Label printer is a device employed to print labels for different applications and printing shipping labels is one of those applications. Globally thousands of shipments are handled in a single day and courier companies handle this herculean task quite efficiently and timely. This efficient and proper tracking of shipments is owed to shipping labels. Had these shipping labels were not there, shipping companies and the entire system of tracking parcels would have been much difficult. Hence, shipping labels are quite crucial in handling this entire industry. Shipping labels ensure that every parcel reaches right destination and enables customer track their shipment.
These shipping labels are reliant on label printer. Our article focuses on “Best label printer for shipping”. We have tried our best to bring for you best quality and most popular label printers, enabling you to print top quality shipping labels and at the end of the day performing shipping tasks professionally.
In next part of article, we will be discussing key parameters to consider before purchasing a label printer.
Selection Guide towards Best Label printer for Shipping
As previously mentioned, shipping labels are very critical in handling parcels worldwide. The gadget used to print shipping labels deserves serious attention. Shipping label printers must meet certain requirements in order to fulfill the job professionally. This part of articles discusses few parameters to gauge a label printer; letting end user select a “Best label printer for shipping”.
Type of Printing Technology
Two types of printing technology are available for printing shipping labels. One being inkjet/laser; the conventional printing technology and second is thermal printing. Conventional printers require ink and toners for printing; adding cost to overall expenses. On the other hand, thermal shipping label printers require no ink/toner, eventually saving dollars. Thermal shipping label printers work by producing an image on paper using heat. It heats the thermal paper with special dye coating, turning the paper black once heated.
Everything has its own pros and cons; we should consider them before reaching any conclusion. Let’s explore some pros and cons of thermal label printing technique.
Thermal printing costs less, as no ink/toner/ribbons needed |
Portable making it to be used on the go |
Printing speed is impressive |
Thermal printed labels may fade over time |
Exposure to heat causes turn black, loosing imp data |
We are looking label printer for shipping primarily here, after going through pros & cons of thermal label printers; we can say that pros prevail over the cons. Shipping labels are not needed over a long period of time and also don’t get exposed to sun over the extended period of time, hence the cons of thermal label printers are not a major concern, as far as shipping labels are concerned. As a final thought, thermal label printers are recommended for shipping labels.
Printing Quality and Printing Speed
Print quality (resolution) and printing speed are the main parameters while selecting best label printer for shipping. Print quality is determined by DPI (dots per inch). Higher the dots density, higher the resolution of print will be. Resolution of printer is vital in readability of shipping labels. Three variants of dpi thermal label printers are available (203, 300 and 600 dpi). Standard 203 dpi print resolution is well for standard shipping labels and larger barcodes. But, if you intend to print small text, higher DPI label printer is recommended so that barcode may be readily scanned.
Printing speed measures how quickly your shipping labels are printed. Normal label printer prints relatively slower as compared to industrial printer. You may choose the desired label printer for shipping accordingly.
Connectivity Options
Connectivity options offered determine the versatility and portability of label printer. Few thermal label printers connect to computer via USB cables, but some can connect via serial port or Ethernet. High end models offer Wifi or Bluetooth connectivity options making label printer portable. Portable label printers provide added advantage of remotely usage.
Compatibility with different Shipping Labels
Label printer compatibility with different types and sizes of shipping labels make it versatile. Some label printers can handle single width of shipping labels, limiting its use to particular task. Before selecting a thermal label printer, access your requirement of shipping labels and then choose corresponding label printer accordingly.
Few label printers are only compatible with labels provided by printer’s manufacturer. This may add limitation to those label printers because of higher prices and availability of those shipping labels.
Below is the collection of Best label Printers for Shipping. Key paramters have been tabulated followed by detailed description of individual label printer.
| Parameters | ROLLO Label Printer | MUNBYN USB Label Printer | MFLABEL Label Printer | iDPRT SP410 Thermal Shipping Label Printer | Jiose 4×6 Shipping Label Printer | K Comer Shipping Label Printer | LabelRange Thermal Label Printer | Arkscan Shipping Label Printer | AOBIO Shipping Label Printer | DYMO 4XL Thermal Label Printer | Brother QL-1100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reviews | Best Overall | Best High End | Best High Speed Printing | High Resolution | |||||||
| Printing speed | 150 mm/sec | 150 mm/sec | 127 mm/sec | 152 mm/sec | 180 mm/sec | 150 mm/sec | 127 mm/sec | 127 mm/sec | 152 mm/sec | 127 mm/sec | 69 labels/min |
| Print Quality | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 300 dpi | 203 dpi | 203 dpi | 300 dpi | 300 dpi |
| Label Compatibilty | 1.57″ to 4.1″ wide | 1.57″ to 4.3″ wide | up-to 4.25″ wide | 2″ to 4.25″ | 1.57″ to 4.25″ wide | 1.47″ to 4.3″ | up-to 4.72″ wide | 0.75” to 4.25” wide | 1.57″ to 4.3″ | up-to 4..16″ wide | up-to 4.0″ wide |
| Connectivity Options | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB | USB |
| Price | $189.99 | $147.04 | $99.99 | $139.99 | $139.98 | $139.99 | $139.99 | $179.00 | $139.99 | $199.00 | $179.99 |
- Rollo Label Printer uses advanced direct thermal printing technology hence; toner or ink is not required, cutting down additional costs.
- It is capable of working with any direct thermal label including free UPS labels, saving label expenses. Rollo Label printer has an added edge over rest of its competitors who force you buy their expensive proprietary labels.
- Commercial grade high speed printer is compatible with all major shipping platforms FedEx, UPS, USPS, Rollo Ship Manager, ShipStation, ShippingEasy, Shippo, ShipWorks, and market places including Shopify, Etsy, eBay and Amazon. This makes Rollo label printer best label printer for eBay and shopify shipping.
- High speed printer prints labels from 1.57” to 4.1” wide and no limitation of height of label. This thermal shipping label printer is ideal for 4” x 6” shipping labels, barcode, bulk mailing labels and ID labels.
- Prints high quality labels as required by UPS, FedEx and other courier services at high printing speed of 150 mm/s.
- Rollo printer is compatible with windows and Mac.
- Rollo offers high rated customer service via phone, email and remote desktop. It also comes with 1 year warranty.
- Above specifications and quality customer service makes Rollo Label Printer, the best label printer for shipping.
- The installation procedure of Munbyn thermal shipping label printer is very straightforward. You may easily setup driver with unique U Disk saving money and time.
- It is compatible with most of direct thermal labels like warehouse labels, shipping labels, UPS, Amazon FBA labels etc.
- Munbyn shipping label printer’s automatic label identification feature makes it suitable for any direct thermal labels of width 1.57” to 4.3”, while no limitation on height of label. This makes it suitable for warehouse and shipping labels.
- This 4 x 6 label printer works perfectly with all of major shipping and sales platforms including shopify, Etsy, Amazon, eBay, FedEx, ordoro etc.
- Compatible with all windows and Mac system; but is incompatible with ChromeBook and Linux system.
- It offers high speed printing of 150mm/sec, 72 labels per minute approximately, making it best label printer for shipping and warehouse labeling requirements.
- Capable of continuously printing 700 sheets followed by 5 minutes of pause; preventing the machine from overheating.
- Typical application of Munbyn label printer include express logistics, tax receipts, toll stations, supermarket chains, clothing industry and much more.
- MFLABEL label printer is a professional grade printer that creates high quality labels for your office.
- Capable of printing labels in variety of sizes and styles, efficiently handling labeling, mailing and filing requirements.
- Print resolution offered is 203 dpi (1.8 dots/mm) and maximum print speed up-to 127mm/sec.
- Compatible with any thermal direct label, well suited for Amazon, eBay, shopify, Etsy and PayPal.
- This label printer is capable of printing labels up-to 4.25” (108mm) wide, including 4” x 6” shipping labels, warehouse labels, FBA labels, barcode and ID labels.
- Only compatible with windows system (xp, 7, 8, 9, 10), incompatible with Mac system.
- Package box contains MF label printer, USB cable, power cable, adapter, driver CD and quick installation guide.
- iDPRT SP410 thermal shipping label printer has been manufactured to meet service requirements over the long period of time. Sophisticated thermal direct technology prints without requiring toner or ink. This high-speed thermal printer is user friendly, durable and economical.
- Installation procedure of iDPRT SP410 is easy, simply download the driver from iDSPRT official website, install driver and start printing.
- It offers high speed printing of 6 IPS (152 mm/sec) with low noise operation. Resolution offered is 203 dpi.
- This shipping label printer supports labels of width 2” (50 mm) to 4.25” (108 mm) and length of 1” (25 mm) to 11.81” (300 mm).
- This thermal shipping label printer meets well the requirements of UPS, eBay, Amazon and shopify.
- Auto label detection, adjusts the label automatically and precisely making the label printing convenient. Further, it reduces wastage of paper through automatic positioning of paper in printer.
- The printer is compatible with both windows and Mac operating systems.
- Portable design makes it ideal for office, market and warehouse.
- Capable of printing quality shipping labels from mainstream shipping label platforms and logistic companies including FedEx, shipping easy, shipworks, shopify, UPS and many more. These applications make it one of best label printer for shipping labels.
- Jios 4 x 6 shipping label printer is a modern, rugged and portable printer providing hassle free operation. It may be used with any direct thermal shipping labels including warehouse labels, FBA labels, mailing labels, address and barcode labels.
- High speed printing as compared to its competitors; up-to 180 mm/sec and resolution offered is 203 dpi. It can work continuously for more than 12 hours at a printing speed of 7.2 in/sec.
- It is well suited for all major shipping and e-commerce platforms i.e. FedEx, USPS, UPS, DHL, shopify, etsy and more.
- Compatible with windows and Mac systems, not compatible with ChromeOS system.
- Automatic label catcher automatically catches the paper label, and rolls the first paper back and forth once to identify the label size.
- Intelligent label study function studies the label sizes, materials and gaps, thereby avoiding wasting labels.
- High quality Japanese ROHM print head is high temperature resistant and enables print head to perform well under tough conditions.
- Adjustable paper guide rail makes printing of different sized labels convenient. The width of label may vary between 1.47” to 4.3”.
- Package box includes thermal label printer, power cord and adapter, USB cable, 30 sheets approx. 4 x 6 fanfold label.
- Jiose thermal label printer is best label printer for shipping on a higher end.
- K Comer CX418 is a commercial grade working on advance thin film direct thermal printing technology making printing fast and reliable.
- It prints labels at a rate of 150 mm/sec (83 labels per min approx.) of 203 dpi high quality resolution. Compatible label widths vary from 1.57” to 4.3” and 1” to 11.8” in height.
- Shipping label printer is compatible with most of shipping and e-commerce platforms including FedEx, USPS, DHL, Amazon, Etsy, eBay and shopify.
- K Comer new generation thermal label printer uses high temperature resistant print head enabling it to work continuously for 12 hours or more. It can comfortably print labels up-to 500,000 pieces till print head life expires.
- CX418 is compatible and runs well on all versions of windows and Mac system. It is not compatible with ChromeOS systems.
- It supports with variety of labels including, 4” x 6” shipping labels, warehouse labels, barcode labels, product labels, ID labels etc.
- Automatic label detection feature accurately adjusts printing head according to label size, easing the feeding and printing of labels.
- K Comer CX418 can prove best label printer for shipping labels anywhere.
- Package box contains thermal shipping label printer, label holder, USB disk, printer driver, installation guide and user manual.
- Labelrange LP 620 has portable design and provides superior quality of label printing as compared to its competitors. It makes labelrange LP620 one of best high resolution label printer for shipping.
- It can create high quality shipping labels, address labels, barcode and name receipts. It works well with any direct thermal labels of width up-to 4.72”. Resolution of shipping labels offered is 300 dpi and printing speed of 127 mm/sec (5 in/sec).
- LP620 direct thermal label printer is compatible with most of shipping and e-commerce platforms. Few of them being Amazon, eBay, shopify shipstation and many more.
- Labels have adhesive back, hence no need of cutting and taping labels on package; saving a lot of time.
- It is compatible with Mac and window systems and incompatible with iphone/ipad and ChromeOS systems.
- Labelrange thermal shipping label printer comes with 100 sheets of 4” x 6” fanfold labels and 1 GB blue USB disk. The included USB is loaded with driver software/manual/video and tool software.
- Labelrange offers quality customer support to its customers via phone and email.
- Arkscan 2054A is a multifunction thermal label printer designed to print product labels, shipping labels and other labels without requiring ink or toner, cutting down expenses.
- It also works as regular printer by allowing user to print any kind of text and image on thermal paper from your windows of Max systems. Thermal paper is a self adhesive label, making it easy to stick on anything you intend to label.
- Compatible label width lies in the range of 0.75” to 4.25” and label width between 0.4” to 90”. This shipping label printer supports both fanfold and roll paper labels.
- Printing speed offered by Arkscan is 127 mm/sec (5 in/sec) and print resolution to be 203 dpi.
- It comes with free software BarTender UltraLite Label Design Software Tool (only for window systems) enabling user to print warehouse and product labels containing most frequently used label design print features including full design capabilities for text, graphics and barcodes.
- Compatible with lot of shipping and e-commerce platforms including Amazon FBA, EasyPost, EasyShip, eBay, Endicia Dazzle, Etsy, Fedex Ship Manager, Inventory Lab, PayPal, ShippingEasy, Shippo, ShipStation, ShipWire, ShipWorks, ShopGator, Shopify, Stamps.com Desktop, Stamps.com, StockX, UPS WorldShip Desktop, UPS.com website, USPS.com, XPSship, Endicia Dazzle and more.
- Arkscan 2054 shipping label printer supports Arkscan labels, Zebra compatible labels, dymo labels and all free & common shipping labels from UP, FedEx, 4”x8.25″, 4”x6.75” and 4”x6: shipping labels are supported.
- Keeping in view features and specification of Arkscan 2054 shipping label printer, it is undoubtedly best multifunctional label printer for shipping.
- AOBIO shipping label printer has been designed elegantly and smaller in dimension; ideal for small office environment.
- Thermal label printer supports printing of different sizes of labels. Printing speed of label printer is 152 mm/sec and resolution of 203 dpi.
- AOBIO Printer is suitable to print continuously for over 12 hours and 50,000+ labels.
- It provides multiple label width sizes printing from 1.57″ to 4.3″; ideal for printing postage and shipping labels.
- Automatic identification and intelligent label study feature will automatically catch the label and move forth and back once, then stops with the blue light on, thereby avoiding label wastage.
- Commercial-grade heat dissipation design protects the Japanese ROHM thermal printer head from overheating
- Compatible with Mac and windows system. It is pertinent to mention here that it is incompatible with Chromebook, Smartphone’s including Microsoft Surface Laptop, iPad and iPhone. It is widely used to print shipping labels for major selling and e-commerce platforms like Amazon, eBay, shopify, Esty and PayPal. It is best label printer for shipping to carry out medium level of printing tasks.
- Package box includes shipping label printer, USB cable, Power adapter, U disk loaded with drivers for window and Mac systems, free fanfold labels and user guide.
- DYMO 4XL is a wide format label printer that accommodates the entire line of LabelWriter labels for maximum flexibility and is also well-suited with popular online selling platforms and shipping carriers.
- Compatible with labels of widths up-to 4”, including 4” x 6” shipping labels, warehouse label, barcode and identification labels.
- DYMO label printer offers customization options of choosing 60 professional label templates and customizes text and graphics with free DYMO Software.
- High speed printing up-to 53 standard 4 line address labels or 129 high capacity 4 line address labels pr minute.
- You may print shipping labels from renowned shipping platforms like eBay, Amazon, Etsy and iabol.
- You may print USPS recognized postage with the help of included DYMO stamps software.
- Authentic dymo labels (variety of label sizes and extra large shipping labels) are recommended for improved performance.
- Brothers QL-1100 Label Printer lets you create cost-effective labels for packages, file folders, envelopes, postage and shipping.
- It gives user the experience of fast printing up-to 69 standard address labels per minute with black text at 300 dpi.
- “Plug and Label” feature enables quick label printing of basic labels.
- Brothers QL-1100 is compatible with label width up-to 4”, that being ideal for printing shipping and postage labels.
- It detects the tape size in the machine and automatically adjusts the on-screen template.
- It helps in minimizing wastage of label sheets, as automatic cutter allows for printing 1 or multiple labels at a time.
- USB host interface permit use with peripheral devices like scanner and is compact enough to sit on any desk.
- A user may use high quality genuine Brother DK labels for best performance. As genuine tapes and labels are designed to print high quality labels.
- It is one of the best label maker for small business operations.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What kind of printer do I need to print shipping labels?
Direct thermal label printers are best to print shipping labels. Thermal shipping label printers work by producing an image on paper using heat. It heats the thermal paper with special dye coating, turning the paper black once heated. They Few popular brands offering thermal direct label printers include Rollo, MF Label, MUNBYN, DYMO and Brothers. They all work great for all major shipping and e-commerce platforms like Amazon, eBay, Shopify and many more.
Is a shipping label printer worth it?
Buying a shipping label printer is absolutely worth it, if you frequently need to print shipping labels. People engaged in logistics and e-commerce businesses frequently prints labels for shipping. Owning a shipping label printer for such businesses is recommended.
How does shipping label printer work?
Shipping label printer primarily works on principle of direct thermal heating. Ink or toner is not required, hence cutting down on extra expenses. Thermal label printing works by creating images on paper using heat, creating high quality durable labels.