What is a Thermal Label Printer and its Applications? [2023]

What is a Thermal Label Printer and When to Use One?

Shipping Labels Printed with a Thermal Label Printer

Many customers are often confused with the various types of printers and its various uses. Generally, there are a few types namely inkjet printers, laser printers, dot matrix printers, label printers, thermal label printers. There are also the large commercial printers which we shall not dive into. Today, we are going to zone in on thermal label printers and its benefits.

There are various common brands available in Singapore like Brother, Zebra, Dymo and generic brands from China. They basically function pretty much the same but at different price points.

The main purpose of thermal label printers is to print out labels (mostly address, airway bill, carton labels, packaging labels) at large scale and speed. Typically, the labels are all self-adhesive and nicely pre-cut by high precision cutting machines. The user just have to simply peel and paste and hence is of great convenience to the user.

The print format is widely available on many different platforms. For example, on Shopee, Lazada, Qoo10 or even your own websites, it can be easily toggled on or customized to quickly do a print out in 1 click or 2. Typical users of thermal label printers are e-commerce sellers, shipping & logistics company, food and beverage company. A few main benefits are as below. (Read more about “How to Create a Thermal Label” Here)

No Ink Needed

Thermal label printers employ direct heat transfer technology. Heat is passed through from the print head onto a specially coated heat sensitive paper surface material and the contents are formed within seconds. There is no need for any ink cartridges. Do note you need to purchase special coated thermal label papers (we have a wide range of premium quality of various sizes available in the link Here)

Operational Efficiency

With a thermal label printer, operational efficiency is easily doubled. In a typical setting of an e-commerce seller, one has to print out the order label via an inkjet printer, cut the paper into the right size and use either glue or tape to paste it on the package. As opposed to using a label printer, once an order comes through, simply print out the label in the specific size, peel and paste onto your package. It is less than 5 minutes of work. Another commendable area is the print speed. Label printers churn out labels in less than 5 seconds while inkjet printers typically take much longer than that. For e-commerce sellers with a large number of orders to process, this will be a life saver and greatly reduces operational cost in the long run

Cheap & Lasting

Label printers generally are pretty lasting and cheap (depending on whether you opt for branded ones or generic brand ones). In our opinion, as the price gap is pretty stark for the both of them, we personally prefer the generic brand ones which does its tasks seamlessly and is easily available for less than SGD $150 for a 4inch width size label printer. Branded label printers will easily cost upwards of SGD $250. One point to note is to buy generic branded printers from reputable sellers who can assist in pre- and post-sales service and also provide the label size which you require

Summary

In summary, thermal label printers is a very useful tool to have for businesses requiring to process large number of orders every day. It helps to streamline your operational processes. Hence consider investing in one to elevate your business efficiency to the next level. Wish you guys all the best!