How to print barcode labels on a label sheet without drifting or shrinking

Printing barcodes onto a sheet of pre-cut labels fails in two common ways: the printer quietly scales the page, so the barcode becomes the wrong size, or the layout drifts so each label is misaligned. Both are fixable. This guide works with any label sheet and any barcode source.

Before you print

1. Match the layout to the sheet. Read the label size, margins and gap from the label sheet's packaging or the maker's template page, and choose a layout with the same count and size.
2. Export a PDF (or SVG converted to PDF) at the real physical size of the sheet. Print from a PDF viewer you trust rather than from a browser tab when you can.
3. Disable scaling. Adobe's Acrobat documentation describes the options in the Print dialog's Size menu: Fit reduces or enlarges the page to the printable area; Actual size prints without scaling (anything that does not fit is cropped); Shrink oversized pages only shrinks. It also says the default page scaling in Acrobat is "Shrink to Printable Area". Choose Actual size. In other programs the equivalent wording is “100%”, “Scale: none” or “Actual size”.
4. Match the paper size in the print dialog to the PDF (Letter or A4), and turn off headers and footers if you print from a browser.
5. Choose the right media setting in your printer driver for label or heavy paper, if it has one.

The test-print routine

1. Print the first page on plain paper, not on your labels.
2. Hold the plain sheet over a real label sheet against a window. Every outline should sit inside its label with an even margin.
3. Measure one label's width with a ruler against the template's stated size. If it is off by more than a millimetre or two, scaling is still on.
4. If the layout is slightly offset in one direction, apply an X/Y shift (a fraction of a millimetre at a time) and print again. Many tools have a calibration page for this; if you do not have one, adjust a small amount per attempt and keep notes.
5. Print one sheet of real labels and scan a barcode with the scanner or the marketplace's scan app you will use. Only then print the full run.

Using part-used sheets

If you have already used some labels on a sheet, set the start position to the first free label rather than printing a blank slot. Keep printed-through sheets flat and feed them the same way each time, because labels that are curled or fed the other way up land in different places.

If it will not scan

• Confirm the digits first: the check digit must match (see our guide on calculating it).
• Make sure the barcode kept its quiet zone (blank margin) on both sides. Do not crop it or let a label edge cut it.
• Print darker or in a higher-quality mode, and avoid very light toner or draft mode.
• Do not shrink or stretch the barcode, and avoid putting tape or a plastic pouch over it.

Barloom produces sheet layouts at true size (millimetres), supports starting at a given label and X/Y shifts, and includes an alignment page; it is your responsibility to print at actual size and test-scan. Layouts are generic, so check the label sheet's own dimensions. For retail barcodes follow GS1's current specifications and your marketplace's rules.

Sources

1. Adobe, "Adjust page size for printing PDFs in Acrobat": https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/desktop/print-documents/set-up-and-print-pdfs/page-size.html (read 2026-10-28 as a search-index excerpt)
2. Adobe, "Basic PDF printing tasks": https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/using/basic-pdf-printing-tasks-challenger.html (read 2026-10-28 as a search-index excerpt)
3. GS1, "EAN/UPC barcodes": https://www.gs1.org/standards/barcodes/ean-upc (read 2026-10-27)

Related tool: Barloom. Estimates and guidance only; check the source documents before relying on a figure.

More Barloom guides

• UPC and EAN barcodes: what GS1 licensing means for sellers
• How to calculate a UPC or EAN check digit by hand
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