How to save a label sheet as a PDF

A PDF of a label sheet comes straight out of the PDF export in Labels by Zaweba. The file is built at the stock's exact size, so an A4 sheet of labels becomes an A4 page with every label in place, and it holds real text with embedded fonts and vector shapes and codes. You can add label outlines as well, for a test print on plain paper.

A PDF is handy whenever the labels need to travel: to another computer, to someone else who will print them, or into a folder as a record of a mailing.

Getting the job ready

Choose the stock first, because the PDF is made at that size. That could be one of the built-in Avery UK sheets such as L7160 (21 per sheet) or L7163 (14), a custom sheet you have saved, a DL, C5 or C4 envelope, or a roll label size such as 4 x 6 inch.

Design the label, then set up what to print. Print and merge prints one label per contact from a group, the selected contacts, everyone or rows from a CSV file. Or print one label across a whole sheet when every label is the same. Set the start position if you will print onto a part-used sheet.

Look through the live preview. The same layout feeds the preview, the PDF and the printer, so the PDF will match what you see.

Making the PDF

Choose PDF export and save the file. Decide whether to switch on label outlines. With outlines, each label's edge is drawn on the page, which is perfect for checking alignment on plain paper. Without them, the PDF is ready to print onto real labels.

Many people make both: one with outlines for testing, and one without for the job itself.

Printing it later

When you print the PDF, set the PDF reader to actual size or 100%. If fit to page is on, the page shrinks a little and labels drift towards the middle of the sheet.

PDF export is not corrected for any printer's calibration. Labels saves a calibration offset for each printer you calibrate, but that is applied when Labels prints directly, not baked into the PDF, since the PDF may be printed anywhere. If precision matters and you have calibrated your own printer, printing straight from Labels is the most accurate route. The PDF is ideal for sharing, testing and records.

Why the PDF prints cleanly

Vector shapes and codes stay sharp at any printer resolution, so borders, barcodes and QR codes print crisply rather than as blurry pictures. Real text with embedded fonts means the labels look right even on a computer that doesn't have your fonts installed, and you can search the file for a name.

A use you may not have thought of

Keep a PDF of each big mailing, named with the date. If someone asks whether they were on the Christmas card list, or which members received the spring newsletter, you can open the PDF and search for their name. It is a simple record, and it costs nothing to make.