Na etiketi piše da je ovo pakiranje kave jeftinije od onoga na gornjoj polici.

Because na here means on, and when Croatian talks about a fixed location after na, it usually uses the locative case.

• etiketa = label
• locative singular = etiketi

So:

• na etiketi = on the label

The same pattern appears later in the sentence:

• na gornjoj polici = on the upper shelf

Piše is the 3rd person singular of pisati (to write), but in sentences like this it often means:

• it says
• it is written

Croatian often uses this kind of impersonal expression when talking about signs, labels, instructions, notices, and written text.

So Na etiketi piše da... literally feels like:

• On the label, it says that...

There is no clearly stated subject like etiketa in nominative. Croatian simply uses piše in this natural, idiomatic way.

Da introduces a subordinate clause and here means that:

• piše da... = it says that...

Inside that clause, je is the present tense of biti (to be):

• da je ovo pakiranje... = that this package is...

The reason je comes early is that it is a clitic. Croatian clitics usually go in the second position of their clause. After da, the clitic often comes immediately:

• da je ovo pakiranje...

This is much more natural than:

• da ovo pakiranje je... ← unnatural in standard word order

Because pakiranje is a neuter noun.

Croatian demonstratives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

Singular nominative forms of this are:

• ovaj = masculine
• ova = feminine
• ovo = neuter

Since pakiranje is neuter, you need:

• ovo pakiranje

Kave is genitive singular of kava (coffee).

In Croatian, after a noun like pakiranje (package / pack / packaging), the thing contained inside is often put in the genitive:

• pakiranje kave = a package of coffee
• literally: package of coffee

This is very common with words for quantity, containers, or units, for example:

• šalica čaja = a cup of tea
• boca vode = a bottle of water
• kilogram jabuka = a kilogram of apples

Because the adjective must agree with pakiranje, which is neuter singular.

The comparative of jeftin (cheap) changes for gender/number when it agrees with a noun:

• masculine singular: jeftiniji
• feminine singular: jeftinija
• neuter singular: jeftinije

So:

• ovo pakiranje je jeftinije = this package is cheaper

Even though English uses just cheaper for all nouns, Croatian still shows agreement here.

After a comparative adjective like jeftinije (cheaper), Croatian commonly uses:

• od + genitive = than

So:

• jeftinije od... = cheaper than...

Onoga is the genitive singular form of onaj / ono (that / that one), used here because od requires the genitive.

So:

• od onoga = than that one

The noun pakiranje is understood and left out because it would be repetitive. The full version could be:

• od onoga pakiranja na gornjoj polici

But Croatian naturally omits it.

This is another example of na + locative for location.

• polica = shelf
• locative singular = polici

The adjective gornjoj (upper / top) must agree with polici, so it is also:

• feminine
• singular
• locative

So:

• na gornjoj polici = on the upper shelf / on the top shelf

Usually, with a simple noun phrase or pronoun after a comparative, Croatian prefers:

• jeftinije od onoga = cheaper than that one

Nego is more natural when what follows is a fuller clause or a stronger contrast, for example:

• jeftinije nego što sam očekivao = cheaper than I expected

So in this sentence, od onoga is the normal choice.

Croatian does not have a / an / the as separate words like English does. Instead, specificity is shown through:

• context
• word order
• demonstratives such as ovaj / taj / onaj
• sometimes just common sense from the situation

Here, onoga clearly means that one, referring back to another understood pakiranje. In natural English, that often becomes:

• the one on the top shelf

So English uses the, but Croatian does not need an article to express that idea.

Because the sentence is comparing packages, not coffee in general.

• ovo pakiranje kave = this package of coffee
• onoga na gornjoj polici = the one on the upper shelf

The focus is on a specific retail unit or pack. If the sentence only said ova kava or ta kava, the meaning would shift toward this coffee as a product, type, or brand, rather than specifically this package.

So pakiranje is important because it tells you exactly what is being compared.