A satisfying way to get ahead of your tasks during the school year: reorganize your supplies and workspace at home with the help of a label maker. These devices make it easy to DIY custom, self-adhesive tapes for virtually any purpose. The possibilities are endless: you can label binders to identify them by subject, add tabs to planners, and even emblazon your child’s ever-misplaced lunch box with their name. At home, stick labels on drawers and filing cabinets to help organize your growing archive of artwork, notes and documentation. Below, we’ve rounded up our favorite labeling products. But be careful: once you get your hands on one, you might not be able to stop.
How we select each product:
Our mission is to recommend the most appropriate artist tool or supply for your needs. Whether you’re looking for high-end gear or beginner basics, we’ll make sure you get value for money by doing the research for you. We scour the internet for information on how to use art supplies and read customer reviews by real users; we seek expert advice; and of course, we rely on our own accumulated expertise as artists, teachers and artisans.
1. DYMO label maker with adapter
Control enthusiasts, rejoice! This label maker from the industry’s grandfather offers plenty of customization options for the pickiest label maker. It is able to print 7 text sizes, 10 formatting styles (e.g. bold, italic, underline), 8 fonts, and over 200 symbols and clip art, and those are just the built-in offerings. If you connect the 420P to your PC or Mac with the included USB cable, it can print virtually any font, design or barcode you can create, as long as it fits on the tape. (And, by the way, it works with tape widths: 1/4 inch, 3/8 inch, 1/2 inch, and 3/4 inch.) 10 high quality copies of a single design in one print. Plus, for its myriad offerings, the Dymo 420P remains portable and easy to use. Finally, the icing on the cake: unlike other handheld label makers, it’s rechargeable, so you no longer have to blow out the batteries, at least as far as this device is concerned.
2. Brother P-Touch Label Maker
At a fraction of the price of our top pick, Brother’s label maker is easy to use and a tremendous bargain for its myriad offerings. Choose from over 14 fonts, 97 frames and 600 symbols to create a custom label or select one of 27 pre-programmed templates. You can store up to 30 of your designs, thanks to a spacious memory card, and print patterns like flowers and dots. Results are consistently crisp and clean; you won’t get the pixelated, mealy prints of some of this device’s price peers. It features a full QWERTY keyboard while remaining relatively lightweight and portable. Attention: it works with six AAA batteries (not included) or via household current and an AC adapter, sold separately.
3. DYMO Embossing Label Maker
Have a home project but can’t stand the word processing aesthetics of most modern label makers? Step back half a century with this analog label maker, a contemporary redesign of Dymo’s classic tape embosser. The main difference is in the name: rather than creating labels by thermal transfer, the Dymo wheel embosses the ribbon to create a textured and very vintage effect. Beyond choosing from the three supplied ribbon colors, don’t expect to be able to customize your labels – Dymo offers just one font (all caps) and one sizing option.
4. Brother P-Touch Cube Smartphone Label Maker
Don’t be intimidated by the sleek, faceless design: all you’ll need to work with this bad boy is a smartphone (compatible with iPhone or Android) and a Bluetooth connection. Simply open the free P-Touch app, which lets you start from scratch or choose from a host of pre-designed templates. You’ll have 450 symbols and over 60 frames at your fingertips, plus most fonts available on Apple or Google Suite devices. Like the PT-D210, this Brother is compatible with all Brother TZe line tapes up to half an inch wide. If speed and convenience are your main criteria, look no further, but if you prioritize quality and cost-effectiveness, you might want to think twice: the Cube’s prints seem a bit grainy at times, and they have tends to pass through ink and tape instead. rapidly.
5. Brady BMP21-Plus Handheld Label Printer
This rugged, nearly indestructible label maker is ideal for on-site work: This model is made with molded rubber bumpers, and Brady tested it to withstand shock and vibration. With over 100 symbols and fonts ranging from 6 to 40 point, it offers plenty of options for creating custom labels. It runs on six AA batteries, but you can purchase a rechargeable lithium-ion battery separately if you want. Also available separately is a magnet that you can use to mount the label maker to a metal surface for one-handed use or convenient storage.
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