Label Planet
When it comes to producing the perfect label, size is (sometimes) everything.
Getting the right label size can go a long way towards making it much easier to create a clean cut label design that enhances the item that you need to label, whether you’re looking for a practical and professional finish or something that simply looks the part.
There are a few practical considerations to bear in mind when it comes to picking the perfect label size:
WHAT SIZE (& SHAPE) IS THE SURFACE YOU ARE LABELLING?
Obviously, you cannot choose a label size that is BIGGER than the item or surface that you want to label – so first you need to measure the surface of your item to determine the largest size that you could use within the available space.
Next you need to consider if there are any other limitations that would reduce the label size that you could use, including any aesthetic or practical reasons why a larger label size might not be the way to go. For example, if you are labelling products, you may have invested in specially designed or branded packaging, which would be needlessly covered up if you use too large a label. In this case, you want to make sure that the label size is a neat and compact one that won’t detract from the overall appearance of your products. Likewise, if you are labelling a surface that is in any way shaped or curved (e.g. bottles and jars), you may find that you cannot apply a label to a shaped portion of the surface, which will limit the space you have available to you for adding a label.
HOW MUCH SPACE DO YOU NEED FOR YOUR INFORMATION/DESIGN?
You also need to consider how much stuff you want to add to your label(s); if you’ve got a lot of important information to add OR you’ve got a large and intricate design to recreate, then you need to make sure that the label size you choose is large enough to accommodate that design – without forcing you to reduce your content to a smaller size just so it will fit (which will most likely either make your text illegible or make your design look cramped and badly planned.
We highly recommend taking a moment to type up the information that you’re planning to add to your labels or creating a quick rough sketch of the design you want to create to give yourself a better idea of how much room you need on your labels. If you find that your information is too cramped or busy looking, you can always play around with using multiple labels instead of a single label so that you can arrange your text neatly and legibly across different areas on your item.
WHAT LABEL SIZES ARE AVAILABLE (& WITHIN YOUR BUDGET)?
Unless you are planning to have bespoke labels made for you, the label size you choose may end up being determined for you by the label sizes that are available. Many companies who supply labels but do not manufacture labels will offer a limited number of label sizes to their customers; these “standard sizes” are created by dividing an A4 sheet into the required number of labels with as little waste around and between the labels as possible. These sizes are highly cost-effective and tend to be manufactured in high volume batches on a frequent basis.
At Label Planet, we supply standard sizes because they offer our customers a good choice of label sizes, are suitable for a wide range of label applications, are generally easy to print accurately and efficiently, allow us to provide high quality labels to our customers at good value, and are readily available allowing us to store a wide range of label products for same day despatch from stock.
While we aim to stock the best possible range of label products, some options are not carried as stocked items, which means that they will only be available to order in bulk boxes of 500 sheets. If this quantity exceeds your needs (and/or your budget), it may be worth compromising slightly on the label size you choose to find an alternative that is available in the material or adhesive you want as a stocked item.
So, when it comes to picking the perfect label size, our top tip has to be “a little preparation goes a long way”; take a bit of time to measure up how much space you have and how much space you need to give you a general idea of what label size(s) will work for you. Then, you can head on over to our website to see if we supply that particular label size or if we have a size that is close enough to fit your requirements.
Use our Label Finder to see which label sizes we supply and the materials available for each size.