My 5-Step Checklist for Ordering Avery Labels (Without the Headaches)

If you're the person who orders supplies for a small to mid-sized company—the admin, office manager, or de facto "get-it-done" coordinator—you know labels aren't just stickers. They're how packages get shipped, files get organized, and events run smoothly. And when an order goes wrong, it's your desk the problem lands on.

I manage ordering for a 150-person professional services firm. It's about $25,000 annually across maybe 8-10 vendors for everything from coffee to copier paper. Labels are a small but critical slice of that. After five years and more label orders than I can count, I've developed a foolproof process. This checklist is what I wish I'd had when I started. It's not about being a label expert; it's about being a smart buyer.

Who This Checklist Is For (And When to Use It)

Use this when you're ordering Avery labels for standard office or light business use: shipping, mailing, file folders, name badges, basic product labels. We're talking about the sheets you run through your office printer, not industrial-grade, press-printed rolls. This is for the 5160 address labels, the 5366 file folder labels, the 8160 shipping labels. If you're doing a one-off craft project, you can wing it. If it's for business, follow the steps. Takes about 10 minutes upfront and saves hours (and dollars) later.

Here are the 5 steps:

1. Pin Down the Exact Need (Not Just "Some Labels")
2. Match the Need to the Right Product Code
3. The Printer & Paper Check (The Step Everyone Skips)
4. Template Verification: Don't Trust the Preview
5. Order & Confirm: The Paper Trail Matters

Step 1: Pin Down the Exact Need (Not Just "Some Labels")

This seems obvious, but it's where most mistakes start. "We need shipping labels" isn't a spec. You need to ask (or figure out) three things:

• Volume: How many items are we labeling? Is this for 50 packages a week or 500? Don't guess. A quick check of last month's shipping logs gives you a real number. Ordering too little means reordering too often (wasting time); ordering too much ties up cash and storage space.
• Use Case & Durability: Is this for indoor file folders that sit in a cabinet, or outdoor packages that might get rained on? For basic indoor use, standard matte or white labels are fine. For shipping, you want the tougher, smudge-resistant ones. I learned this the hard way when our holiday gift labels smeared in transit—rookie mistake.
• Information to Print: Just an address? A barcode? A logo with color? This dictates everything. If you need color, you need a color printer. If you need a barcode, you need to verify the scanner can read the print quality from your specific printer. Put another way: the label is just the canvas; the print is the art. You need both right.

Checkpoint: You should be able to write down: "We need approximately 2,000 labels for outdoor shipping packages. They must hold a delivery address, a return address, and a 1D barcode. They will be printed in black on our office color laser printer."

Step 2: Match the Need to the Right Product Code

This is where Avery's system works for you—if you use it right. Don't just search "Avery shipping labels." Use the template number. It's the DNA of the product.

• Know the Common Codes:
  • 5160, 5161, 5162: The classic address labels (1" x 2-5/8"). 5160 is 30 per sheet. This is your workhorse for mailing.
  • 5163: Shipping labels (2" x 4"). Fits most package needs.
  • 5366: File folder labels (2/3" x 3-7/16"). Perfect for tabbing.
  • 8160: Round labels (1" diameter). For branding or product stickers.
• Verify Material: The same template number (like 5163) might come in "All-Purpose" white or "TrueBlock" ultra-opaque. If you're putting a black label on a brown box, you need the TrueBlock. The template is the same; the material isn't. I assumed "same template" meant identical results. Didn't verify. Turned out the cheaper all-purpose option let the box color show through our print. That was an assumption failure that cost me a redo.

Go to Avery's website, use their "Template Lookup" tool. Enter your template number and look at the actual product page. Confirm the size, material, and sheet count.

Step 3: The Printer & Paper Check (The Step Everyone Skips)

This is the most technical but most critical step. Your printer manual is your friend here.

1. Printer Type: Laser or Inkjet? They are not always interchangeable. Laser labels are designed for heat; inkjet labels for liquid ink. Using the wrong type can cause jams, smearing, or damage to your printer. Our office has both. I color-code the storage: blue bin for laser labels, green for inkjet. Saves confusion.
2. Paper Settings: Once you have the correct label sheets, you must tell your printer. In your print dialog (Word, Google Docs, Adobe), go to Printer Properties > Paper Type. Select "Labels" or "Heavy Paper." This slows down the print path to prevent jams and adjusts the heat/fuser for laser printers. Printing labels on the "Plain Paper" setting is asking for a jam.
3. Test Print: Always, always run a test on a single sheet first. Print a page with borders on all four sides. Check:
   • Did it jam?
   • Is the alignment correct? (The print should be centered on each label).
   • Does the ink/toner smudge when you rub it? (Let it dry/cool for 30 seconds).

Authority Anchor - Print Resolution: For professional results, your design should be at 300 DPI (dots per inch) at the final print size. That's the commercial print standard. If you're pulling a logo from a website, it might be 72 DPI and look pixelated when printed. Reference: Standard print resolution requirements for commercial printing.

Step 4: Template Verification: Don't Trust the Preview

Avery templates in Word, Google Docs, or Canva are lifesavers. But they're not magic. They rely on your specific software version and printer drivers aligning perfectly.

• Download the Right Template: On Avery's site, get the template for your exact software (e.g., "Word for Microsoft 365," not just "Word").
• Check Margins: Open the template. Before you type anything, go to File > Page Setup. Margins should typically be at least 0.25". Some printers have a "non-printable area"—if your design touches the very edge, it might get cut off.
• Use the Guides, Then Hide Them: The template shows dotted lines for cutting and safe zones. Design inside the safe zone. Then, before your final print, turn off the guide lines (in Word, it's under the "Layout" tab in the Avery template add-in). What you see in the preview should match your test print exactly.
• Bleed? Probably Not. For these sheet labels, you usually don't need to worry about "bleed" (color extending past the cut line). That's more for professional printing. If your design has a solid background color to the edge, you might see a tiny white hairline if the cut is off by a millimeter. For most office uses, it's fine.

Step 5: Order & Confirm: The Paper Trail Matters

The ordering part is easy. The confirming part is what protects you.

1. Order from a Reputable Source: I use a mix: big office supply websites for speed, sometimes Avery direct for specialty items. I avoid random third-party sellers on marketplaces for core supplies—the savings aren't worth the risk of getting old stock or the wrong product.
2. Confirm the Product Number in Your Cart: Double-check your cart says "Avery 5163 Shipping Labels, White, TrueBlock, 100 Sheets" not just "Shipping Labels."
3. Save the Invoice/Receipt: This goes in a dedicated digital folder labeled "Supplies 2025." Why? When I took over purchasing in 2020, I found a great price on labels from a new vendor. Finance rejected the expense because all I had was a PayPal receipt, not a proper invoice with our company name and tax ID. I had to cover it from the department budget. Now I verify invoicing capability before I click "buy."
4. Note the Expected Delivery Date: And build in a buffer. If you need labels for a big mailing on the 15th, order so they arrive by the 10th.

Authority Anchor - Price Reference: As a benchmark, a 100-sheet pack of Avery 5163 Shipping Labels typically retails between $18-$25 online. A 100-sheet pack of 5160 Address Labels is usually $12-$18. Prices fluctuate, but that's the ballpark as of early 2025. Reference: Publicly listed prices from major online office retailers.

Final Notes & Common Pitfalls

This checklist works because it's sequential. Skipping Step 3 (Printer Check) to save 2 minutes has caused me 45-minute printer un-jamming sessions. Here are the big watch-outs:

• "It worked last time!" Printers get updated, software changes. Always do a single-sheet test run with a new batch.
• Mixing Old and New Stock: If you have half a pack of labels left from last year, finish it before opening the new one. Different batches can have slightly different adhesive or thickness, which can cause a jam if mixed in the same tray.
• Storage Matters: Keep labels flat, in the original package, in a cool, dry place. Humidity can warp the sheets.

Five steps. Ten minutes of focused prep. It turns a mundane task into a guaranteed success. In our 2024 vendor consolidation project, applying this kind of disciplined checklist to all our ordering saved us countless headaches and about 15% in wasted or incorrect supplies. The 5 minutes you spend verifying beats the 5 days you might spend correcting. Just follow the list.