70 Gauge vs 80 Gauge Stretch Film
Choose 70 gauge if you wrap light, uniform pallets, cased goods and even-sided cartons up to roughly 1,600 lb, and want the lowest film cost per pallet. Choose 80 gauge if loads run heavier (to roughly 2,200 lb), mix carton sizes, carry sharp corners, or ride long freight lanes where one puncture can unzip a whole wrap. The gap is smaller than most buyers assume: at matching widths, 80 gauge blown hand film costs $3.12 to $5.21 more per four-roll case than 70 gauge, which is about 13 to 22 cents per wrapped pallet.
What gauge actually measures
Gauge is film thickness, nothing else. A 70 gauge film runs about 17.8 microns (0.7 mil); an 80 gauge film about 20.3 microns (0.8 mil). That is roughly 14% more material in every revolution, and it shows up in three places: how much force the film tolerates before a nick becomes a tear, how much containment force each wrap adds to the load, and how much abuse a pallet corner absorbs before the film gives.
What thickness does not do is guarantee a tight pallet. Containment force is wraps multiplied by tension, so a sloppy 80 gauge wrap loses to a disciplined 70 gauge wrap every time. Thickness buys margin, not technique.
Case and per-foot prices, side by side
Every hand roll below is 1,500 ft, sold four rolls to a case (6,000 ft per case), so the per-foot column is directly comparable.
| Hand film | Gauge | Width | Case price | Per foot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blown | 70 | 12 in | $88.52 | 1.48¢ |
| Blown | 70 | 15 in | $98.94 | 1.65¢ |
| Blown | 70 | 18 in | $98.94 | 1.65¢ |
| Blown | 80 | 12 in | $93.73 | 1.56¢ |
| Blown | 80 | 15 in | $104.14 | 1.74¢ |
| Blown | 80 | 18 in | $102.06 | 1.70¢ |
| Cast | 70 | 12 in | $107.80 | 1.80¢ |
| Cast | 70 | 15 in | $104.14 | 1.74¢ |
| Cast | 70 | 18 in | $104.14 | 1.74¢ |
| Cast | 80 | 12 in | $88.92 | 1.48¢ |
| Cast | 80 | 15 in | $109.36 | 1.82¢ |
Live case prices at the time of writing. Per-foot figures appear only where the listing states both roll length and roll count.
Read the blown rows in pairs and the premium is modest: 80 gauge runs $5.21 more per case at 12 in, $5.20 at 15 in, and $3.12 at 18 in, a 3% to 6% bump. Figure a 48x40 pallet at roughly 15 ft of film per revolution and 15 to 20 revolutions for a full wrap with top and bottom locks, call it 250 ft, and stepping up from 70 to 80 gauge costs 13 to 22 cents per pallet. One saved load pays for years of the difference. The 12 in x 70 gauge blown film is the value pick for light, regular freight.
Now the cast surprise: at 12 in, the 80 gauge cast case is $18.88 cheaper than the 70 gauge cast ($88.92 vs $107.80). Gauge does not set price; width, format, and production run do, so buy on the per-foot column rather than assuming thinner is cheaper. Cast films here list up to 250% stretch, like the 15 in x 70 gauge cast film, and unwind quietly, which matters on a dock where people wrap all day. There is also a specialty 17 in x 80 gauge anti-static hand film for electronics pallets at $233.53 a case (3.89¢ per foot).
Load-weight guidance by gauge
Industry guidance, not a guarantee: 70 gauge is typically rated for light, regular loads up to about 1,600 lb, meaning uniform cartons, stable stacking, forgiving lanes. 80 gauge is the standard-duty default, typically guided to about 2,200 lb, with margin for mixed carton sizes, moderate corners, and longer hauls.
Treat both numbers as ceilings that assume good technique: enough revolutions, film locked to the pallet, tension appropriate for the corners. Irregular shapes, protruding edges, and loads that flex in transit all effectively downgrade capacity. And if your pallets sit above 2,200 lb, skip this comparison entirely; that is heavier-film territory, covered in our 80 vs 90 gauge guide.
The three ways a wrap job fails
Film tears during wrapping
The film snaps mid-wrap, almost always at a corner. Causes: tension too high for the gauge, a nicked roll edge, or cold film that has lost elasticity. 70 gauge has the least margin here, since every nick matters at 17.8 microns. Fixes in order: ease tension going into corners, overlap wraps by half a width, check rolls for edge damage, then step up to 80 gauge if tears persist.
Punctures in transit
Nail heads, banding clips, splinters, and box corners press through the film, and under tension a pinhole propagates into a zipper run down the wrap. Format is the first fix: blown film is made for puncture resistance and gives up less at the same thickness. Gauge is the second: 80 puts about 14% more material between the load and whatever rubs it. If one product's corner keeps cutting film, pad that corner, because no gauge survives a blade.
Load shifts with the film intact
The wrap arrives unbroken and the load still leaned or spilled. This is a containment problem, not a thickness problem: too few revolutions, no locked start at the base, film roped into a thin band, or a load never tied to its pallet. More gauge will not fix technique. Add revolutions at top and bottom, catch the pallet itself in the bottom wraps, and keep the film flat instead of roped.
Hand rolls vs machine rolls
Gauge logic is identical on a machine; the economics are not. Past roughly 15 pallets a day, wrapping labor costs more than film, and a machine's pre-stretch carriage puts tensioned film on the load far more consistently than hand pulling. The 20 in x 70 gauge cast machine roll lists 250% stretch across 6,000 ft ($119.77, 2.00¢ per foot), while the 20 in x 80 gauge blown machine roll runs 6,000 ft at $123.62, with a 5,000 ft option at $103.70 and a 70 gauge blown at 6,500 ft for $110.73.
70 vs 80 gauge: common questions
Is 80 gauge worth the extra cost over 70 gauge?
At matched widths, 80 gauge blown hand film costs $3.12 to $5.21 more per four-roll case than 70 gauge, which works out to roughly 13 to 22 cents per wrapped pallet. One damaged pallet outcosts years of that premium, so heavy, mixed, or long-haul freight should take the upgrade. If your loads are light and uniform and film failures are not happening, 70 gauge is the better buy.
Can 70 gauge film hold a 2,000 lb pallet?
Sometimes, but you are outside its comfort zone. Typical guidance puts 70 gauge at light, regular loads up to about 1,600 lb and 80 gauge at standard loads up to about 2,200 lb. Wrap count and tension matter as much as thickness, so a disciplined 70 gauge wrap can beat a lazy 80 gauge one, but at 2,000 lb there is no margin left for sharp corners or rough handling. Step up.
What is the actual thickness difference between 70 and 80 gauge?
Gauge is thickness. 70 gauge is about 17.8 microns, or 0.7 mil; 80 gauge is about 20.3 microns, or 0.8 mil. That is roughly 14 percent more material, which raises puncture resistance, slows tear propagation, and adds holding force with every revolution. In practice the difference in failure rates feels bigger than 14 percent, because most film failures start exactly where that margin runs out.
Should I pick blown or cast before picking gauge?
Pick gauge from load weight first, then format from the failure you see. Blown film has higher puncture resistance and grabbier cling, which suits nail heads, splinters, and irregular cartons. Cast film unwinds quietly, stretches consistently, and is clearer, which suits indoor docks and label visibility. If punctures are the problem, blown 80 gauge is the fix; if unwind noise or film economy is the complaint, go cast.
Cannot decide? Stock the 18 in x 80 gauge blown hand film at $102.06 a case: one film that covers light loads and standard freight alike, with puncture margin to spare.