Get Your Stuff Out the Door Lickety-Split With These Speedy Shipping Label Printers

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Shipping label printers are handy devices for individuals and small businesses owners alike. They streamline the entire printing and shipping process from start to finish, and conveniently work with a broad range of distribution services and platforms to make the task even easier.

Yet despite their compact size, these tiny powerhouses—some capable of turning out close to 100 labels per minute—are far more sophisticated than you might expect, and have much more in common with small printers than label makers. And there's a lot to know about device compatibility and shipping compatibility before you decide which model jibes with your needs and budget.

That's why we put together our recommendations for best shipping label printers you can buy, whether you're sending out holiday gifts or your business's products.

Best Shipping Label Printers

• Best Overall: Rollo Wireless Label Printer

• Best Budget: Besteasy Thermal Shipping Label Printer

• Best Upgrade: Brother QL-820NWBC Ultra-Fast Label Printer

• Most Economical: Arkscan 2054A Ethernet Shipping Label Printer

• Best for Customization: Dymo LabelWriter 450 Label Printer

What to Consider

While a seemingly simple office appliance, a shipping label printer has a number of variables to take into consideration before making a purchase. Here is what you should know before you start shopping.

Compatibility

There are two types of compatibility to be aware of when purchasing a shipping label printer: device compatibility and shipping compatibility. If your whole small business setup works with Apple devices, you'll need to purchase a printer that easily connects to all things Apple. Each shipping label printer works with different distribution services and platforms, i.e. USPS, UPS, Amazon, Shopify, Etsy, etc. It's important to know what shipping service and platforms you will be using and choose a printer that is compatible.

Speed

You’ll want to take note of the printer’s printing speed and output, especially if you own a small business. Certain printers can produce up to 93 labels per minute, which you might need if you print hundreds of labels at at time.

Connection

If you print labels while walking around a warehouse through aisles of stock (or your basement, for that matter), you'll likely want to choose a Wi-Fi printer. If your shipments are infrequent, a less convenient USB connection should suffice and costs less.

Print Color

Most shipping labels are printed in black and white. But if you want to use the printer to create other items like custom tags, logo stickers, or banners, a color label printer can prevent having to purchase a completely separate device.

Label Size

Again, if you're only printing shipping labels, a one-size printer will do just fine. But if you need some variety, say to print barcode labels for your Amazon business or file folder labels, look for a printer that prints multiple templates and sizes.

How We Selected

During our research for the best label printers, we drew from our experience covering other types of printers to help inform our selection. Shipping label printers have many of the same features and specs as their larger counterparts, and we considered those that were applicable, including print speed, print quality, pre-loaded software, and device compatibility. We used these metric to compare models in our selection and weighed collective attributes against price point. Our final list represents the best in each category, including best overall and best value.

Wireless Label Printer

With its intelligent label detection, this monochrome shipping label printer is compatible with any thermal direct label. However, it works best on 4 x 6-inch labels, as well as with warehouse, barcode, and bulk mailing labels, which is appropriate given that it’s geared toward online sellers.

It's is compatible with all major shipping platforms, including Amazon, Etsy, eBay, and Shopify, and prints at the quality required for major courier companies, including USPS and FedEx.

Another plus: The shipping label printer is equipped with AirPrint so you can effortlessly print via Wi-Fi from you PC, Mac, tablet, or smartphone.

Thermal Shipping Label Printer

This well-priced grey and black thermal shipping label printer is a solid choice that gets the job done.

It's capable of printing labels from 1.57 to 4.1 inches in width with no height restrictions. Printing quality is high for a printer at this price point, and while this printer is ideal for shipping, warehouse, barcode, mailing and ID labels, it works for many other uses.

The shipping label printer comes with 100 4 x 6-inch folding labels for an easy start, with a video tutorial to walk you through installation. It's compatible with PC and Mac systems, and prints labels for all major mail couriers and distribution platforms, including UPS, USPS, Etsy, eBay, and Amazon.

Ultra-Fast Label Printer

The flagship model in Brother’s QL shipping label printer line, the QL-820NWB offers a great combination of value and versatility. It’s able to print labels up to 2.4 inches wide and up to 3 feet long in combinations of black and red. (Brother sells a number of sizes of both die-cut and continuous compatible label formats.)

You can connect your laptop or PC via USB, Ethernet, or wirelessly via Wi-Fi, and it's also equipped with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct for connecting to mobile devices.

The QL-820NWB comes with Brother’s P-Touch Editor software in both Mac and PC versions for designing labels. There's a built-in address book plus more helpful features you can access through the app.

You can also use this printer on its own by downloading templates from your computer or mobile device and storing them in the printer’s memory to edit as needed and print.

With the ability to print at resolutions ranging from 100 to 600 dpi and up to 110 labels per minute, this well-priced printer should meet most people’s needs.

Ethernet Shipping Label Printer

The monochrome Arkscan 2054A Ethernet Shipping Label Printer features a large selection of label designs from which to choose, and it works with multiple shipping software programs and platforms. It can connect directly to your PC or laptop via USB, or to your network via Ethernet, which means it’s also able to print from smartphones and tablets.

The printer is ideal for shipping, but also creates labels for other uses, like file folders, signs and content tags. One of its greatest selling points is that it is compatible with third-party labels, which will help keep running costs low.

LabelWriter 450 Label Printer

The Dymo LabelWriter 450 Label Printer creates black and grey labels that are up to 4 inches wide, and is highly customizable, with more than 60 different templates, and gives you the ability to import text and graphics. It's also considerably speedy, with the ability to print up to 90 standard four-line address labels per minute.

Dymo is compatible with popular online selling platforms and shipping carriers, and is ideal for large shipping and warehouse labels, but also works for file folders, name badges and standard shipping and mailing needs.

The printer connects directly to your PC or laptop via USB, or connect it via Ethernet to your network so it can be accessed by more than one machine.

450 Twin Turbo Direct Thermal Label Printer

The Dymo 450 Twin Turbo is a highly efficient shipping label printer, featuring two label rolls of different sizes so you can print multiple address labels, barcodes, file folder labels, nametags, or postage without switching.

This powerhouse is capable of printing 71 four-line addresses a minute. It's compatible with both Mac and PCs, though it only connects via USB.

PitneyShip Cube

Pitney Bowes has long been associated with shipping so it’s logical that not only would they have a shipping label printer, but one that can do it all for you. The PitneyShip Cube has a built-in 15 lb. scale so you don’t need to buy a separate one or guess the weight of your package. Plus, its app for iOS will even take product dimensions. It is equipped with WiFi for use with iOS and Android mobile devices, while it can also be connected to your laptop or desktop machine via USB. It can be used with any 4” x 6” label roll, but printing postage requires a Pitney Bowes label roll.

ZT230

Zebra is a well-known name in warehouses and distribution centers for its industrial label printers. The ZT230 is a direct thermal printer like the others listed here, but is built for heavy use, making it perfect for anyone with high volume. It is capable of printing 6 inches or 152 mm per second and is built to take the stress of constant use.

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