Artwork Files for Custom Label Printing

The file you send decides how sharp the printed label is and how quickly the proof comes back. This guide covers the formats that print cleanly, how to handle fonts, colors, bleed and resolution, and what to send for serial numbers and barcodes. It applies to artwork uploaded with a quote request, on a product page, or added to a design in the online label designer.

What file format should I use for custom label printing?

Use a vector format whenever you have one. Vector artwork is made of paths, not pixels, so it stays sharp at any size, from a 1 inch equipment label to an 18 inch sign.

Fonts and text

Convert text to outlines, or embed the fonts in the PDF, so the label prints with the typeface you chose. Keep the wording editable somewhere too (a Word file or an email is fine): if a proof needs a correction, editable text is faster to change than outlines. For signal words and messages, plain sans-serif typefaces read best at a distance.

Size, bleed and safe area

• Size: set the artboard or page to the finished label size, in inches or millimetres.
• Bleed: extend color that touches the edge by about 1/16 inch (1.5 mm) past the cut line.
• Safe area: keep text and symbols about 1/8 inch (3 mm) inside the cut line.
• Shape: for rounded corners, circles or cut-outs, draw the cut line on its own layer or send a DXF.

Colors

Safety colors are usually specified as Pantone references (for example PMS 186 C for safety red). Name them in your request; a file in CMYK or RGB is matched as closely as the print process and stock allow, and the proof shows the result. Screens show color differently from print, so judge colors on the printed proof when it matters.

Raster images

A photo of the label you use now, a scan or a screenshot is enough to start. For printing, raster artwork needs about 300 pixels per inch at the printed size: a 4 inch wide label needs an image about 1,200 pixels wide. Enlarging a small image does not add detail, so low-resolution logos are usually redrawn before printing.

Serial numbers, barcodes and QR codes

Send variable data as a CSV or Excel file with one row per label, in print order, and say which barcode type your scanners read. The proof shows the first and last records; scan them with your own equipment before you approve. Seeserial numbers and variable data and custom barcode labels.

Uploading

Files up to 10 MB each can be attached to a quote request or a product page. Larger files can be compressed into a PDF, or sent by email after you have a quote reference.