What is the Best Shipping Label Printer?

If you run an eCommerce business, then you know just how important the process of printing shipping labels is. We’ve all used our regular printers to get the job done at some point, but there comes a time when you need to take the plunge and invest in a shipping label printer to make your life easier. That’s precisely when it gets even more confusing. There are so many options for label printers out there, how can you possibly know which one to choose? Lucky for you, we’ve tested them all…and we’ve got two recommendations we know you’ll be happy with, depending on what type of shipping labels you need.

Determine Whether You Need a 4×6″ or a 2×7″ Shipping Label Printer

First thing’s first: when choosing the right label printer, you need to determine what size shipping labels you need. There are two main types shipping label printers out there: 4×6″ printers, and 2×7″ printers. Which label size you need depends on what type of package you normally ship out.

4×6″ shipping labels are the standard shipping label size, and are perfect for regular or larger-sized boxes. They also work great for fitting on envelopes or poly mailers. If you ship internationally, you’ll need 4×6″ labels to print your customs forms, since you can’t print customs forms on a 2×7″ label.

If your packages are on the thinner or longer side, then a 2×7″ label would work great. These label printers are often cheaper than their 4×6″ counterparts, and are ideal for the shipper who only sends shipments within the United States.

Our Recommendation for 4×6″ Labels

If a 4×6″ label printer is right for you, then we recommend the Brother QL-1100. It’s slightly more expensive than other printers out there, coming in at around $179.99. However, if you can get past the price point, you’ll be able to print up to 69 4×6″ labels per minute, and the print resolution is some of the highest quality we’ve seen. You can use any type of 4×6″ label paper with this printer, and it’s super easy to set up and start using. In fact, we use this printer every day to print our own shipping labels!

Our Recommendation for 2×7″ Labels

If a 2×7″ label printer is more your speed, look no further than the Dymo LabelWriter 450. Coming in at $76.88, it’s cheap, easy to set up, and its sleek design looks great on any desktop. It can print up to 51 2×7″ labels per minute, making it a perfect choice for both the occasional and the high-volume shipper. The Dymo LabelWriter450 produces high-quality 2×7″ labels more reliably than any other competitors on the market. Note that you do have to purchase Dymo’s proprietary labels in order to use this printer…but you can get them on Amazon without any hangups.