Print price labels with a barcode

How to make price labels that scan and read well

A good price label is understood in a second: the customer sees the price before anything else, and the checkout reads the code without hesitating. The tool above is preconfigured with the shop price template on Avery 5163 sheets (4 × 2 in, 10 labels per Letter sheet). Replace the sample data with yours and you will see the result instantly.

What to put on a price label

• Product name, short and clear. If it is long, it wraps to two lines and shrinks by itself.
• Price, bold and large (18 to 24 pt works well on a 70 × 37 mm label). Choose a comma or a period as the decimal separator and where the currency symbol goes.
• Barcode with its number, if you will check out with a scanner. If you don't have one, untick “Include a barcode or QR on the label” in step 1 and the label gets more room.
• Internal reference, optional, to find the product in your stockroom or spreadsheet.

Sale prices: the old price crossed out

The Sale price template shows the old price small and crossed out, the new price large in red and a “SALE” badge you can edit (for example “-20%”). Fill in the “Old price” field and you are done.

Note: rules on price reductions vary by country. In the EU, when you advertise a reduction, the reference price should generally be the lowest price you applied in the previous 30 days; in the US, the FTC expects a “was” price to be a genuine former price. Check the consumer law that applies to you before you mark up offers.

Which label sheet to choose

For a price and an EAN-13 or UPC-A on the same label, formats such as 4 × 2 in (Avery 5163, 10 per Letter sheet), 70 × 37 mm (Avery Zweckform 3474, 24 per A4 sheet) and 63.5 × 38.1 mm (Avery L7160, 21 per A4 sheet) work well. On smaller labels, such as 38.1 × 21.2 mm (L7651), the barcode is a tight fit: the tool warns you if the bars are too thin or too short to scan.

Price per pound or per kilo

If you sell by weight or volume, it is usual to also show the price per unit of measure. You can add it to the name (“Aged cheddar · $8.50/lb”) or to the reference. Check your consumer rules for what your type of product needs.

How to print them without misalignment

Download the PDF and, when printing, choose “Actual size” or “Scale 100%”, never “Fit to page”. Before wasting sheets, print the “Test sheet” on plain paper and hold it up to the light against your adhesive sheet. More details in the guide to Avery templates.