say about the individuals who can assist with designs and orders. On the other hand, there were a few concerning issues with delivery that we want to take into account. One person recounted an experience where they needed branded notebooks for an event, paid for rush service and guaranteed delivery, the company confirmed it, and then days later received an email that the item was out-of-stock and they were left without options. These mixed reviews lead us to believe that ePromos is a little hit and miss as far as meeting expectations.

We have our reservations

You might find that ePromos has exactly the products and services you're looking for. They may be a great option for logo and art design if you need help on that end. Aside from shipping, their prices are competitive and they have a nice website where you can have an enjoyable shopping experience. We also like that they have a generous program where they award $500 in products to a new non-profit each month. However, when there are such great companies out there that ePromos has to compete with, their mixed customer reviews and lack of upfront shipping costs has earned them a just-above-average rating from us.

Promo Direct Review 3.5 Star Rating

Promo Direct

3.5 Star Rating
  • Volume discounts
  • 100% low price guarantee
  • Satisfaction guarantee
  • Thousands of positive customer reviews
  • Fast production times with 99% delivery accuracy
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

Promo Direct is headquartered in Henderson, Nevada and was established in 1991. They're a technology-driven company that sells custom apparel and promotional products to organizations and businesses throughout the United States. The company has multiple divisions where they process sales, including internet sites, website sales, call centers, print catalogs, and outbound telephone account management. Some of their major customers include Amazon, 7-Eleven, Wells Fargo, Microsoft, Pepsi, Mattel, and United Way.

More than enough choices

There are thousands of promotional products you can buy and customize from Promo Direct from categories like apparel, home & auto, drinkware, healthcare, office, outdoor, stationery, technology, and tradeshows. They list some popular search terms like business gifts (332 products), USB drives (65 products), polo shirts (279 products), journals (198 products), key lights (64 products), sticky notes (15 products), or stress balls (129 products). This gives you a taste of just how many items you might find for any given thing you search for. Plus, you can narrow down items by criteria like production time, top offers, brand, material, and more.

They'll beat out competitors

Embroidered Port Authority soft shell jackets run between $45.80 and $34.28 depending on the quantity you purchase. For most items, you'll get a bigger discount per piece the more you buy. The pricing scale is shown on the product listing so you can decide if it's worth it to buy items in a bigger batch. Promo Direct has a low-price guarantee, so if you find an identical product advertised on their site that's listed at a lower price by a competitor, they'll match it even up to 30 days after purchase.

Best Promotional Products

Ridiculously non-transparent shipping costs

Promo Direct does that sneaky shipping thing where they don't tell you what it will cost until you are fully checking out. You have to create an account (if you haven't already) and include things like your name, full address, phone number, and other details you may not want to disclose upfront without knowing for sure you're making a purchase. Even then with your cart ready to go, you have to provide credit card information and MAKE THE PURCHASE before you even know what shipping will cost. There's a message saying "A representative will contact you with a complete order form that includes freight charges. You will not be billed until you approve all charges.” Not cool. Even if you cancel your order because of potential exorbitant shipping charges, Promo Direct already has so much of your information at that point. This one aspect of the company really killed the vibe for us.

Unique design process

The way you go about designing your products through Promo Direct is different from any of the other retailers we've visited. To start your order, you'll simply input how many you want to buy, select from the list of item colors, choose from the list of where you want the imprint to be placed on the item, and decide which color you want the imprint to be. There will be more or less options depending on the product you're buying. For example, if you're customizing lip balms, you'll get to choose the flavor as well. You'll see an estimated ship date, a breakdown of costs, and a subtotal for your order and you'll checkout.

Downsides to their process

After checkout, you can email your artwork to the company either in vector form or they'll produce the vector art from your letterhead, business card, or website logo to use. They'll place it on the product and then send you an email proof for you to verify before it goes to production. There are two things we don't like about this process. The first is that you can't visually see what you're designing as you go and you have to checkout and pay for your order before you even see your design. The second is that you can't add text or move things around, but rather you need a completed design uploaded for them to stick straight on your item. This really limits any design flexibility you might have otherwise had.

Best Promotional Products

Can you cancel an order?

We wanted to see information about what happens if you place your order and receive the mockup of your design and decide you don't like it. Can you cancel your order at that point? We'd hope so. They do list a satisfaction guarantee saying that orders will meet your specifications on both the order form and art paper proof or they will rerun the order or credit your account.

Shining reviews

Where Promo Direct shines is through their ratings from the Better Business Bureau ("A+”) and customer reviews. They don't have unfiltered reviews listed on their website, but outside of their direct site we found thousands of excellent reviews from buyers. There were comments from people saying they couldn't have been happier with their experience. Promo Direct says their items ship out on time 99% of the time and they always give a delivery date, and it appears that they stick to this promise of promptness and deliver on time. People really like working directly with their customer service representatives and say the end-result always deserves a 10/10 rating.

A good option

The fabulous reports from buyers is what prevented us from dumping Promo Direct as a good option for promotional products. We were a little (okay, a lot) unsure after seeing how their design process works and how they don't tell you what shipping costs, but this doesn't seem to be a major issue for people. We like that this is a place clients can rely on for getting items fast and accurately, and they have a solid selection of items at prices similar to what you'll find elsewhere, plus they have a price-match guarantee to cover you just in case. Promo Direct is a good place to turn to for promotional products and they've earned a solid rating from us.

ApparelnBags Review 3 Star Rating

ApparelnBags

3 Star Rating
  • Save 10% when you register for an account
  • Rewards program
  • Free shipping on orders over $149
  • 30-day return and exchange policy
  • Price-match guarantee
  • Optional custom creative design services
  • "A” Better Business Bureau rating

ApparelnBags is a full-service marketing agency based out of Tampa, Florida that was established in 2011. Based on their name, you might think ApparelnBags is a fashion store, which isn't too far off since they specialize in custom clothing, workwear uniforms, sports teams uniforms, and branded t-shirts. They are there for customers who need products for employee appreciation, branded workwear, and even have departments for website and e-commerce development and digital marketing services.

Customizable name brand clothing

Outside of clothing, ApparelnBags hosts a range of items like drinkware, magnets, mugs, keychains, USB drives, tablecloths, tool bags, sports gear, and all other small- and medium-sized items you might expect to find customizable options for. If you are going for clothing, you'll recognize featured brands they sell like Champion, Adidas, Nike, Ogio, The North Face, and Under Armour, among others.

Budget-friendly

Whether you're a small start-up business or big corporation, ApparelnBags takes pride in offering solutions that fit your budget. If you happen to find an identical product elsewhere for a lower price, ApparelnBags will refund you the difference if it's within 30 days of your purchase. We've been shopping for custom softshell jackets and there were 48 choices at ApparelnBags ranging from $52.85 to $175. We were somewhat bothered that instead of listing prices on some items, it simply said, "Too Low” unless we clicked on the product page. This feels cheesy and gimmicky and we wish they just showed pricing on every item as you scroll through the full product list.

Best Promotional Products

Straightforward process

Some products qualify for a bulk discount while others are just listed at an unchanging price. When you select an item you're interested in, you'll see highlights about the quality, care, and pricing. Customers will choose the location of the embroidery details and colors as well as be able to upload artwork/logo and add text. The whole process is really straightforward and we couldn't find any lack of information that a customer might need before making a design.

Custom creative design services

If you don't have a logo to begin with, consider checking out the custom creative design services offered by ApparelnBags. They'll make logos, 3D animations, infographics, video content, and social media graphics for you to use. Logo design starts at $50, but depending on the design and how extensive the work is that you need done, prices will vary. They also have rush services if you urgently need a design to work with. For quotes, you're asked to contact the company by phone or the email provided on their website.

Multiple ways to save

If you register for an account through ApparelnBags where you can manage your designs and orders, you can also save 10% on your first purchase. At the time of this review, they also had a storewide coupon for 15% off the entire site, but since you can't stack coupons, you just have to go with the best one. Another way to save money here is through ApparelnBags' rewards program. When you sign up, you automatically get gold member status and earn one point for every dollar spent. If you spend $5,000 in a year, you'll get premium membership status and get 2 points for every dollar spent after that. Finally, if you spend $10,000 in a year, you'll get 3 points for every dollar spent. All points need to be used within 12 months before they expire, but it's nice that ApparelnBags tracks your status automatically just by signing up.

Best Promotional Products

Free shipping over $149

Typical production time on products from ApparelnBags is 10-12 business days from an approved mockup. You'll get free shipping if you spend over $149. At the time of your order, your estimated shipping delivery timeframe will be provided, so if you need your gear sooner, you can upgrade to a faster shipping option.

30-day returns and exchanges

ApparelnBags has a 30-day return and exchange policy. To obtain free shipping on a return, you have to have spent over $149. Unfortunately (but understandably), the return policy does not cover anything embellished or customized, or anything that qualifies as personal protective equipment. This will probably mean that most orders you place here won't end up being returnable since customers come here to get their branding on the products. If anything in your order comes defective or different than what you purchased, that's covered 100% by their guarantee if you contact customer support within 30 days of receiving the product.

Accessible customer service

For quick help, you can chat with customer service directly from the website if you provide your name, phone number (optional), and email. The company also lists their phone number, email, text number, and fax number so you have multiple ways of reaching out with questions or concerns.

Best Promotional Products

Half-decent reviews

ApparelnBags has an "A” rating from the Better Business Bureau. This is great, but it isn't based on very many customer reviews or complaints. Even the unfiltered customer reviews straight from the website aren't entirely helpful since most products have none and others only have a few. Third-party reviews aren't anything to jump for joy about, since some people have complained about orders arriving completely inaccurate, delayed shipping, and poor embroidery. There are, of course, good things too about their solid selection and excellent service, but overall they don't fare better than what we've seen from competitors.

Not a top option

ApparelnBags should be an awesome place to turn to when you're needing to order customized clothing. We like that this is their specialty and they have a lot of options for this. Unfortunately, we don't feel entirely confident that they'll pull through with high-quality orders or pricing that can beat out other companies, so ApparelnBags has earned an average score from us.

Deluxe Review 2 Star Rating

Deluxe

2 Star Rating
  • Volume discounts
  • Huge selection
  • 15% off with email signup
  • Risk-free guarantee
  • "A+” Better Business Bureau rating

Deluxe is a huge company with multiple areas of services. Deluxe Corporation began as a check printer over 100 years ago and now they are a leader in payments and data, connecting 3 million small businesses, 4,000 financial institutions, and hundreds of leading brands with customers. They operate across the United States and Canada helping with merchant services, marketing, banking services, receivables, and more. Deluxe still specializes in selling business and personal checks and has also added promotional product design to their arsenal.

Old school web pages

Considering the fact that Deluxe helps customers with marketing, we were a little surprised to see that their promotional products web pages seem neglected. They aren't the prettiest things to look at and it was a little comical that at the bottom of every page they've added paragraphs of old school keyword stuffing with random paragraphs to try and rank higher with search engines. It just doesn't look good for the company and their web pages need a makeover.

All types of products

On the left-hand side of Deluxe's promotional products home page, there's a list of categories you can choose from to browse their products. You'll see things like writing instruments, outdoor and sporting, travel and health, electronic accessories, office gifts, workplace safety, and others. You can also filter all the options by what classifies as eco-friendly, made in the USA, comes with free 24 hour rush shipping, is on sale, or the 100 most popular products.

Know what you're looking for

We were looking for soft shell jackets that we could customize and it was a total pain trying to find them. Have we already mentioned that this website makes our head spin? You're better off shopping here if you already know exactly what you're looking for and can type it into the search bar. There are too many filters and categories to have an enjoyable browsing experience if you're just looking for ideas. We found basic jackets starting at $49.27 each, which is actually a little cheaper than we've found elsewhere. However, pricing always varies based on brand and material. Luckily, they do offer volume discounts at Deluxe, so you'll be able to see pricing listed based on how many you're going to purchase.

Best Promotional Products

Save 15% with email signup

We aren't big on getting blasted with email marketing, but if it helps us save money, we'll suffer the consequences. If you're making a big order with Deluxe, it might help your wallet to sign up for their email list and get a 15% off code for your first purchase. This could be beneficial if you're making a big order and spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Basic design process

To design a product, you'll select the color you want and then either upload your own art or add clipart or text from Deluxe. You can drag your designs around the product to place them exactly where you want, change font colors, and sizes, and leave special instructions if you need to. It's pretty basic and straightforward.

Lame shipping options

Deluxe shows a standard delivery date for your item once you've reached the end of your design process. What we don't like is that they don't have a shipping page or transparent information about how much shipping will cost until you're fully ready to check out and have entered your address. For us, shipping was about $20 and there was no option to expedite the order. This is a bummer since our highest-rated companies offer free standard shipping and expedited options.

Best Promotional Products

No returns

If you want to make a return to Deluxe, they'll only accept non-customized items. Even then, they are subject to a 10-20% restocking fee. Yikes! The only way you'll get your money back is if there are manufacturing defects on your items and you'll either get a refund or replacement.

Few customer reviews

We are always glad to see when a company has an "A+” rating from the Better Business Bureau, but it's a massive letdown when their customer reviews don't line up. People complained about expensive shipping and how hard it is to reach anyone for help through Deluxe's customer service. Many reviews are in regards to checks, so it's disappointing that even though buyers can leave feedback on promotional products, most items have no reviews listed. There's just nothing great in regards to reviews from customers here.

Nothing to be excited about

There's nothing about Deluxe's promotional product selection, website, pricing, policies, or customer reviews that make us want to order here. This company has so many facets that it doesn't seem like this area is their specialty. You're much better off shopping at a higher-rated promotional products site since Deluxe has earned one of our lowest ratings.

Positive Promotions Review 1.5 Star Rating

Positive Promotions

1.5 Star Rating
  • Sale items
  • Design items yourself or let the company do it for you
  • 24-hour quick ship items
  • 30-day return policy

Positive Promotions has been helping companies large and small with brand advertising and gift-giving for employee recognition, special events, trade shows, fundraisers, and celebrations of all kinds. They're one of the older companies in our review, having been established in 1947. Positive Promotions has a large-volume warehouse and high-tech factory to offer a wide range of products at value pricing.

Custom and non-custom products

You'll find a mix of customizable and non-customizable products from Positive Promotions. They have categories just for promotional products and custom apparel. You can also shop their education, healthcare, business, safety, community & family, and recognition gifts categories. This is a good place to look for gift inspiration regardless of what type of business or organization you're a part of.

Innumerable product choices

The number of products available from Positive Promotions is truly astounding. We found apparel here that we didn't see in many other places like lab coats, scrubs, robes, and skirts. They list out all other items that are available for personalization like toys, umbrellas, briefcases, toiletry products, manicure kits, infusers, screen cleaners, and so many other items that we could never list them all here. You surely won't be lacking promotional product options with this company.

Best Promotional Products

Find the sale items

Some of the items were on sale at the time of this review. Their customizable Port Authority soft shell jackets were starting at just $33.99 each, which was significantly cheaper than we found anywhere else. We noticed that in each category there were at least a couple of items on sale, so this might be a good way to save some money. You can also sign up for emails from Positive Promotions and you'll save 10% on your next order with the discount code they send you.

Design it yourself or not

When you find the products you want to order, you'll have two options when it comes to designing them. You can choose to do it yourself by uploading your own art, adding text, or using stock art from the website. We like that you can drag the text and images around to put them exactly where you want on the item. This makes it really easy to get the design just how you want it. If you don't feel confident putting together a design, you could let Positive Promotions do it for you for $55 if you provide the images and text you want included.

Steep shipping prices

Regardless of how many items you purchase from Positive Promotions, you'll be paying for shipping. In fact, the more you order, the more you pay. We recommend referring to the shipping table to see exactly what to expect. Standard shipping takes 5-8 days, express shipping takes 3-4 days, and rush shipping takes 2 business days. Just to give you an idea of what this costs, you'll spend $14.95 for standard shipping, $24.95 for express shipping, and $31.95 for rush shipping if you spend between $0.01 and $50. If you spend over $350 (which you so often do with custom orders), you'll pay 11.5% of your order for standard shipping, 30% of your order for express shipping, and 35% of your order for rush shipping. Ouch!

Best Promotional Products

30-day returns for non-custom items

If you aren't satisfied with your order from Positive Promotions, you can call their customer service line to work out a resolution. If you want to send back non-customized items, you can do so within 30 days to receive a credit or full refund.

Stay far away

The Better Business Bureau gives Positive Promotions a big thumbs down with their "D-” rating. Their customer reviews are just as bad, with buyers warning that this is a "terrible company to deal with”, credit cards have been breached after making purchases, awful customer service, and delayed shipments, along with many other concerning issues. Across the board, nearly 100% of people agree that this is not somewhere you should even consider when ordering promotional products.

Don't risk it

Everything from Positive Promotions initially appears to be solid, except for their crazy shipping prices. There's nothing exceptionally unique about this company that makes them stand out above their competition, but based on their website there aren't any major red flags either. So, if it weren't for the bad reviews, we might fall for shopping here. You may be lucky and have a good experience, but from what we've read from other buyers, it's not worth the risk. Positive Promotions has earned last place among the promotional product suppliers on our list.

Compare the Best Reviews

Continued from above...

Some organizations sponsor races, others provide pens, pencils, and other free items to schools with their logo and branding. We see decals on cars, water bottles, bags, camping chairs, calendars, sports equipment, and everything else under the sun. These can be a great way to bring attention to your brand and count as a touch point towards a sale or a sign-up.

Because there are so many ways to utilize promotional products, it could seem overwhelming to decide what might be most effective for your organization. It will help to put your branding on items that people will find useful and display often. If you're a sports team, it makes sense to use coolers, frisbees, stadium blankets, sunscreen, or something else outdoorsy. A tech company could order pens, desk accessories, t-shirts and jackets, luggage, or drinkware. Some items you might give for free while others you could sell to loyal employees, fans, or participants in your company.

We've got a list of fantastic places you can turn to for branding. These companies will let you order any given product in bulk so you make sure you have plenty to go around. You can upload your logo, colors for your brand, the font you want, and start designing all the swag to get people hyped. There are a few things to consider when choosing a company to manage your promotional products:

  • Quantity. Most people are going to place bulk orders for promotional products. Does the company offer bigger discounts the more you buy? Do they have a wide range of products that will get you excited about putting your branding on their items and apparel?
  • Shipping timeframes. If you're taking part in a celebration or tradeshow where you need your promotional products by a certain time, does the company guarantee they can get your order to you? A good supplier will always provide an accurate delivery date that you can rely on.
  • Design assistance. You might have gotten put in charge of ordering all the promotional products for a gala, celebration, or big meeting and feel underqualified because you don't have design experience. Find a company that gives you an expert to work with, so you don't have to sweat it. Many places have people who do design work day in and day out and can make sure everyone is pleased with the products you order.
  • Customer satisfaction. What do other organizations say about the professionalism and reliability of the supplier? Do they continue to use their services or have they had to pivot and look elsewhere for someone cheaper and easier to work with? Look for a rating from the Better Business Bureau as well.

Some of the most reputable, easy-to-work with promotional product companies are out there. Taking advantage of them could make all the difference for your business and build your brand in a big way. Top Consumer Reviews has vetted and researched the top options and ranked them to make your choices easier. We hope this information gets you on your way to some sweet branded swag that you can disperse all over town!

The Best Promotional Product Stores Compare Promotional Product Stores Compare Promotional Product Store Reviews What are the best Promotional Product Stores Best Promotional Product Store Reviews

Promotional Product Store FAQ

There are lots of reasons why companies and organizations invest in promo products to give out. They're a great way to build visibility for your brand: when you hand out things that can be reused, like a tumbler or towel, your prospective and current clients are reminded of your business on a regular basis.

Some branded items are offered in an online store where team members can buy their own merch as they wish; maybe one person prefers a polo while another wants to rep the brand in a baseball t-shirt. Finally, promotional products are frequently used for recognition and awards ceremonies. You're only limited by your own creativity.
Every year sets a new trend. Remember fidget spinners? And yet, there are some promo items that are always popular, like drink cups, t-shirts and pens. It's up to you if you want to try and capture people's attention by having the newest, most novel swag to give away or if you prefer something more traditional.
Yes, most of the time you can request a sample right on the product page. It will probably be unbranded (or may even come with another company's logo) and you may have to pay for it. Many promo item retailers will send you up to $10 in samples at no cost; on more spendy swag, you may have to pay for it, put down a deposit, or return it at your cost.
That depends on the vendor and the product. If you have a logo and a product preference ready to go, and it happens to be an item offered as a quick production product by a supplier, you could theoretically have your order in hand within three business days. Obviously, though, the more lead time you have, the more likely you are to get a high-quality promo product that meets your expectations and that arrives in time for your event.
Yes! Most promotional product vendors have in-house design teams that will take whatever you have and improve it until it's picture- (or pixel-) perfect. These experts can often work with you to create a graphic or logo just from your idea too. Sometimes these services are included as a complimentary perk, while other vendors charge a fee.
Yes, most of the time. On items that cost less than $1 each, expect minimum quantities of at least 100. On more expensive promo products (think fleece jackets or high-end laptop bags), those minimums may be just a dozen or even less.
A custom online store is a personalized website offering the branded merchandise you choose to make available to your team, organization, or even to the public. It's an easy way to let people select what they need, like uniforms or other apparel, in the correct sizes. Some companies use these stores as a rewards portal: employees can choose gifts within a certain price range as a holiday gift or incentive for reaching a milestone. Not every vendor of promotional products offers custom online stores, so keep that in mind if it's an option you'd like to have.
Usually, but there are some stipulations. You'll almost always get a digital proof when ordering promo products, and if your items arrive and don't match that proof, you should get a refund or re-run: your choice. However, if you get them delivered and just don't like the color or style, not every vendor will offer a refund if it matches the proof you approved.
The Best Reviews of Promotional Product Stores