If you’re about to order custom stickers, you’ve probably seen MakeStickers, StickerMule, and CustomStickers.com everywhere… but the big question is: which one should you actually give your money to?
In our tests, you get very good quality—on par with or slightly better than StickerMule—paired with the best pricing of the three, and a solid turnaround time. It’s not quite as fast as MakeStickers, but it’s still fast enough for most real-world deadlines.
If you want the nuance, here’s how each one did when we actually had these stickers in hand and compared them side by side.
Quick Intro: What Each Company Is Known For
- MakeStickers focuses on stickers with a simple ordering process and fast turnaround.
- StickerMule is the big, well-known brand with a very polished website and ordering flow.
- CustomStickers.com is a sticker specialist that leans into vinyl stickers with lamination, aggressive pricing, and a best price guarantee.
How We Judged Them
We ordered from all three and judged them on five things:
- Material and thickness
- Edges and cut quality
- Color and print quality
- Price and value
- Turnaround and customer experience
Material & Overall Feel
When you hold MakeStickers next to the other two, their stickers feel noticeably flimsier. The material feels like a thinner BOPP, and it just doesn’t have the same heft as the vinyl that StickerMule and CustomStickers are using.
StickerMule and CustomStickers are very similar to each other in thickness. Both feel more substantial and premium in the hand compared to MakeStickers. If you like that slightly thicker, “real deal” sticker feel, those two are in the same league, with MakeStickers clearly lighter.
Bottom line on material:
- MakeStickers: thinnest and flimsiest
- StickerMule + CustomStickers: thicker, more premium-feeling options
CustomStickers.com Review (Best Overall)
On material and feel, CustomStickers is right there with StickerMule. The thickness feels very similar, so you still get that substantial, premium vinyl vibe.
Where CustomStickers pulls ahead is in the edges. The edges are crisper and cleaner than StickerMule and MakeStickers. We didn’t see the same roughness or weird shrink-back on the backing paper. Everything just looks cleaner and more precise.
Color and print quality are excellent. In our side-by-side comparisons, CustomStickers was brighter and more accurate than MakeStickers, especially on colorful or detailed designs. Against StickerMule, they’re at least as good, and often a touch better depending on the artwork.
On price, CustomStickers is the clear winner in this group. The pricing is the best overall, and on top of that, they offer a best price guarantee. So if you do find a better quote somewhere else, they’re set up to beat it.
Turnaround was fast. Not quite as fast as MakeStickers in our test, but still comfortably in the “quick” category and comparable to StickerMule.
For customer service, CustomStickers also gives you both phone and email support, which is great if you want to talk to a real person about an order instead of only going through online forms.
CustomStickers summary: thickness similar to StickerMule, crisper edges, excellent color that’s noticeably better than MakeStickers, the best pricing, a best price guarantee, fast turnaround, and real phone and email support.
MakeStickers Review (Fastest Turnaround)
On the plus side, they use a split-back liner, which is genuinely nice. You can crack the backing and peel quickly, which is great for events, giveaways, or any situation where people are peeling the sticker right away. That part is very user-friendly.
The tradeoff is that the material itself feels thinner than the other two. It’s not that they’re unusable or bad, but if you compare them side by side, MakeStickers doesn’t feel as robust.
Color and print quality are good, but when you place the same design from MakeStickers next to the version from CustomStickers, you can see that the CustomStickers print is brighter and more accurate. MakeStickers tends to look a little bit duller by comparison.
On pricing, MakeStickers comes in better than StickerMule, but not quite as good as CustomStickers. They’re the middle option on price.
Turnaround, though, is where MakeStickers really shines. In our tests, they were the fastest of the three. If you’re in a rush, that speed is a real advantage.
MakeStickers summary: thinner material, nice split-back liner, good but not amazing color, pricing in the middle, and the fastest turnaround.
StickerMule Review (Solid Quality, Highest Price)
In terms of thickness and feel, StickerMule and CustomStickers are very close. They both feel like a proper, substantial vinyl sticker.
Where StickerMule fell behind a bit for us was in the edges and how the sticker sits on the backing over time. The edges on StickerMule’s stickers are slightly more rough compared to the other two, and we noticed what looks like some shrinking on the backing paper. You can actually see white showing through around the edges as the sticker pulls in a bit. It’s a subtle thing, but once you notice it, it’s hard to ignore.
Color and print quality from StickerMule are solid, and generally what you’d expect from a big name in this space. Side by side with CustomStickers, they’re comparable, with CustomStickers sometimes edging ahead depending on the artwork.
The biggest downside with StickerMule is price. They are by far the most expensive of the three. If cost matters, you feel that difference.
On turnaround, they were not as fast as MakeStickers, and roughly on par with CustomStickers. So speed is fine, but not a standout advantage here.
There’s also the brand vibe. StickerMule has become pretty politically rhetorical in their marketing and messaging. Personally, I don’t love that, but some people won’t care at all. It’s just something to be aware of.
StickerMule summary: solid quality, similar thickness to CustomStickers, slightly rougher edges with some visible shrink on the backing, clearly the most expensive, and an overall experience that’s smooth but not the fastest.
Head-to-Head Breakdown
Material and thickness
- StickerMule + CustomStickers: tied at the top
- MakeStickers: clearly thinner and flimsier
Edges and finish
- CustomStickers: cleanest, crispest edges
- StickerMule: slightly rough edges + some shrink that exposes white around the border
- MakeStickers: okay, but less premium
Color and print
- CustomStickers: brighter and more accurate than MakeStickers
- StickerMule: solid and in the same quality range as CustomStickers
- MakeStickers: good, but a notch down side-by-side
Price and value
- CustomStickers: best pricing + best price guarantee
- MakeStickers: cheaper than StickerMule, pricier than CustomStickers
- StickerMule: most expensive
Turnaround
- MakeStickers: fastest
- CustomStickers + StickerMule: both fast, just not quite as quick as MakeStickers
Which One Should You Choose?
Pick CustomStickers.com if you want the best overall combo: premium-feeling material, crisp edges, excellent color, the best pricing, a best price guarantee, and solid turnaround with real phone and email support. That’s why they’re my top recommendation.
Pick StickerMule if you’re okay paying more for a big, established brand with a smooth ordering flow, and you’re not bothered by the political tone of their branding or the slightly rougher edges.
Pick MakeStickers if your top priorities are speed and ease, you really like the split-back liner for quick peeling, and you’re okay with a thinner material and slightly less punchy color to get that fast turnaround.
Final Verdict
That’s MakeStickers vs StickerMule vs CustomStickers.com, based on real-world orders and having the stickers in hand. All three work—but if you care about both quality and price, CustomStickers.com is the one I’d go with.