A roll label is your label printed one after another on a continuous roll, instead of on flat sheets. It's the format for packaging lines, label applicators, and anyone labeling more than a few dozen items at a time. Custom Roll Labels start at 100 of a design.
We print roll labels as circles, ovals, squares, rectangles, and rounded corner rectangles, or die cut to the exact shape of your design.
Roll or sheet?
Sheet labels suit small batches applied by hand. You get a flat sheet and peel one off, with nothing to set up.
Rolls win once volume or repetition comes in:
- You apply a lot of them. Peeling from a roll is quicker and more consistent than working across a sheet.
- You use an applicator, hand-held or motorized. Applicators feed from a roll.
- You want them in order. Sequential numbers and batch codes come off a roll in the order they were printed.
- You're short on storage. A roll of several thousand takes far less room than the same number in sheets, and the corners don't get bent.
If you're unsure, tell us your run size and how you'll apply the labels, and we'll tell you which is cheaper. Sheet labels or roll labels? compares the two.
Material: BOPP or paper
BOPP (White Plastic BOPP) is a durable plastic film and the usual choice for product labels. It stands up to moisture, oils, and handling in a way paper can't, which is why it suits skincare, candles, bottles, and anything that lives in a bathroom, kitchen, or fridge.
Paper (White Satin Paper) has a classic paper texture for dry goods, handmade items, and shipping seals. Paper comes unlaminated, so it's easy to tear and you can write on it, and it's the more affordable of the two. For a gloss or matte laminate, choose BOPP. Paper Roll Labels are the place to start for paper.
BOPP comes in Matte or Gloss, and paper is Unlaminated only. Unlaminated BOPP is available on request. BOPP or paper helps you choose.
Choosing a shape
Circles suit jars, lids, and curved packaging. Squares and rectangles give you room for ingredient lists and regulatory text. Ovals are a traditional choice for bottles and boutique goods.
Rounded corners are worth choosing on anything handled often. A square corner is where a label starts to lift, and once a corner curls, the rest follows.
The terms you'll meet
Core
The core is the cardboard tube in the middle of the roll. Every roll we wind is on a 3" core. An applicator or dispenser has a spindle sized for one particular core, so if you have a machine, check that its manual says it takes 3" before you order.
Unwind direction
The unwind direction is which way the labels face as they come off the roll, and whether they face outward or inward. There are eight standard positions. Our order form offers the four with the labels facing out. If you need them wound in (positions 5 to 8), ask us first.
Applying by hand, it rarely matters. Feeding a machine, it matters completely, because the label has to present itself the right way around. Your applicator's manual shows the position it needs. See which unwind direction you need, and send us the manual's picture if you're unsure.
Gap
The gap is the space between one label and the next. A sensor uses it to find where each label begins, which is how an applicator knows when to stop. Ours is about 0.15". If your machine needs something else, tell us before you order.
Labels across the roll
Our rolls are wound one label across: a single column of labels down the liner. Some applicators and dispensers take two or more across. If yours does, ask us and we'll quote it.
Labels per roll
This is how many labels go on each roll. For now, tell us when you order. A selector on the product page that prices it is coming. Fewer labels per roll costs more, because every extra roll adds labor, materials, and shipping.
Liner and matrix
The liner is the backing the labels sit on, and it's paper unless you ask for something else. The matrix is the leftover label stock around each label. We take it off, so only the labels are left on the liner. A few industry products, such as hood cleaning perforated rolls, keep it.
Overs and splices
Overs, a few labels beyond your quantity, are printed but not guaranteed, so order the number you need. A splice, where two lengths of labels are joined on one roll, can happen. We try to prevent splices on machine-applied rolls.
Ordering
- Minimum: 100 of a design, and 100 of each design when you order several. Vinyl sheet labels follow the sticker rules: 25 of a design.
- Price is set by size, quantity, and material. The calculator on the product page gives you the exact figure before you add to cart.
- Samples: a printed sample of a roll label is usually cost-prohibitive, but you're welcome to ask.
- Bulk: the per-label cost drops steeply as the run grows. Resellers with a reseller's permit and nonprofits with a 501(c)(3) can contact us about bulk pricing and tax exemption.
Artwork
Roll labels are printed in CMYK (four-color). Keep important detail 1/8" inside the cut, let color run 0.125" past it where it reaches the edge, and send 300 DPI or better at finished size. See bleed and safe area.
Send your label size with the artwork: its width and height, or the drawing your packaging supplier gave you, which some suppliers call a dieline. If you're still working it out, see how to measure a jar or bottle for a label.
Roll labels never print until you approve the proof, and they ship 5 to 7 business days after you approve it. Rush is available for a fee, with guaranteed production in 2 business days.
Related
For labels that change on every copy, see variable data printing. For rolls meant to be torn instead of peeled, see perforations on labels and rolls.