Which label size fits a barcode?
Short answer
For an EAN-13 at the smallest permitted size you need at least 29.83 millimetres of width plus a safety margin to the edge. Height is not decided by the code alone but by what else has to fit: product text, price, a motif.
| Format | Label | Per sheet | Motif zone | With two lines of text |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avery Zweckform L7160 / 3652 | 63.50 x 38.10 mm | 21 | 15.50 mmlandscape 43.50 mm | 9.50 mm |
| Avery Zweckform 3474 | 70.00 x 37.00 mm | 24 | 13.90 mmlandscape 50.10 mm | 7.90 mm |
| Avery Zweckform L7163 / 3421 | 99.10 x 38.10 mm | 14 | 14.30 mmlandscape 79.10 mm | 8.30 mm |
| Avery Zweckform L7651 | 38.10 x 21.20 mm | 65 | 2.20 mm | too small |
| Herma 4457 | 63.50 x 38.10 mm | 21 | 15.50 mmlandscape 43.50 mm | 9.50 mm |
| Herma 4464 | 70.00 x 37.00 mm | 24 | 13.90 mmlandscape 50.10 mm | 7.90 mm |
| Herma 4333 | 48.30 x 25.40 mm | 40 | 5.50 mm | too small |
| Brother DK-11201 | 29.00 x 90.00 mm | Roll | too small | too small |
| Brother DK-11208 | 38.00 x 90.00 mm | Roll | 70.00 mm | 64.00 mm |
| Zebra 57 x 32 mm | 57.00 x 32.00 mm | Roll | 10.00 mm | 4.00 mm |
| Zebra 100 x 150 mm | 100.00 x 150.00 mm | Roll | 124.10 mm | 118.10 mm |
This table is calculated when the page is built, from the same rules that produce your code. It cannot go stale.
The number nobody else prints
On every label a strip is left above the locked scan band, and a motif can only act there. How big that strip is depends on a chain: width sets the magnification, magnification sets the size of the printed digits, and whatever remains belongs to the motif. That is why the table lists the motif zone in millimetres rather than the label height.
Landscape beats portrait more often than you would think
Printing the same label the other way round costs nothing and often multiplies the usable area. On an Avery L7160 the motif zone grows from 15.50 to 43.50 millimetres when you turn the code by ninety degrees. Where that applies, the table says so.
When only the code fits
Below roughly 3 millimetres of motif zone a motif is no longer worth it; it would be a smudge. The tool says so beforehand instead of quietly printing something useless, and the code stays perfectly readable either way.
Last checked: 7 September 2026