How to compare label quantity breaks

Put the line total beside the unit price

Printers quote per label or per 1,000 labels: US$0.18 each is US$180 per 1,000. Multiply out every break so you compare line totals.

For example, 2,500 labels at US$0.24 cost US$600; 5,000 at US$0.18 cost US$900; and 10,000 at US$0.14 cost US$1,400. The largest break has the lowest unit price and needs US$800 more today than the smallest.

Check that every break uses the same size, material, finish and delivery terms, and ask which charges sit outside the line total, such as plates, cutting dies, delivery and tax.

What changes the price per label

Setup costs much the same for 2,500 labels as for 10,000, so a longer run spreads it across more labels. Material and ink are used per label, which is why doubling the quantity rarely halves the unit price.

Flexographic printing needs a plate for each colour and, for a custom shape, a cutting die. These are often charged once and reused on repeat orders. Digital printing needs no plates, so it usually costs less on short runs, while flexo becomes cheaper per label as the run grows. Ask your printer which process each break assumes.

Work out how long each break lasts

Divide each quantity by your monthly use. At 1,000 labels a month, the example breaks last 2.5, 5 and 10 months. That calculation assumes steady demand and no waste, so allow for labels lost setting up your applicator and on damaged containers.

Then list what could change before the stock runs out: an ingredient, a price or pack size, a regulation or the brand design. If you buy 10,000 labels and a copy change retires the last 4,000 after six months, the 6,000 you used cost about US$0.23 each, close to the price of the smallest break.

Label stock also ages, and its adhesive ages with it. Before you order a year’s supply, ask your printer for the shelf life your material’s supplier states, and the storage conditions it assumes: most data sheets quote a temperature and humidity range and assume the rolls stay out of sunlight.

Agree the commercial terms

Printing a roll to an exact count is difficult, so many printers deliver and invoice within a stated tolerance of the ordered quantity. Ask what tolerance your printer applies, whether it differs by run length, and whether you pay for the labels delivered or the labels ordered.

Ask whether your printer will hold stock and send it in split deliveries, what that costs, when payment is due and how long the quote is valid. Tell your printer whether this is an unchanged repeat or a new design, since a repeat can reuse plates and dies. Agree these terms before you accept the quote.

Quote comparison checklist

• Same size, material and finish in every break
• Unit price, price per 1,000 and line total
• One-off plate, die and setup charges
• Months of use at your monthly volume
• Artwork changes expected before the stock runs out
• Shelf life of the label material
• Overs and unders tolerance, delivery and payment terms

Compare the example breaks

If your printer uses LabelMojo

Printers using LabelMojo can quote up to six quantity breaks on each label, showing the unit price and total for each. You choose a break and accept the quote in their customer portal.

Other guides

• Label roll specifications to agree before you order
• Label proof checklist: what to check before you approve