Fit an ingredient list by choosing the label's shape and text size first. For dates, either write them by hand on a matte finish or unlaminated paper, or have them printed on every label. A food label carries more than most: a brand, an ingredient list, allergens, a weight, and a date. Fitting it all is a layout problem before it's a printing one.
Shape decides how much fits
- Squares and rectangles give the most room for ingredients and required text.
- Circles suit jar lids and look good, but they lose space at the end of every line, so an ingredient list on a circle is harder than it looks.
- Ovals are traditional on bottles and sit between the two.
Many products end up with two labels: a front label for the brand and a back label for the information. Each is its own design with its own minimum: 25 of a design on sheet labels, and 100 of each design on Custom Roll Labels.
Small text
Keep text at 6 pt or larger, or 8 pt for thin (light or script) fonts. Below that, type stops being readable whatever the press does, so the size you set decides legibility.
Your proof shows the text as it will print, so you can judge it before anything is made. If the ingredient list looks hard to read on screen, it will be worse on a jar on a shelf.
Keep everything that must survive inside the safe area: 0.09" inside the cut on sheet labels, and 1/8" on roll labels. See safe area and bleed on labels.
Writing the date by hand
- On roll labels, choose matte and write with a pen or Sharpie. You can write on a gloss roll label, but it scratches off with a fingernail.
- On unlaminated paper roll labels, write with a pen.
- On vinyl sheet labels, follow the sticker rule: gloss takes a Sharpie, and matte takes ballpoint as well.
More in writing on stickers and labels.
Leave a real space for the date: a pale box with enough height to write in. A thin printed line under "BEST BY" isn't enough room, and people end up writing across the design.
Having it printed instead
If you make batches in volume, variable data printing puts a different date or lot code on every label in one run. Our prices are for print-ready artwork, and adding dates, numbering, barcodes, or QR codes is an artwork change. We can help, so reach out for a quote.
Printed dates mean nobody writes by hand. On a roll, the labels come off in the order they were printed, which keeps batch tracking simple.
Sheet labels or roll labels
Sheet labels suit labeling by hand, a few dozen at a time. Roll labels suit several hundred at a time, or an applicator. Tell us your batch size and how you apply the labels, and we'll tell you which costs less.