What's the most common label size?

Avery 5160 is the dominant standard in the US: 1" × 2 5/8", 30 labels per 8.5×11 sheet. Used for return-mail labels, package labels for envelopes, name badges for events. The European equivalent on A4 is L7160 (38mm × 63.5mm, 21 per sheet — the dimensions and label count are slightly different due to paper size). When in doubt, buy 5160 (or 5160-compatible generic) — the most software supports it.

Can I print Avery 5160 on a non-Avery label sheet?

Yes. Generic store-brand labels (Staples, Office Depot, Amazon Basics) are dimensionally identical to Avery 5160 and use the same template positions. They cost 30-50% less. The downside: lower-quality adhesive on cheaper brands occasionally fails after long storage in heat (e.g., a label sheet sitting in a hot car drawer becomes unusable). Buy generic for normal use; pay for Avery only if labels need to survive harsh conditions or be removable.

Why are my labels printing misaligned?

Three causes. (1) Wrong template — verify your tool's template matches your physical label sheet's Avery number. A 5160 template on a 5161 sheet will be off. (2) Print scaling — 'Fit to page' or 'Shrink oversize pages' rescales the layout, putting labels off-target. Always set 'Actual size' or 100%. (3) Printer-specific offset — some printers feed paper slightly off-center; the first label can be 1-3mm shifted. Most label tools have a 'calibration' or 'margin offset' setting to correct. Print test on plain paper, hold to window against label sheet, adjust margin until aligned, then print on labels.

How should I format addresses for fast USPS delivery?

USPS Publication 28 standard: ALL CAPS, no punctuation, abbreviated state, 5-digit or 9-digit (ZIP+4) ZIP code. Example: 'JOHN SMITH / 123 MAIN ST APT 4B / SEATTLE WA 98101'. Use 'APT' not 'Apt.', 'ST' not 'Street', 'WA' not 'Wash.' Address validation services (USPS website, EasyPost, Lob) standardize and ZIP+4 your addresses; valuable for high-volume sending. Properly formatted addresses go through automated sorting at 36,000/hour; manual-sort addresses go through at 1,500/hour and add 1-3 days to delivery.

What about international mail?

Different format: country in CAPS on the bottom line. Example: 'JOHN SMITH / 10 DOWNING ST / LONDON SW1A 2AA / UNITED KINGDOM'. Some countries put postal code before city (Germany), others after (UK, France). When unsure, follow the destination country's format. The country line MUST be in English (or written in both English and local language); USPS uses English country names for outbound routing. International labels also need customs forms (CN22 for envelopes, CN23 for packages) which aren't part of standard label generators.

How can I track which labels I've printed?

Most label generators don't track usage. For high-volume use, save your address list as a CSV with a 'sent' column you update manually. For wedding invitations specifically, dedicated tools (The Knot, Zola, Joy) integrate guest list, RSVP tracking, and address printing in one place. For business shipping, Pirate Ship and Shippo print labels with tracking numbers and integrate with USPS pickup. For one-off bulk mailings, just keep your generated PDF as your record — re-running the tool with different lists shows exactly who got what.

Text & Writing Utilities · Free tool

Mailing Label Generator

Generate print-ready sheets of Avery-format mailing labels (5160, 5161, 5163, L7160) from an address list. Free, no-signup tool for instant label creation in your browser.

Updated June 2026

Avery format

Per sheet

Sheets needed

Addresses (separate each by blank line)

John Smith 221 Baker Street London, NW1 6XE United Kingdom

Sarah Lee 1600 Amphitheatre Pkwy Mountain View, CA 94043 USA

Acme & Sons LLC 500 Madison Ave New York, NY 10022 USA

Print tip: set printer to “Actual size” (NOT Fit to Page). Test on plain paper first and hold up to a labeled sheet to verify alignment before committing label sheets.

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What it does

Generate print-ready sheets of mailing labels in standard Avery formats: 5160(1″ × 2 5/8″, 30 labels/sheet — the most common), 5161(1″ × 4″, 20/sheet), 5163 (2″ × 4″, 10/sheet — shipping size), 5164 (3 1/3″ × 4″, 6/sheet — large shipping), 5167 (1/2″ × 1 3/4″, 80/sheet — return address), plus L7160 for European A4 paper. Paste your addresses (one per block, separated by blank lines) and the tool tiles them into a print-ready PDF sheet.

Why proper label formatting matters: USPS optical scanners read printed addresses, but only when formatted correctly. Address must be all-caps, no punctuation, in this exact order: recipient name on top line, secondary info (apt/suite) on second line if needed, street address third line, city + state abbreviation + ZIP on bottom line. Improperly formatted addresses get flagged and routed to manual sorting, adding 1-3 days to delivery. USPS Publication 28 (Postal Addressing Standards) is the official reference; for high-volume mailers (1000+ pieces) using CASS-certified address validation software is required for presort discounts. The Avery formats are designed to align with these standards — they give enough room for a properly-formatted address without crowding.

Print conventions for label sheets: (1) Always print at “Actual size”(or 100% scale) — “fit to page” will misalign labels and waste a $5-10 sheet. (2) Test print on plain paper first by holding the printout against a label sheet at a window — verify alignment before wasting a label sheet. (3) Use laser printers when possible — inkjet labels can smear in transit and the ink absorbs unevenly into the adhesive. (4) Don’t reuse partial sheets through laser printers — heated rollers can melt residual adhesive onto the rollers, which is expensive to clean. Inkjet handles partial sheets fine. (5) Avery sheets and most generic equivalents (Maco, Staples store brand) are interchangeable as long as the format number matches — 5160-equivalent works in any 5160 template.

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Paste this snippet into any page. Loads on-demand (lazy), no tracking scripts, and sized to most dashboards. Replace the height to fit your layout.

<iframe src="https://freetoolarena.com/embed/mailing-label-generator" width="100%" height="720" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" title="Mailing Label Generator" style="border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:12px;max-width:720px;"></iframe>

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How to use it

Pick the Avery format matching your label sheets: 5160 for return-mail and small-package labels (most common); 5163 for shipping; 5167 for return-address; L7160 for A4 paper.
Paste your addresses, one per blank-line-separated block. Format: line 1 = name, line 2 = optional secondary (Apt 4B), line 3 = street, line 4 = city, state, ZIP. Use uppercase for USPS scanner-friendliness.
Adjust margin and font size if needed (defaults work for most printers; some require ±2mm offset for proper alignment).
Save as PDF or print directly. Always print at 'Actual size' / 100% scale — never 'Fit to page'.
Do a test print on plain paper first. Hold against the label sheet at a window to verify alignment before printing on labels.
Use laser printers when possible (cleaner, doesn't smear in mail). Inkjet works but needs to dry 30+ seconds before handling. Don't run partial sheets through laser printers.

When to use this tool

Holiday card mailings (50-200+ recipients) where hand-addressing is too slow.
Small business shipping — printing 10-50 mailing labels at once vs handwriting each.
Wedding invitations and save-the-dates — calligraphy is great but expensive at $1.50-3/envelope; printed labels are $0.05-0.15/label.
Bulk mail / direct mail campaigns — under 200 pieces, generic label printing is cheaper than going to a print shop ($150-300 minimum for outsourced).

When not to use it

High-volume direct mail (1000+ pieces) — use a presort mail house with CASS-certified software for postage discounts and proper IMb (Intelligent Mail Barcode) handling.
Wedding invitations going to formal etiquette venues (very traditional weddings) — handwritten or calligraphy is more elegant and expected.
Single-use or one-off mailing — 1-2 labels printed via this method waste a 30-label sheet; just write by hand.
Specialty mail (international, certified, registered) — those need additional forms and postage strips that label generators don't handle.

Common use cases

Quick generation during a typical workday
Pre-decision sanity-check on inputs and outputs
Educational use — demonstrating the underlying concept
Onboarding a colleague who needs the same calculation/conversion

Frequently asked questions

What's the most common label size?: Avery 5160 is the dominant standard in the US: 1" × 2 5/8", 30 labels per 8.5×11 sheet. Used for return-mail labels, package labels for envelopes, name badges for events. The European equivalent on A4 is L7160 (38mm × 63.5mm, 21 per sheet — the dimensions and label count are slightly different due to paper size). When in doubt, buy 5160 (or 5160-compatible generic) — the most software supports it.
Can I print Avery 5160 on a non-Avery label sheet?: Yes. Generic store-brand labels (Staples, Office Depot, Amazon Basics) are dimensionally identical to Avery 5160 and use the same template positions. They cost 30-50% less. The downside: lower-quality adhesive on cheaper brands occasionally fails after long storage in heat (e.g., a label sheet sitting in a hot car drawer becomes unusable). Buy generic for normal use; pay for Avery only if labels need to survive harsh conditions or be removable.
Why are my labels printing misaligned?: Three causes. (1) Wrong template — verify your tool's template matches your physical label sheet's Avery number. A 5160 template on a 5161 sheet will be off. (2) Print scaling — 'Fit to page' or 'Shrink oversize pages' rescales the layout, putting labels off-target. Always set 'Actual size' or 100%. (3) Printer-specific offset — some printers feed paper slightly off-center; the first label can be 1-3mm shifted. Most label tools have a 'calibration' or 'margin offset' setting to correct. Print test on plain paper, hold to window against label sheet, adjust margin until aligned, then print on labels.
How should I format addresses for fast USPS delivery?: USPS Publication 28 standard: ALL CAPS, no punctuation, abbreviated state, 5-digit or 9-digit (ZIP+4) ZIP code. Example: 'JOHN SMITH / 123 MAIN ST APT 4B / SEATTLE WA 98101'. Use 'APT' not 'Apt.', 'ST' not 'Street', 'WA' not 'Wash.' Address validation services (USPS website, EasyPost, Lob) standardize and ZIP+4 your addresses; valuable for high-volume sending. Properly formatted addresses go through automated sorting at 36,000/hour; manual-sort addresses go through at 1,500/hour and add 1-3 days to delivery.
What about international mail?: Different format: country in CAPS on the bottom line. Example: 'JOHN SMITH / 10 DOWNING ST / LONDON SW1A 2AA / UNITED KINGDOM'. Some countries put postal code before city (Germany), others after (UK, France). When unsure, follow the destination country's format. The country line MUST be in English (or written in both English and local language); USPS uses English country names for outbound routing. International labels also need customs forms (CN22 for envelopes, CN23 for packages) which aren't part of standard label generators.
How can I track which labels I've printed?: Most label generators don't track usage. For high-volume use, save your address list as a CSV with a 'sent' column you update manually. For wedding invitations specifically, dedicated tools (The Knot, Zola, Joy) integrate guest list, RSVP tracking, and address printing in one place. For business shipping, Pirate Ship and Shippo print labels with tracking numbers and integrate with USPS pickup. For one-off bulk mailings, just keep your generated PDF as your record — re-running the tool with different lists shows exactly who got what.

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