Free Shipping Label Template and Address Label Generator
Fill in the addresses, reference and handling notes, then print address and despatch labels at 4x6 inch, A6, or two and four to an A4 sheet.
This tool makes an address and despatch label. It does not make a carrier-scannable shipping label.
Only a carrier such as DHL, FedEx, UPS or USPS can issue a scannable label, and only when postage is bought. Nothing printed here enters a carrier network.
Use it for packing, storage, internal handover and a readable address panel. Print the carrier label from the carrier system as well.
Build Your Label
Every field updates the preview as you type. Nothing leaves your browser: no upload, no account, no server call.
An address and despatch label. Not a carrier shipping label, not a tracking number, not proof of postage.
Address Label Versus Carrier Shipping Label
The two get called the same thing and are not the same thing. This table shows which one your parcel still needs.
| Element | This address and despatch label | Carrier shipping label |
|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | You, from your own order data. | The carrier, marketplace or 3PL, when postage is bought. |
| Tracking number | None. There is nothing to track. | Carrier-issued, tied to the paid consignment. |
| Barcodes | Optional Code 128 of your own reference. | Carrier barcodes plus routing symbologies. |
| Routing data | None. Human-readable address only. | Depot codes, service codes and sort routing. |
| Scannable by the carrier | No. | Yes. That is its whole purpose. |
| Good for | Packing, storage, handover, a readable address panel. | Getting the parcel through the carrier network. |
Hand a courier a parcel carrying only this label and there is no consignment behind it. The driver refuses it, or it moves untracked.
Label Sizes This Tool Prints
Every layout prints at true physical size. The page size is set in the print file itself, so the browser never has to guess.
| Layout | Label size | Sheet or roll | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 x 6 inch | 101.6 x 152.4 mm | One label per page, roll fed. | Thermal printers at a packing station. |
| A6 | 105 x 148 mm | One label per page. | A6 adhesive stock, or a document pouch on the carton. |
| 2 per A4 | 210 x 148.5 mm each | Two labels stacked on an A4 page. | Half-sheet adhesive labels, office printer. |
| 4 per A4 | 105 x 148.5 mm each | Four labels in a 2 x 2 grid on A4. | Quarter-sheet labels, or plain paper cut down. |
Roll layouts
One label per page. Ten parcels means ten numbered pages.
Sheet layouts
Each sheet fills before the next starts: nine parcels at four per sheet uses three sheets.
Page count
Parcels divided by labels per sheet, rounded up. The preview shows the total.
How to Print at True Size
A label printed at 94 percent looks fine on screen and fails on the carton: it no longer matches the adhesive stock.
| What you see | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Label prints slightly small | Scaling left on fit to page. | Set scale to 100 percent and reprint one label. |
| Right edge is cut off | Printer paper size does not match the layout. | Select the matching size in the printer dialog. |
| A URL or page number appears | Browser headers and footers are on. | Turn headers and footers off in the print dialog. |
| Thermal label prints rotated | Driver is set to landscape or another roll. | Set the driver to 4 x 6 inch portrait and reprint. |
| Barcode will not scan | Bars printed too narrow, or the print head is dirty. | Shorten the reference and clean the print head. |
| Sheet labels drift down the page | Sheet stock has different margins to the layout. | Use cut guides and plain paper, or match the stock. |
What Belongs on a Despatch Label
A good label answers three questions from two metres away: where is it going, which shipment is it part of, how should it be handled.
A Five-Parcel Shipment From California to Illinois
A US homeware brand sends five cartons to a retail partner in Illinois. One holds glassware, so the handling flags matter.
Layout chosen
4 x 6 inch, five parcels: five pages, numbered parcel 1 of 5 to parcel 5 of 5.
References
Order SO-10482 and purchase order PO-MKT-77821, on every carton.
Handling
Fragile and this way up print as words in a boxed row, not icons alone.
Barcode
SO-10482 encoded as an internal Code 128 barcode for the receiving team's own scanners.
| Field | Value entered | Why it is on the label |
|---|---|---|
| Recipient | Jordan Mitchell, Prairie Retail LLC | Who signs at the receiving dock. |
| Delivery address | 742 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield, IL | The delivery point, not a billing address. |
| Recipient phone | +1 312 555 0148 | The driver calls before delivery. |
| Return to | Sora Home US, 1420 Sequoia Drive, Ontario, CA | Where the carton goes if delivery fails. |
| Order reference | SO-10482 | Ties the carton to the order record. |
| Parcel | Parcel 3 of 5 | Receiving sees at once if cartons are missing. |
| Items and weight | 12 items, 8.4 kg | Sets the check count and the lifting warning. |
| Handling | Fragile, this way up | Glassware must stay upright in transit. |
What still has to happen
This shipment crosses a border. The cartons still need carrier consignment labels and the customs paperwork for the movement.
Handling Flags That Actually Change Behaviour
Handling flags are advisory. No wording creates a carrier obligation. Print them anyway: they change what a careful handler does.
| Flag | What you are asking for | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Fragile | Handle without impact, do not throw or drop. | Glass, ceramics, screens. |
| This way up | Keep the marked orientation through handling. | Liquids, decanted goods, anything that settles. |
| Keep dry | Do not leave in rain or on wet ground. | Paper goods, textiles, cartons in a monsoon market. |
| Do not stack | Nothing placed on top. | Crushable contents. |
| Heavy, team lift | Two people, or equipment. | Cartons past your site lifting threshold. |
| Keep cool | Avoid direct sun and hot vehicle bays. | Candles, cosmetics, adhesives in transit. |
Two panels minimum
Put the label on the top and one side. A carton stacked face down hides a single label completely.
Do not over-flag
If every carton says fragile, none of them do. Flag only the cartons that need different handling.
Writing Delivery Addresses for International Destinations
Postal formats differ by market and change over time, so the carrier address guide decides. These habits help in any market.
| Habit | What it prevents | How it looks on the label |
|---|---|---|
| Include the phone number | Driver cannot make contact and the parcel returns. | Directly under the recipient name. |
| Put unit and floor first | Driver reaches the building and cannot find the door. | First line of the address block. |
| Keep the country on its own line | Cross-border sorting reads the wrong destination. | Last line, in capitals. |
| Use one script consistently | Mixed scripts confuse both sorters and drivers. | One block, one script, plus a romanised line. |
| Avoid abbreviations you invented | Depot guesswork on an unfamiliar road name. | Full street names, no internal shorthand. |
| Leave landmark notes out of the address | Address parsing breaks on free text. | Move them to the handler notes line. |
The Internal Reference Barcode
The optional barcode encodes the reference you typed, in Code 128 character set B with the standard check character. For your scanners only.
What it encodes
Exactly the reference you entered. Nothing added, generated or looked up.
Check character
Start value plus each character value times its position, modulo 103. The standard Code 128 rule.
What it is not
Not a tracking number, not a carrier barcode, not a GS1 licensed identifier.
When it is hidden
If the bars would print too narrow to scan at your label size, the tool leaves it off and says so.
The printed barcode carries the caption internal reference, so nobody downstream mistakes it for a carrier tracking barcode.
Where the Carrier Label Actually Comes From
Every route below issues the tracking number when the service is bought. That is the moment a label becomes scannable.
| Route | Who issues the label | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier account portal | The carrier, after you book the consignment. | You hold a direct account and ship steady volume. |
| Marketplace fulfilment flow | The marketplace, from the order record. | Orders arrive through one or two marketplaces. |
| Ecommerce platform app | A shipping app connected to your store. | You ship from your own storefront in small batches. |
| Third-party logistics provider | The 3PL, from its own carrier contracts. | Picking, packing and carrier choice sit with a partner. |
| Retail counter or drop-off | The counter, when you pay for the service. | Occasional parcels with no account. |
- Pack and weigh first.Carrier pricing depends on weight and dimensions.
- Buy the service.The tracking number and scannable label are created at this step.
- Print the carrier label.Attach it flat, with no tape across the barcode.
- Add this despatch label.Second panel, for the address, references and handling flags.
Common Label Mistakes in a Packing Station
Thermal Roll or A4 Sheet?
Word, Excel and design-tool templates are where true-size printing usually breaks. The hardware choice below matters more.
| Consideration | Thermal roll, 4 x 6 inch | A4 sheet layouts |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware | Dedicated thermal label printer. | Any office printer already on the network. |
| Consumables | Label rolls, no ink. | Adhesive sheets, or paper and pouches. |
| Speed per label | Fast, one label per press. | Slower, two or four per sheet. |
| Durability | Thermal print fades in heat and sunlight. | Laser toner holds up on a covered panel. |
| Best fit | A packing station running all day. | Occasional despatch on a shared printer. |
Where the Despatch Label Sits in the Shipment File
Shipping Label Template Questions
Need Carrier Labels, Not Just Address Labels?
Locad picks, packs and ships ecommerce orders, with carrier selection, tracked consignments and warehouse handover built into the flow.