Printer calibration
Labels not lining up? Calibrate your printer to the 1/32 inch
A printer can place the page a little off. Print one test page on plain paper, measure two marks with a ruler, and save the correction for that printer. Every PDF you make here uses it.
- 1Print
- 2Measure
- 3Save
Which way do they drift?
How the print misses tells you the cause. Only the first one needs a correction.
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Everything is off by the same amount
Your printer places the page a little to one side, or a little high or low. Each printer leans its own way.
FixPrint the test page below and save a correction for that printer.
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The top row fits, the rows below drift further
The print dialog scaled the sheet: “Fit to page” can resize it, and then each row lands a little further off.
FixPrint at 100% (Actual size). A correction won't fix scaling.
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Crooked, or different on every sheet
The sheet goes in at an angle, or slips a little differently each time.
FixSlide the paper guides against the stack and feed one sheet at a time, or use the manual tray. A correction can't straighten it.
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Lines up across, not down
The PDF was made for another sheet. 5161 and 5162 both have two 4 in columns, but their rows are 1 in and 1-1/3 in apart.
FixCheck the number on the box and pick that template.
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It only happens in Word
Word places its labels with its own label options, and the correction saved here moves the PDFs made here only.
FixIn Word, check that Mailings > Labels > Options shows the number on your box, and print at 100%. More fixes for Word labels.
Four steps, one sheet of plain paper.
Nothing here is sent anywhere: the test page is made in your browser, and the correction is saved in it.
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Choose your label sheet
The test page draws that sheet's labels, so you can also hold it over a real sheet against a window.
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Print the test page on plain paper
- Plain paper, not a label sheet
- Scale 100% (Actual size), not "Fit to page"
- The printer you use for labels
This test page prints with no correction.
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Measure two marks
Lay a ruler along the top edge of the paper and measure from the left edge to the mark numbered 1: that's A. Then measure down the left side, from the top edge to its 1: that's B.
Both exactly 1 in? Your printer is on target and needs no correction. Marks 1, 2 and 3 less than an inch apart mean the page was scaled: print again at 100%.
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Check the correction and save it
CorrectionNo shift
Your printer is on target as measured.
Your test page · Avery 5160 · measure A and B
Saved printers
None yet. Save a correction and it appears here; the editor uses the printer you pick.
Lining up labels: questions
Why are my Avery labels printing too low?
If every label is low by the same amount, the printer feeds the page a little late: print the test page, measure B and save a correction, such as up 1/16 in. If the top row is right and each row below lands lower, the page was scaled: print at 100% (Actual size).
Why are my labels printing off center?
Most printers place the page a little to one side. Print the test page, measure A from the left edge of the paper to the mark numbered 1, and save the correction. If the shift changes from sheet to sheet, set the paper guides snug against the stack.
How do I line up Avery 5160 labels?
Choose 5160 in step 1, print the test page on plain paper at 100% (Actual size), measure A and B and save the correction. Then hold a printout over a 5160 sheet against a window: every outline should sit on a label. The same steps line up 8160, 9160 and 18160 and the other numbers that share the 5160 layout.
Why are my Avery labels not printing correctly?
Check three things: the template matches the number on your box, the print dialog says 100% (Actual size), and the sheet goes in straight and the right side up. If all three are right and every label is off by the same amount, save a correction here.
Why don't my labels line up in Word?
In Word, check that Mailings > Labels > Options shows the number on your box, and print at 100%. The correction saved here moves the PDFs made on this site, not Word documents: to use it, make the labels here instead. Other Word label problems have seven fixes of their own.
Does the correction change my labels?
No. It moves everything on the page together, in whole 1/32 inch steps and at most 1/2 inch each way. The labels' size and spacing stay exactly as the template has them.
Do I need to calibrate for every template?
No. The offset belongs to the printer, not to the sheet, so one correction works for every template you print on it.
Where is the correction saved?
In this browser, on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere, and another browser or computer needs its own calibration. If your browser blocks storage, the correction works until you close the page.
My marks measure less than an inch apart.
The page was scaled. Set the print dialog to 100% ("Actual size"), turn off any option that fits or shrinks the page to the paper ("Fit to page", for one), and print the test page again before you measure.
Calibrated? Make your labels.
The editor picks up the printer you saved here and applies its correction to every PDF.