Acrylic vs Glass Wall Art: What's the Difference and Which is Better

Acrylic and glass are both clear, rigid materials used for made-to-order wall art, photo prints, and decor. The short answer: acrylic is lighter, shatter-resistant, and more impact-tolerant; glass has higher clarity, better scratch resistance, and a premium look. For your photo on a wall art piece, tempered glass wins on color depth and gift presentation; acrylic wins on weight, child-room safety, and smaller-format custom photo gift formats.

What is the Difference Between Acrylic and Glass?

Acrylic (also called plexiglass or PMMA) is a synthetic polymer cast or extruded into clear sheets. Glass is silica fused at high temperature into a hard transparent solid. Both look clear at a glance but behave differently under stress, light, and time.

The decision between them depends on what the material is for. For a wall hanging that needs durability against impact and drops, acrylic wins. For a gallery-quality photo display where clarity and scratch-resistance matter most, tempered glass wins. The rest of this guide breaks down both sides of the comparison.

How Are Acrylic and Glass Made?

Glass is manufactured by melting silica sand with sodium and limestone at temperatures above 1700 degrees Celsius, then cooling the molten mixture into sheets or shapes. Tempered glass goes through an additional heat-treatment cycle that pre-stresses the surface, making the finished panel several times stronger than standard float glass.

Acrylic is manufactured by polymerizing methyl methacrylate monomer into clear sheets through either cell casting (premium grades, used by Giftenova) or extrusion (cheaper, more variable quality). Cell-cast acrylic has higher optical clarity and edge polishability than extruded acrylic. Both are workable with standard tools, unlike glass which requires specialized cutting.

What Are the Advantages of Glass Over Acrylic?

• Clarity. Glass has higher long-term optical clarity. Acrylic can yellow slightly over decades of UV exposure; tempered glass retains its clarity essentially forever indoors.
• Scratch resistance. Glass is significantly harder than acrylic. A surface that would scratch acrylic with regular cleaning leaves glass unaffected.
• Heat resistance. Glass tolerates temperatures up to several hundred degrees without warping. Acrylic begins to soften around 80 degrees Celsius.
• Chemical resistance. Glass tolerates almost any cleaning product. Acrylic is sensitive to alcohol-based and ammonia-based cleaners over years of use.
• Premium feel. The cool weight and surface of glass reads more premium than acrylic of the same dimension. For high-end gifts and statement decor, glass carries more visual weight.

What Are the Advantages of Acrylic Over Glass?

• Impact resistance. Acrylic is shatter-resistant. A drop that would shatter standard glass usually leaves acrylic intact, possibly cracked but not in fragments.
• Lighter weight. Acrylic weighs about half as much as glass at the same dimensions. Easier shipping, easier mounting, easier to handle on the wall.
• Safety in homes with children. Acrylic does not produce sharp shards if it does break, which makes it safer in kids' rooms, nurseries, and play areas.
• Lower cost at small sizes. Acrylic plaques and photo blocks are typically less expensive than equivalent-sized tempered glass pieces.
• UV-print friendly. Both materials accept UV-cured pigment inks; acrylic actually bonds the print into the surface as well as glass at the polymer level, which is why our acrylic photo blocks and plaques retain color as well as the glass pieces.

Which is Better for Photo Wall Art?

For Giftenova photo wall art specifically, the decision usually comes down to size and use case:

• Pick tempered glass for: large statement walls (14x20 to 27x43 inches), gift presentations where the premium feel matters, kitchens (the easy-clean glass surface beats canvas or acrylic), and any installation where scratches over years of cleaning would degrade an acrylic surface.
• Pick acrylic for: smaller plaques and photo blocks (2x2 to 6x4 inch desk pieces), kids' rooms and nurseries, lighter walls that struggle with the weight of large tempered glass, and any installation where a fall or impact is a real concern.

For the full lineup of tempered glass options, see our tempered glass wall art collection. For acrylic plaques, frames, and photo blocks, see our glass art collection (which groups acrylic adjacent to glass under the broader art-themed framing).

Frequently Asked Questions

Is acrylic just cheap plastic?

No. Cell-cast acrylic (the grade Giftenova uses) is a premium optical-clarity polymer. The "cheap plastic" reputation comes from extruded-acrylic budget products, which is a different grade. Premium acrylic has better impact resistance than glass and accepts UV-cured prints with the same color quality. Acrylic does eventually yellow under decades of heavy UV exposure where glass does not, so for a 25-year display window indoor placement matters.

What other uses suit each material?

Beyond wall art, glass wins for windows, drinkware, oven doors, mirrors, and large aquariums where heat and chemical resistance matter. Acrylic wins for safety glazing, picture-frame protection, small aquariums, and any product display where weight or impact resistance matters. For personalized photo wall art and desk decor specifically, both materials work; Giftenova offers both because different customers value different trade-offs.

Is acrylic stronger than glass?

It depends what kind of strength. Acrylic has higher impact resistance (it does not shatter from drops or strikes the way glass does). Tempered glass has higher scratch resistance and surface hardness. For a wall piece that might fall, acrylic is more forgiving. For a piece that gets cleaned every week, tempered glass holds up better.

Does acrylic yellow over time?

Premium cell-cast acrylic is highly UV-stable indoors and shows minimal yellowing across decades of indoor display. Cheap extruded acrylic can yellow visibly within 5-10 years of UV exposure. Giftenova uses cell-cast acrylic for our plaques and photo blocks, so yellowing is not a practical concern for indoor placement.

Is acrylic more expensive than glass?

Premium acrylic is more expensive than basic float glass per square foot. But tempered glass (the type used for wall art) is more expensive than premium acrylic at the same dimensions. The price difference shrinks at larger sizes; at the 27x43 inch wall-art size, tempered glass is generally the higher-cost option for personalized photo gifts.

Can both materials be UV-printed for photo art?

Yes. UV-cured pigment inks bond into both acrylic and tempered glass surfaces at the molecular level. The print quality and color stability are essentially equivalent across both substrates. The visual difference comes from the substrate itself - glass has more depth refraction; acrylic feels lighter and reads less formal.

Which is safer for homes with children?

Acrylic is safer. If acrylic breaks, it cracks rather than shattering into sharp fragments. Tempered glass is safer than standard glass (it shatters into small blunt pebbles, not long shards). But acrylic is still the safer pick for nursery walls, kids' rooms, and any spot where a fall could be dangerous.

How do I clean acrylic vs glass?

Glass tolerates almost any cleaner including ammonia-based formulas like classic Windex. Acrylic requires gentler cleaners - alcohol-free glass cleaner or a dedicated acrylic cleaner. For both materials, use a microfiber cloth (never paper towels or abrasive scrubbers) and wipe in straight lines. See our guide to cleaning and displaying glass art for the deeper care routine.