Print side-by-side or "two up" labels on a roll.
The most common rolls of labels are vanilla single-column affairs. But sometimes you'll see fancy rolls where two labels are side-by-side. These are often referred to as 2-up or 2-across. There's nothing special about 2... a label converter (a business whose primary job is to manufacture rolls of labels) can easily make rolls with 3 or even 4 labels across. More labels in less space. Sounds awesome.
Except... side-by-side labels makes printing more complex. When dealing with this kind of roll, it's important to remember that the label printer is dumb. The printer doesn't care how many labels go across. The printer always sees one big rectangle. If you have 2x 1" labels across with a 0.1" gap, the printer expects a print job that's 2.1" wide.
The following two examples demonstrate two different ways of printing 2-up labels. The first example is when the data is the same. The second example is when you need each label to be different.
The examples use a calculation variable named COUNT that increments by 1 for each copy. This variable is used to demonstrate how unique labels are generated. Instead of a COUNT variable, you could just as easily import a spreadsheet and print labels using "rows" of Data.
If all you need is duplicates across, then the quickest and easiest way is to change the width of the Label and copy/paste your entire design. The COUNT variable will increment once per copy, and since the entire design on-screen is one copy, the number is repeated on both labels.
Notes about this example:
Each label is 1" square
There's a physical gap of 0.1"
Therefore, the total print width is 2.1"
You must set the Label width to 2.1"
You may (optionally) set the "Gap" to 0.1" to simulate the look of the label (but this has no affect on printing).
The result is always the same data across rows of labels.
If you need different data next to each other, then you should use Label LIVE's Multi-Label Sheet feature. This option is more complex and is only available with System Printers using the manufacturer drivers. You can not yet use this option with USB Thermal Printers.
Notes about this example:
The Label dimensions are 1" square
Change the Print > Preview Method to Sheet PDF
Click the Sheet preview to change the Sheet Setup
Margin Left: 0
Margin Top: 0
Spacing Horizontal: 0.1"
Spacing Vertical: 0
Once configured, you can run a test print to see the difference. Turn on Alignment Lines to get an idea of how the label is formatted.
Each label has its own data.
Download the examples:
Whew! Printing side-by-side labels is challenging! Email us your questions and we will help you design the perfect time-saving solution.
Label LIVE is a great tool for generating and printing labels. These examples only use a single text object, but with Label LIVE, you can include variables, barcodes, images, shapes, and excel spreadsheet functionality. These features are just a few clicks away.