How to make and print labels
Most label problems start small. A list in Excel that needs to become sixty stickers, a barcode that won’t scan at the till, a printer that skips every other label. These guides walk through each one in a few minutes, then show you how to do it in the free label maker. No signup.
How mylabelmaker.com helped me make product labels from Google Sheets
Nick keeps his textile shop's products in Google Sheets. He shares how he finds one product by its EAN, picks just the rows he needs, and prints the right number of copies.
- Google Sheets
- EAN lookup
- Copies per row
I didn’t need another product database. I needed a better way to use the one we already had.
Nick, Huisman Tricot
Print labels from Excel, Google Sheets, or Word
Your list is already in a spreadsheet. These guides turn each row into a label, so you print sixty tags instead of typing sixty. Start with print labels from Excel if you are new to it.
Print Labels from Excel on a Zebra
Yes, you can print labels from Excel on a Zebra without BarTender or Designer Pro.
Print 300 Unique Barcodes from Excel on a Zebra
You can print 300 unique barcodes from Excel on a Zebra without buying ZebraDesigner Pro.
Batch Print Labels from Excel on Zebra
Yes, you can batch print labels from Excel on a Zebra without clicking Print once per label.
Print One Label at a Time on Zebra
You can print one label at a time on a Zebra by setting the quantity to 1, or by picking just one row of your spreadsheet and printing that row.
Print Variable Data Labels from Excel
Yes, you can print variable data labels from Excel without ZebraDesigner Pro.
ZebraDesigner Essentials 3 and Google Sheets
ZebraDesigner Essentials 3 can't print a list from Google Sheets, Excel or CSV.
Print DYMO Labels from Excel or Google Sheets
You can print DYMO labels from Excel or Google Sheets without retyping a single name.
How to Print Zebra Labels from Word
To print Zebra labels from Word, skip the Letter page and the mail-merge table.
Print Asset Tags from Excel. Free
Yes, you can print asset tags straight from an Excel equipment list.
Shipping labels, barcodes, and ZPL
4x6 shipping labels for USPS, UPS, and Vinted, barcode and QR labels that scan, and the ZPL code behind every Zebra label.
How to Print Shipping Labels on Zebra
You can print shipping labels on a Zebra printer as long as you have 4×6 thermal stock.
Print USPS Shipping Labels on a Zebra
Yes, you can print USPS shipping labels on a Zebra. Buy the postage in USPS.com, Pirate Ship, Stamps.com, Shippo, or Shopify, and print that 4x6 as issued.
Print Vinted Labels on a 4x6 Thermal Printer (InPost, Evri, Royal Mail)
To print a Vinted shipping label on a 4x6 thermal printer, open the file Vinted generated and print it at 100 percent scale, with fit to page turned off.
How to Print Barcode Labels on a Zebra
To print barcode labels on a Zebra printer, put a real CODE128, UPC, EAN, or QR barcode on the label, match the printer's DPI, and print with Browser Print.
How to Make QR Code Labels
To make QR code labels, paste your URL into the free QR tool and click Generate.
ZPL Tutorial for Beginners: Commands with Copy-Paste Examples
This ZPL tutorial covers the handful of commands behind every Zebra label: ^XA and ^XZ to start and end, ^FO to place a field, ^A0 to pick a font, ^FD and ^FS for the data, and ^BC and ^BQ for barcodes.
Print labels at home and on cans
How to print labels at home on a regular printer, and how to make beer can labels. Looking for one kind of label? Bakery, sauce bottle, candle, jar, book spine and cable labels each have their own page, listed on free label templates.
How to Print Labels at Home
You can print labels at home from this computer, for free.
How to Make Beer Can Labels
To make beer can labels at home, measure the can, set that wrap size in the free label maker, add the beer name and a batch line, and print a paper test before the real run.
Label software, printer setup and printer picks
Free label software for Windows, Chromebook and Android, DYMO LabelWriter 550 and Brother QL-800 setup, and how to choose a Zebra or a 4x6 thermal printer. On a Mac, start with the label maker for Mac.
How to Print DYMO Labels from a Chromebook (LabelWriter)
You can design DYMO labels on a Chromebook right in Chrome. Whether your LabelWriter prints them depends on whether ChromeOS accepts that exact model, and you can find out in a couple of minutes. If it doesn't, save a PDF and print it on a Mac or Windows computer that has the LabelWriter set up.
Brother QL-800 Setup: Drivers, DK Rolls & First Print
Brother QL-800 setup has one trap: out of the box, the printer starts in Editor Lite mode, where your computer sees it as a drive instead of a printer. To print from a browser or any normal app, install Brother's QL-800 driver, turn Editor Lite off, then match the DK roll size in the driver and the app and print one test. The steps follow Brother's QL-800 Quick Setup Guide (PDF) and its USB connection FAQ.
DYMO LabelWriter 550 Setup: Drivers, Labels & First Print
DYMO LabelWriter 550 setup goes in one order: install DYMO Connect for Desktop first, then plug in the power, load a genuine DYMO LW roll, and only then connect the printer to your computer. After that, open a label at the size of your roll and print one test at actual size. The steps below follow DYMO's LabelWriter 550 user guide (PDF), which covers the 550, the 550 Turbo and the 5XL.
How to Choose Free Label Software for Windows
Free label maker software on Windows can be a program you install, or it can be the browser.
How to Choose Shipping Label Software
The best free shipping label software depends on one question: does the label need postage? If it does, a postage tool buys the carrier barcode.
How to Make and Print Labels on a Chromebook
Yes, you can use a free Chromebook label maker, because the whole design happens in Chrome. You don't install a label program, and there's no driver from us.
How to Make Labels on Android
Yes, you can use a free Android label maker online: open the app in Chrome on your phone, design the label, and download it as PNG, PDF, or ZPL.
How to Design DYMO Labels in Your Browser
Yes, there's a free DYMO LabelWriter alternative for the design side.
How to Choose a Zebra Label Printer
The best Zebra label printer for most US shops is a 4" direct thermal desktop like the ZD420 or ZD421.
How to Choose a 4x6 Thermal Label Printer
The best 4×6 thermal printer for shipping labels depends on one question: do you only print postage, or do you also print product barcodes and warehouse tags?
Fix a Zebra printer
Blank labels, skipping, faded print, or a job stuck in the queue. Most Zebra problems have a short list of causes, and these guides take them in order.
Zebra Printer Troubleshooting: Blank, Faded, Off-Center
When a Zebra printer prints blank, faded, or off-center labels, the cause is usually the media, the darkness setting, a DPI mismatch, or Browser Print, not a dead printer.
Zebra Printing Blank Labels? 5 Fixes That Work (ZD421, ZD420, GK420d)
A Zebra printer printing blank labels is usually a media type, gap sensor or darkness problem, not a missing file.
Zebra Labels Skipping or Feeding Extra Labels
Zebra labels skipping usually means the printer's gap (or black-mark) sensor doesn't know where one label ends and the next begins.
Zebra Labels Cut Off or Wrong Size. Free Fix
Zebra labels that come out cut off or the wrong size are almost always a size mismatch between the software and the stock, not a broken printhead.
Zebra Labels Printing Off-Center? Fix Left Position and Width
Zebra labels printing off-center, especially shifted left and cut off, usually means the printer didn't sense the label width or the media guides are loose.
Zebra Printing Too Light or Faded? Darkness, Speed and Printhead Fixes
When your Zebra print is too light, raise the darkness one step, slow the print speed, clean the printhead, and make sure the barcodes in your design are solid black.
Zebra Printing Upside Down. Rotate Once
A Zebra printing upside down has an orientation setting flipped, not a dead printhead.
Zebra Label Orientation Wrong. Rotate It
When the Zebra label orientation is wrong, it's usually a landscape versus portrait mix-up, so the face prints sideways.
Zebra Prints Only Half the Label? Fix Width and Calibration
When a Zebra prints only half the label, it's almost always a width or gap-sense mismatch: the printer thinks the stock is narrower than it is, or the job width is wrong.
Zebra Printer Feeds Too Far. Fix It
A Zebra printer feeds too far between labels when the length it's printing is longer than the stock, or when it never saw a gap.
Zebra Only Prints One Label. Fix It
When a Zebra only prints one label and stops, it's usually one of three things: the quantity is set to 1, peel or pause mode is waiting for you, or the spreadsheet only had a header and one row.
Zebra Says Paused or Head Open? How to Clear It
When a Zebra printer says paused, head open, or not ready, the printer is refusing the job. It isn't a software bug.
Zebra Print Job Stuck in Queue
A Zebra print job stuck in the Windows queue usually means the Print Spooler died, the printer went offline, or a previous ZPL job never finished.
Zebra Printer Keeps Going Offline on Windows? 6 Fixes
If your Zebra printer keeps going offline, Windows has lost the port: USB went to sleep, the WiFi roamed, or the TCP/IP port points at an old address.
Zebra Printer WiFi Not Working. Then Print
Zebra printer WiFi not working usually means the printer joined the wrong SSID, its IP address changed, or Windows is still talking to it over USB.
Zebra Not Printing After Windows Update
When a Zebra printer stops printing after a Windows update, the printer is usually fine and the Windows print path is not.
Zebra Printer Not Showing in Safari. Fix
A Zebra printer not showing in Safari is almost never a dead printer. Safari just hasn't been told to trust Zebra Browser Print yet.
Printer Not Showing in ZebraDesigner: Fix List & Free
When your printer is not showing in ZebraDesigner, the problem is almost always the desktop stack: Windows can't see the printer, the driver is wrong, the printer isn't in ZPL, or the designer opened before the printer connected.
Set up a Zebra on Windows or Mac
Connect the printer, load the roll, and print a first test label. There are model guides for the ZD421, ZD621, and GK420d, and the Zebra label software page covers the rest.
How to Connect a Zebra Printer to a PC
To connect a Zebra printer to a computer, plug it in with USB or Ethernet, install Zebra Browser Print, and restart your browser.
How to Load Labels in a Zebra Printer (With Calibration Steps)
To load labels in a Zebra printer, open the cover, lift the printhead, seat the roll with the print side facing the head, snug the guides, close the head until it latches, and run a media calibration.
Zebra Browser Print Setup on Windows and Mac (Printer Not Found Fix)
Zebra Browser Print setup takes four steps: install Zebra's free helper on your Mac or Windows computer, restart the browser, trust the localhost certificate if you use Safari, then print a test label.
Zebra Network Printer Setup. Ethernet
To set up a Zebra network printer on Ethernet, print a config label to read its IP, give it a static IP, and install Browser Print on each packing PC.
Zebra ZD421 Setup: Driver, Calibration and First Label (Windows & Mac)
Zebra ZD421 setup comes down to four things: load the roll, calibrate the gap, set the darkness, and print one test label.
Zebra ZD621 Setup Guide, 300 DPI, Browser Print & Free
To set up a Zebra ZD621, load the roll and let the gap sensor find the label length, check whether yours is 203 or 300 DPI, install Zebra Browser Print, and print from the free label maker at that same DPI.
Zebra GK420d Setup. Load, Calibrate, Print
To set up a Zebra GK420d, load the labels, calibrate the gap, install Browser Print, and print a 4x6 test at 203 DPI.
Print Zebra Labels on a Mac. Free
You can print labels on a Mac with a Zebra without a Windows VM. Design the label free in your browser, and let Zebra Browser Print on macOS send it to the printer.
How to Use a Browser-Based Zebra Designer on Mac
There's no ZebraDesigner for Mac: ZebraDesigner is Windows-only. But you don't need it.