Guide
Address labels for parcels: sender, recipient, order barcode and a handling banner
A clear address label is the first thing that decides whether a parcel arrives. Handwriting can be misread, and a label made by hand takes time for every order. A small seller with a few orders a day, or a school or club sending out a batch of parcels, wants labels that are legible, consistent and quick to make. This page produces them from a list: the sender once, each recipient on a line, and a page per parcel.
The form
Enter the sender’s name and address, which are remembered in this browser, and choose the label size: 4 × 6 inches for a thermal label printer, A6 for a small sheet or A5 for a larger one. Optionally add a service or shipping method, such as Tracked 48, and a handling note such as Fragile, which prints in a black banner. A toggle turns the barcode of the order number on or off.
The recipients
Type one recipient per line: the name, then the address, with a slash where a new line begins, then an optional order number and weight, separated by pipes. For example, Asha Rao | 12 MG Road / Indiranagar / Bengaluru 560038 | ORD-1001 | 1.2 kg. The slashes are turned into line breaks on the label. Up to 300 labels can be made in one run, and a line with no address is reported by its position. The list is not stored, so addresses are not kept on the device.
How a label is laid out
The sender sits small at the top, above a rule. Below it, “SHIP TO” introduces the recipient, with the name in large bold type and the address in a size that scales with the label. At the bottom, the weight and service are in one bold line, the banner sits above it when you have entered a note, and the barcode of the order number is at the foot with the number printed under it. Everything is sized in proportion to the label width, so the three sizes look alike.
A worked example
Press Sample for a design studio posting three parcels. The recipients are Asha Rao in Bengaluru with order ORD-1001 and 1.2 kg, Dev Malhotra in Gurugram with ORD-1002 and 0.8 kg, and Mira Patel in Bristol with ORD-1003 and 2.4 kg. The service is Tracked 48 and the note is Fragile. The PDF has three pages of 101.6 × 152.4 mm, one label to a page, each with the black FRAGILE banner and a Code 128 barcode of the order number. The first label reads “Asha Rao, 12 MG Road, Indiranagar, Bengaluru 560038” with “Weight 1.2 kg · Tracked 48” above the barcode.
The barcode
The barcode encodes your order number, so that a person with a scanner, or a packing app, can find the order. It is not a carrier barcode. The page makes the bars as wide as the label allows, up to about 0.45 mm at the 4 × 6 size, and warns you if a long order number would make them too thin to scan reliably. A shorter number, or a bigger label, fixes that.
Printing
Print the PDF at actual size, with no scaling and no margins added by the printer. For a thermal printer, choose the 4 × 6 inch paper size in the driver. For A6 or A5 on a laser or inkjet printer, use sticker paper of that size, or print on plain paper and attach the label with tape. Check the first label before you print the whole batch.
Edge cases
A recipient without a name or an address is an error. If the order number is empty, no barcode is printed, and the order line in the footer is omitted. Names are shrunk to fit and then cut. Addresses can have as many lines as you like, though very long ones will run towards the bottom of the label.
Limits
The page does not know postal address formats or check addresses. It does not print customs forms, return labels or carrier barcodes, and it does not book or pay for a shipment. Each carrier has its own rules about label size, placement and barcodes, so check yours before you rely on a label made here.
Related tools
- Packing Slip and Delivery Note PDF Generator makes the list of contents that goes inside the box.
- Volumetric / Dimensional Weight Calculator predicts what a carrier will charge for the parcel.
- Bulk Barcode Sheet Generator prints plain barcode stickers for cartons.
- CBM and Container Load Calculator plans freight when the parcels become pallets and containers.
Checked against the current version of the Shipping Label and Address Slip PDF Maker on .