eBay

incrediblefinds199 · ‎07-20-2021

so i was just wondering what all you sellers use to print labels.

Tell me what printer you use and the type of labels? i see printers specifically for shipping labels?

what printer, what paper is best and any info that may help me upgrade.

what i use and works fine but i think it may take a little more time. i have a regular printer and i refill the ink myself so that's cheap. i use regular paper and print on that and tape it to my box. i see lots of shipments that i receive are done on a smaller 4x4 or 4x6 sticker label.

i have recently stepped up my ebay game and now full time ebayer, i just want to utilize my time better and find it timely to tape every one on every box.

kare-bearb · ‎07-20-2021

I use

A regular inkjet & print on paper.

Cut & tape the label to the package.

or

A regular laser printer on 2 to a sheet sticky labels.

... depending on my mood.

I wouldn't invest in a dedicated label printer unless my sales volume signficantly increased.

incrediblefinds199 · ‎07-21-2021

i was thinking of getting a thermal label printer. they are about 100 dollars for a cheap one with lots of good reviews. sold on amazon, its 20 dollars for 500 levels 4x6 no ink. might be a good investment. watched some youtube vids to see what was on there. not much info with the community.

redmodelt · ‎07-21-2021

I only do black and white printing, so got an older laser jet. Uses standard 20# white paper and is cheap to operate. I also have an older inkjet, but only use it for scanning.

kingmocha8383 · ‎07-21-2021

not all printers hold up the same, eventually some get dirty, smudges and smears. my local USPS scanners are so bad they have 70/30 success at reading the labels

yet fedex and my eBay app has no problem with scanning barcodes in .

this adds up over time as USPS is unreliable at scanning and updating shipping which will hurt your eBay score on shipping over time.

so printing quality and paper quality maters over time with defects.

my suggestion is stick with your current printer, thermals are expensive and that sticky paper adds up over time, its not profitable until you're making daily sales.

2 if you do get another printer make sure to buy it from a local store and on AMEX for easy returns and Credit card insurance.

3 quality paper = better barcode printouts

4 barcode to ur cell phone the shipping label and print at the usps store via the teller, or the machine (if your usps has one) though i found this frustrating and sometimes doesn't work but save on printer ink and paper.

my usps isn't accepting package pickups so i have to physically go to the post office anyway. sometimes i print the label at home if im in a rush and sometimes i do it at the post office.

incrediblefinds199 · ‎07-21-2021

my problem is the time it takes to tape on a paper print. thermal is not to bad 500 labels for 20 bucks. 2.5 cents a label. i can print about 250 labels for 1 ink cartridge 245xl but i fill it myself. i also refill my color with black when black runs out i can still print color only and it comes out black. lol i put a post on a forum asking if that would work i had about 40 people say it would not work but works like a charm. i have to set it on color ink only and it does ask me every print. so normally its like 29 dollars but not with me refilling. if i were buying new ink every time it would be more expensive than thermal.

ive been doing about 160-200 sales a month past 4 months. so that time is adding up for taping. i just hit 1200 sales. i was just selling here and there for extra cash and decided to do this full time AGAIN and cranking in the sales.

little off subject but funny read

my local usps wont drive up my driveway to pickup because i have a dirt driveway, usps made a rule a few years back that they don't have to drive on dirt driveways anymore. my driver was dropping packages off on the side of the road and still does. had a full pc stolen already. i live across from the high school. i called my local usps and was like the driver refuses to pick up at my house. he told me that was unacceptable and called the driver. soon got a call back from the postmaster saying this kid is using the new usps rule to get out of going up my driveway. i live in New hampshire and there are many dirt roads in town that are much worse than my driveway. this new driver is a 20 year old kid. does not want to work. ups will pick up no problem. i have to pick up all my packing supply's shipped by usps at the usps store next town over. stupid. my local usps is tiny and primitive. so the post office next town over all mail goes there. so much work cause this kid wont go up my driveway. he will still leave small packs by the mailbox but i put a stop to larger stuff after the PC was stolen.

Anonymous · ‎07-21-2021

You go buy that cheap label printer that has 100's of fake purchased amazon reviews. I guarantee you it's from the same company that pays people up to $100 to remove negative reviews when they get them, which is why they only have positive reviews. There is a reason they are cheaper than Rollo, and that's because they are junk. It won't print right, the post office won't be able to scan the labels due to low DPI. It'll stop printing or completely break after 3 months, at which time you'll inquire about the "Warranty" and never get a response. If you purchase this printer, enjoy, you got a tough road ahead of you.

If you want Thermal, if it's not a Rollo or a Zebra, it's not worth it.

Inkjet is not ideal, as any water (if it is raining outside) will wash the label completely off.

Laser works if you want to go that route, but thermal is always the best option.

Anonymous · ‎07-21-2021

500 labels for $20? I pay $51.99 for 3000 thermal labels on a roll. Buy big to get it cheaper it's roughly 2x as much and you get 6x more. If you don't store it in heat or sunlight it's not going to go bad, most of them are wrapped in black bags anyways.

You will waist labels anyways when you're getting used to how it works, but once you get it loaded right the only time you'll waste paper is a sheet at the end, or if you print once every 2 - 3 days you'll get hair and other dirt on the roll and the first label you print won't print right. These rolls of paper attract all sorts of dirt and dust on them which is why most zebras has the roll internal.

a_c_green · ‎07-21-2021

@incrediblefinds199 wrote:
so i was just wondering what all you sellers use to print labels.
Tell me what printer you use and the type of labels? i see printers specifically for shipping labels?
what printer, what paper is best and any info that may help me upgrade.

My workhorse printer is an old HP DeskJet 5650, printing on HP All-In-One22 medium-weight (22 lb.) plain paper. I use one sheet to print the packing slip first, cut it off, pack the item, then slide the remainder of the sheet back into the printer to print the shipping label. (The printer doesn't care about the actual page depth; when it's done printing the label it simply spits it out.)

I tape the label to the box with packaging tape, including over the printed addresses and the lower half of the barcode. (This protects the tracking number and half the barcode from rain, and lets the scanners read either through or not through the tape, whichever is better for them.)

Inkjets are available dirt cheap at your nearest garage sale (I have never bought a new one) and your computer should recognize it as soon as you connect it. While inkjet cartridges can be expensive, the labels you are printing are mostly whitespace, so you will get a huge number of labels before having to refill. (I can't remember when I last put a black ink cartridge in my printer.)

The HP printers tend to flash their low ink warning lights a bit prematurely, IMHO. I just keep printing until the cartridge actually poops out, and they can print a surprising number of labels on fumes before that happens.

incrediblefinds199 · ‎07-22-2021

where do you buy the labels. would you send me a link. the 500 for 20 dollars are not in a roll but flat. i seen a lot of bad reviews on the stuff on rolls due to they come out curled. i would give it a try though. i like bulk prices as well that's a good deal. thanks

popblox · ‎07-22-2021

I had an inkjet, but realized I was spending way too much money on ink, paper, tape, and time. So, I bought a laser printer - I thought I was upgrading, but it was just a whole new set of very similar issues. I finally buckled down and bought a Rollo. It's fantastic, I can't believe I waited so long - I would've paid twice as much if I'd realized how much easier my life would be.

I don't like curly labels, so I buy 4 stacks of 500 labels (2000 total) on AMZ for $35. Just do a google search and they'll come up (I tried adding the link, but eBay didn't like that).

daveo62 · ‎07-23-2021

There is only 1 correct answer and that is a Zebra thermal label printer. There is simply no better way to print labels. You can pick up a used/refurbished one for $100-ish. It is worth every penny.

Like this https://www.ebay.com/itm/262906492194

You can go used, they are indestructible. It will last longer than you will and you will never lose a package again.

daveo62 · ‎07-23-2021

Those zebra thermal printers are made for factories printing MILLIONS of labels. The thermal rolls are like $6 a piece and have 250 labels. Your labels are perfect and professional every time. That is the best way.