Choosing a template
Label sheets are sold by code. The code on the packet (for example L7160 or 5160) tells you the label size, the number per sheet and the exact positions. Equivalent sheets from other brands usually print the matching Avery code on the box ("compatible with L7160"). If yours does not, measure a sheet and use the custom grid.
| Template | Labels | Label size | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| L7160 / J8160 | 21 (A4) | 63.5 × 38.1 mm | Products with name and price, shelf labels |
| L7161 | 18 (A4) | 63.5 × 46.6 mm | Products with a logo |
| L7162 | 16 (A4) | 99.1 × 33.9 mm | Long Code 128s, bin labels |
| L7163 | 14 (A4) | 99.1 × 38.1 mm | Shipping and carton labels |
| L7651 | 65 (A4) | 38.1 × 21.2 mm | Small items, price tags |
| L7656 | 84 (A4) | 46 × 11.1 mm | Tiny Code 128 tags only |
| 5160 / 8160 | 30 (Letter) | 2⅝ × 1 in | US address-size product labels |
| 5163 | 10 (Letter) | 4 × 2 in | Shipping labels |
| 5167 | 80 (Letter) | 1¾ × ½ in | Return-address size tags |
Printer scaling: the most common problem
Most misaligned label sheets are caused by the print dialog, not the file. Browsers and PDF viewers often default to "Fit to page" or "Shrink oversized pages", which scales everything by a few percent and moves every label. Always choose 100% or "Actual size". Print the calibration page on plain paper first: it has two 100 mm rulers and dashed outlines of every label. Measure the rulers; if they are not exactly 100 mm, scaling is still on. Hold the page over a label sheet against a window to check the outlines line up.
If the whole grid is shifted by the same amount, the printer itself has a margin offset; many printer drivers let you adjust it. A shift that grows towards the bottom of the page means the paper is slipping; print at a slower setting or feed one sheet at a time.
Label stock
- Laser (L codes) or inkjet (J codes): match the sheet to your printer. Laser sheets in an inkjet smudge; inkjet sheets in a laser can lift and jam.
- Matte white paper scans best. Gloss can reflect a scanner's light; clear film labels need dark bars on a light product.
- Removable or permanent adhesive matters for price labels and asset tags respectively.
Barcode sizes on small labels
Each barcode is fitted into the label after the text lines and logo, keeping its proportions and quiet zone. Retail barcodes have minimum sizes: an EAN-13 below 80% magnification (about 30 mm wide) may not scan at the checkout. GS1's figures put an EAN-13 at 100% at 37.29 mm wide including quiet zones, so on narrow labels such as L7651 an EAN-13 falls below the minimum. Use a larger label for retail barcodes; use Code 128 for small internal tags. QR codes need about 15 mm square for a short web address.
Filling the labels
- One value, repeated: the same barcode and text on every label, for price tags and shelf labels.
- A numbered sequence: start at, for example, SKU0001 and count up, zero-padded to a fixed width. For EAN, UPC and ITF-14, the tool counts the number before the check digit and recalculates each check digit.
- A CSV file: export from your spreadsheet or stock system with column headings, then choose the barcode column and the columns for the two text lines. Rows with an empty barcode are skipped; invalid barcodes are shown in the preview.
Text and logo
Each label can carry two lines of text below the barcode: line 1 in bold (usually the product name) and line 2 (price, size or SKU). Long text is shortened with an ellipsis to fit. A logo appears on the left of each label, scaled to fit. Choose the text size to suit the label: 8 pt is readable on L7160; 6 pt is the practical minimum.
Free and paid
The preview, the calibration page and a watermarked PDF of the first sheet are free, so you can check the layout before paying. A 30-day licence (A$4.99) makes print-ready PDFs of every sheet without the watermark, up to 1,000 labels per PDF; the lifetime licence (A$19) does the same for good and raises the bulk ZIP limit to 5,000. Single barcodes are always free.
Thermal label printers
Roll-fed thermal printers (Zebra, Dymo, Brother and similar) print one label at a time rather than sheets, so their own software usually lays out the label. Make the barcodes here as PNG files at 600 dpi with the bulk ZIP on any barcode page, or as SVG, and import them into the printer's software. For sheets on an office printer, use this page.
How this tool works
Barcodes are drawn in your browser with bwip-js, an open-source (MIT) port of Barcode Writer in Pure PostScript, and PDFs are written with pdf-lib. Nothing you type is uploaded, and the page works offline after the first visit. Single barcodes are free in every format with no watermark. Paid licences cover print-ready label sheets and large batches; see the box above.