Plastic vs Metal Promotional Pens: Which Is Better for Your Business?
Neither is better in general. The right pen depends on who receives it and how many you need. PrintOnline sells both: the Custom Plastic Pen and metal options such as the UMA Metal Pen.
Price
On PrintOnline's pen range, plastic pens start from about AED 1.80 (UMA Plastic Pen) and AED 2.60 (UMA Stripe), while metal pens start from AED 5.00 (Metal Ballpen Billund) and reach AED 17.00 (UMA Metal Pen). Those are per-model starting prices, not like-for-like quotes.
The gap is clearest at a real quantity. At 100 pens, printed:
| Pen | Method | Per pen | 100 pens |
|---|---|---|---|
| Custom Plastic Pen | Printed, 1 side | AED 2.19 | AED 219 |
| UMA Metal Pen | 1-colour screen | AED 16.98 | AED 1,698 |
| UMA Metal Pen | UV multicolour | AED 18.90 | AED 1,890 |
A metal pen costs roughly eight times what a plastic one does. That ratio, not any argument about quality, is what should drive the decision: it means a hundred metal pens and eight hundred plastic ones cost about the same, so the real question is whether you would rather reach 100 people well or 800 people cheaply.
Perceived quality
A metal pen feels heavier and reads as a gift. A plastic pen reads as a giveaway. That is a feature, not a flaw, if you match it to the audience.
Branding
The plastic pen offers screen and UV print. The metal pen offers more, and you choose explicitly when ordering:
- UV printing, multicolour CMYK, for detailed or full-colour artwork
- Screen printing in 1, 2, 3 or 4 colours, each additional colour adding roughly AED 1 per pen at 100 units
The UMA Metal Pen also lists engraving among its print techniques, although it isn't one of the options in the online dropdown, so ask for it directly if you want an engraved finish. Engraving is the one treatment that genuinely reads as a gift rather than a giveaway, since it cannot rub off.
The metal pen's print area is 30 x 5.5 mm, positioned next to the clip. That is a small, narrow window: a wordmark fits, a detailed crest does not. Plan for it before designing.
Colours
The plastic pen comes in six barrel colours (black, red, blue, green, orange, white); the metal pen in five (grey, red, black, sky blue, navy blue). Plastic gives you brighter campaign colours; metal gives you the restrained palette that suits a gift.
Durability
Metal generally survives longer daily use. Plastic is perfectly adequate for a pen that will be used for weeks, not years. Worth factoring in: the metal pens take 6 working days in standard production against 5 for plastic, with a 3-working-day urgent option on both.
Bulk giveaways
Plastic wins on cost per head at exhibitions, roadshows and mass mail-outs.
Employee use
Staff pens for daily use can go either way: plastic for volume, metal for client-facing roles.
Exhibitions
Plastic for the general crowd; keep a small stock of metal pens for serious leads. See how many pens to order for an exhibition.
Corporate gifts
Metal, ideally in a gift box, for clients, partners and senior staff.
When to choose plastic
High volume, low budget, short shelf life of the campaign, or a simple one-colour logo.
When to choose metal
Gifting, senior audiences, long-term brand presence, or when perceived quality matters more than unit cost.
Order custom plastic pens or order custom metal pens from PrintOnline.
Related: custom promotional pens in Dubai: the complete guide and screen printing vs UV printing.
