Advantages of Fanfold Labels

There are many options to choose from when deciding that thermal printing is right for your business.

Knowing the right label to use for your printer and printing process is one of them. While roll labels are a popular choice, there are many advantages to using fanfold labels as well.

They work well for many applications, such as shipping, barcoding, inventory tracking, and more.

Let’s take a look at the advantages of fanfold labels so you can decide if they’re the right choice for you.

Fanfold labels can be used in both industrial printers and desktop printers. Some brands that use these labels are Rollo and Zebra. Since they come in a stack, these labels simply need to be placed behind the printer before they are loaded.

Both direct thermal and thermal transfer applications can use fanfold labels.

If using thermal transfer, remember to make sure you have a thermal ribbon for your printing process.

One of the advantages of fanfold labels is their ability to restack themselves. Roll labels can curl as they print, especially if large batches of labels are being printed at once, and leave large messes of labels spread on the floor.

Fanfold labels do not have this problem. 

As the labels print, they fold where they are perforated and restack themselves. This makes for an easier clean up as labels are not scattered around the work area.

When using a desktop printer, you will simply need to make sure your printer is elevated for labels to stack properly. 

Fanfold labels are able to support more labels per stack than both 1” core and 3” core rolls.

For example, with a 4×6 label:

• 1” core roll = 250 labels
• 3” core roll = 1000 labels
• Fanfold = 2000 labels

Having more labels per stack means fewer time spent reloading your printer, which can save on labor and supply costs.

Industrial printers aren’t made to just use 3” core roll labels. Believe it or not, fanfold labels can deliver the same great results.

No, there’s not a place inside the printer to load fanfold labels. That’s because they sit easily behind the printer!

We’re here to help walk you through the easy steps to loading fanfold labels into your industrial printer:

1. Open the printer
2. Place the fanfold labels behind the printer
3. Feed the labels under the printhead & through the media guide
4. Adjust the media holder to fit the size of the label
5. Close the printhead by lowering the lever
6. Print labels

1. Make sure the printer is elevated for fanfold labels
2. Open the printer
3. Feed labels through the back slot & under the media guide
4. Close the printer
5. Print labels

Looking to order fanfold labels for your thermal printer? Shop smithcorona.com or give us a call at 1-800-875-7000 to place your order!