Here you can read about which type of printing is best for your branded paper cups.

A PMS color is a specific numbered color in the Pantone Matching System® used in the graphic arts, printing and other industries to facilitate accurate and consistent color reproduction, especially across multiple production runs, vendors and manufacturing processes.

Pantone prints using a “spot color” method which means each individual color is printed one at a time, not mixed like CMYK. The more colors you have, the more spots are needed. Ultimately, you pay for the number of colors you use, making it great for simple custom design of your paper cup.

The Advantages of Pantone Colors
Color consistency: Unlike other color spaces that employ subjective standards in process printing, Pantone colors are generated using a universal color system that combines a palette of 13 base colors in a particular way to create varying shades and depths of colors. This method facilitates consistency in color identification and ensures that the product is produced in the exact color as was intended.

The Drawbacks of Pantone Colors
More expensive: The Pantone printing process is relatively costly since one must purchase a patented PMS guidebook to ensure color accuracy. Using Pantone colors can result in higher costs than the four-color printing process: Pantone inks are significantly more expensive than CMYK colorants.

Time-consuming: Pantone printing is time-consuming, especially spot-printing graphics, which require changing ink every time a new color is used and washing up plates. The color system can result in large lead times in a print project.
Diversity of colors: Pantone colors extend outside the CMYK spectrum range. With PMS, one can create any pigment that would be impossible to generate using the four-ink process.

CMYK stands for the four colors used in printing ink: cyan, magenta, yellow and key (or black). It is a subtractive color model, which refers to the way these colors each reflect or absorb light. In a subtractive color model, colors are created by subtracting certain wavelengths of light. And, when any of these four colors are combined, together they subtract various parts of the light spectrum. The result is the perception of certain colors.

In printing, the four colors can be applied to a white surface of paper cup to produce a very wide range of colors. For example, Cyan absorbs red light, so blue and green light is reflected. This means that when cyan is added to the page, it subtracts red so shades of green and blue are created.

The Advantages of the CMYK Method
Photorealistic imagery: CMYK process printing is favored for its photorealistic imagery in commercial printing. CMYK works best with the printed medium since printers place tiny dots of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black to generate a broad range of colors and a vibrant and detailed image.

The Drawbacks of the CMYK Method
Limited colors: CMYK has a limited range of process colors and comes with distinct shades that may be challenging to create. The solid color spectrum of CYMK process printing is narrower than other color models.