You can buy printable shipping labels in Office Max or Staples & print them on any inkjet.

 

onlinelabels.com or usps store has printable labels and they are cheaper than avery .. you don't need a thermal printer right away.. I suggest you are start with your regular printer when you get busy you may want to upgrade to a thermal printer..

Now not every thermal printer is compatible with FedEx, UPS and USPS..at least I haven't found one. If anyone has found a universal thermal printer I would like to know too.

I just recently upgraded to a online postage store.. Endicia | Print Internet Postage for Mail & Packages on PC or Mac | Endicia Dazzle & DYMO Stamps I purchased a starter kit bundle with a printer and scale. Its worked perfect for me..

 

onlinelabels.com or usps store has printable labels and they are cheaper than avery .. you don't need a thermal printer right away.. I suggest you are start with your regular printer when you get busy you may want to upgrade to a thermal printer..

Now not every thermal printer is compatible with FedEx, UPS and USPS..at least I haven't found one. If anyone has found a universal thermal printer I would like to know too.

I just recently upgraded to a online postage store.. Endicia | Print Internet Postage for Mail & Packages on PC or Mac | Endicia Dazzle & DYMO Stamps I purchased a starter kit bundle with a printer and scale. Its worked perfect for me..

Endicia indeed is very good.

 

lets say the money isnt the problem (im willing to spend the money for the thermal printer) ...would you still recommend me not getting one?

 

you can use any laser or inkjet printer to print shipping labels, so just use what you have. as fatkat said, thermals are not universal. so you would need to use the service that is compatible with your printer. doesn't it make sense to be flexible how you ship your packages? is there a reason you really want a thermal printer?

 

so then i should just use my regular canon ink printer? how does it work? do i need to sign up for a service like endicia or something?

 

i can't think of any reason why you shouldn't.

 

ok ill give it a shot then. how does it work though? is there softward i need to download or something?

 

nope, just do the online shipping on the usps, ups or fedex website. you just enter the info, print the label, affix it to the package and drop it off.

 

Your really losing me, just print the labels on an inkjet, what's the deal with thermal?

 

Unless you are doing a large amount of printing (like 200 parcels per day), a thermal printer isn't needed.

When we signed our FED-Ex account we were introduced to a product called "laser labels".

The label is an 8.5 x 11 sheet with a 5x7 label on it. The sheets go into your standard laser printer. The Fed-Ex website printouts are aligned to fit the sheet layout perfectly.

I would steer clear of inkjet printing for labels due to many of the inks being water soluable. (streaking and smearing when wet).

I have seen many shippers at the hub panic when they get their packagaes out in the rain and the labels start to run. Not to mention getting wet during the delivery process.

USPS also makes labels but we don't use USPS due to our service needs and requirements.

I suggest getting you a decent laser printer.

Hope this helps,

Jae

 

well i dont have a laser printer and if im going to have to buy a new device, i might as well buy a thermal printer, right? (since im going to need one anyway in the future)

 

I don't know why anyone needs a thermal printer to print labels, I don't get it. Why pay the price of thermal when you can buy an inkjet for less than $50.00. What is the reasoning here?

 

Your choice Peter....a laser printer has multiple uses. The thermal printer is a one trick pony.

I have a few colleagues that ship large amounts per day and still haven't bought a thermal printer.

I would wait on the thermal.....once you get your business shipping @ large volumes; most shipping companies will give you one on loan.

Jae

 

great...so i just bought a regular inkjet a few weeks ago now i have to buy a laser? wonderful

 

No, you don't have to buy a laser, an inkjet can be used for printing labels.

 

can someone who knows about shipping give me their email address? i have alot of questions to ask

this is very confusing. i tried to make a label on usps.com and it costs $4.80??? are they serious? i have no idea why some of you people are telling me that buying a printer is NOT a good idea...

someone please help

 

this is very confusing. i tried to make a label on usps.com and it costs $4.80??? are they serious?

You're not printing a label via usps.com - you're printing postage. That's what the $4.80 is.

i have no idea why some of you people are telling me that buying a printer is NOT a good idea...

Who said it's not a good idea? It's just not necessary if you've already got an inkjet printer.

you print them from where? using what service? and with what do you print them with?

You don't need any special service just to print a mailing label. You can do it from any word processing or desktop publishing program on your inkjet printer. You can just write it on the package with a pen if you want. You're making this way more complicated than it needs to be.

 

I print my own labels & then go to the post office & ask for the best shipping price.

 

you print them from where? using what service? and with what do you print them with?

 

A thermal printer is the best & easiest way to go. zebra 2844 is pretty standard, You can get 4 x 6 direct thermal labels on ebay for about $4 for 250 label roll. Best part about the thermal printer is it takes no toner, and the labels will withstand weather. When I print labels on laser printer they start to bubble on the package when they are outside, you won't have that problem with a thermal printer. For postage, I would suggest implementing something with your inventory system (if you have a computer system) but endicia is a great solution. I think it starts about $15.00 per month, and makes it really easy to print USPS labels. I went over a year printing laser labels, and after getting thermal printer really kicked myself for not getting it sooner. I send about 300-500 pieces per week. But I would use a thermal printer for 10 pieces per week...

You will also need to get a scale, it hooks right up to your computer, endicia will tell you which scale to buy. In fact I think endicia has a starter pack of everything you need. Don't get a printer lower quality than the 2844

 

Peter-

I didn't mean to make things complicated for you I am just giving you may hands on experience with printing shipping labels w/ inkjet and laser. Sure inkjet will work. I always think around the corner though....growth potential and capabilities.

A laser printer will grow with you....they actually don't cost that much plus they can do more than one function.

If you already have an inkjet...run with that. Just do what you feel looks best and what feels best to your professional spirit.

Jae

 

the only thing i was really upset about was the fact that i just bought a brand new inkjet printer a few weeks ago, and im now finding out that i may need a thermal printer/laser printer. i want to do everything the easiest way possible. if spending a lot of money will save me time and make things simpler, then im all for it. it doesnt bother me at all

so what do i need to do? for me, simplicity is the only concern. i dont care about spending 400$ on the thermal printer and 15$ a month for endicia if it means its going to make my life easier. is that the best way to go for me then?

 

For reasons already mentioned, you don't need a new printer. If you want one, by all means, get one. But issues like learning a new printer and compatibility will probably lead to 20 more threads on this forum. So this truly is your chance to prove that simplicity is the only concern. Use the inkjet you have and move on.

There are many many ways to ship a package from point a to point b in this country. Ask 100 people, you'll get 100 different answers. Fortunately, there are only a few people subscribed to this thread, so you only have a few options to choose from. Here's one: Go to USPS.com and use the Click-n-Ship service. All you have to do is enter the ship info, pay via credit card, and print the label on your inkjet. After it prints, tape the label to the package, and drop it off at the post office.

 

so if im going to use the regular inket, do i need to sign up for endicia still?

 

if you are using your inkjet, you have the flexibility to use whatever label and postage service you want. endicia is one, or you can just use the USPS or UPS sites directly.

 

what is the main difference between using usps and endicia?

 

Wow, you really haven't bothered to use the search function on this site, have you? Everything you're asking is on one thread or another.

Regarding the $4.80 postage, you must be printing click-n-ship, which is priority or express shipping only. If you want to print 1st class postage, you'll have to use USPS' "shipping assistant" software, which you download from their site and install on your computer. You will not be able to pay for the shipping charge online however.

I believe you can pre-pay for 1st class in addition to priority by using a 3rd party service such as endica or stamps.com. I believe in prior threads, Rodney said that the 3rd party services make it easier for you if you ship large amounts of packages. (Easier to cut and paste customer addresses and such)

You don't necessarily need a thermal printer if you are concerned about rain smudging your inkjet labels. You can always try out these weatherproof click n ship labels: Online Postage Label - Shipping Label - OL9300 - 6.78" x 4.75" - 2 Labels Per Sheet

The benefit of the thermal printer is that it saves on ink cost, because it doesn't use any. If you are not shipping a dozen+ packages per day, you probably don't need either the thermal printer or 3rd party service. I get by fine with clicknship and shipping assistant from the USPS. (It would be nice to prepay for 1st class shipping without using 3rd party however.)

 

ok so can someone give me clear and easy instructions?

lets say i get my first order. i pack the shirt up, and then what? what do i do next?

do i buy label paper for my inkjet? then do i go to usps.com and find label making software?

 

AHHHHH lol. you sit on your computer turn it on, go to usps look at your printer, make sure its on and has paper. look back at your monitor, enter the customer shipping address and any information click print. your gonna need to get up and walk to your printer(if you need to) get the shipping label tape it to the box then drop it off. drink some coffee

 

lol

ok wheres a good place for label paper.

and is there a fee for using the label templates on usps.com? do i have to sign up for anything?

 

i just print them on normal paper, no fee for using there template comes free when u pay for shipping