Labelary vs mylabelmaker
mylabelmaker is the ultimate app for whatever label you want to make. Labelary vs mylabelmaker usually comes down to one question. Do you already have the ZPL, and do you only need to see it? Labelary is wonderful at that picture. You paste the code, you get a PNG or a PDF, and you can nudge the code in the box. mylabelmaker does that first step on this computer, then lets you print the same job to a Zebra, or design the label if nobody has written the code yet. Free. No signup.
Labelary and mylabelmaker, side by side
Labelary taught a lot of warehouse folks to paste ^XA and trust the picture. Keep that habit. The difference is what you can do after the picture looks right.
| mylabelmaker | Labelary | |
|---|---|---|
| First job | Paste ZPL and see it, or design the label if you don't have code yet. | Paste ZPL and see a picture. You edit the code in the box. |
| Where the picture is drawn | In this browser, on your computer. | On Labelary's server. The ZPL you paste is sent to them. |
| Print to a Zebra | Yes. Print sends the code you pasted, through Browser Print. | You get a PNG or a PDF. The viewer does not send the job to your printer. |
| Design without writing ZPL | Yes. Drag text, a barcode, a QR code, a logo. | You work in the ZPL itself. |
| Excel or Google Sheets | Yes. One row, one label. | No. It is a viewer, not a mail merge. |
| Rare ZPL commands | The preview can miss an odd command. Print still sends what you pasted. | This is their strength. The renderer knows a lot of commands. |
| Price | Free. No account. No daily cap on the app. | The public viewer and API are free, with rate caps. Paid plans raise the cap and add a privacy promise. |
What Labelary is genuinely good at
Someone emails you a dump from the warehouse system. You want to know if the barcode is even on the label before you waste a roll. Paste it into Labelary. The picture comes back sharp, and their renderer has spent years learning odd commands that trip other previews. If you live in code all day, that text box is a comfortable chair. Their API is the other half of the product. Your own software can send ZPL and get a PNG back. The free API has a speed cap and a daily cap. Paid plans raise those caps.
What you don't get there is a label you build by dragging. You don't load Excel. You don't click a column name onto the label. You don't hit Print and hear the Zebra in the same tab. When the picture is wrong, you go back to whoever wrote the ZPL, or you edit the code yourself.
Why mylabelmaker is the better choice when you also have to print
If the printer on the desk is a Zebra, this is the all-in-one app. You design the label, or start from a template. You upload Excel, CSV, or a Google Sheet you published as CSV, and each row becomes a label. You print straight to that Zebra. You can also copy the ZPL of the label you just made. If someone already sent you code, you paste it, look at it, and print that same job. Labelary stops at the picture. It does not design the label, it does not load your spreadsheet, and it does not print the label.
Open the ZPL viewer and paste the same job. The picture is drawn in this browser. Hit Print and the Zebra gets the original code, not a rebuilt drawing and not a screenshot. Printing uses Zebra Browser Print, a free helper from Zebra that you install once on this computer. An odd command can look off in our preview and still print correctly. That is on purpose. We would rather send what you pasted than quietly rewrite it.
If you don't have ZPL yet, don't start by typing ^FO. Design the label. Add the name, the barcode, the logo. Copy the ZPL when a queue or another program needs it. Excel, CSV, and a published Google Sheet fill each row. One row, one label. Mac or Windows. That whole job is why mylabelmaker is the better choice once "just show me the ZPL" turns into "I have to put these on the boxes tonight."
Where your ZPL goes
Labelary's online viewer asks their server to draw the label, so the code you paste leaves your browser and goes to them. Their own FAQ says the free viewer and the free API don't come with a privacy promise, a support promise, or an uptime promise. Paid plans are how they sell those promises. That is a fair business. It is also worth knowing before you paste a customer's address into the box.
Here, the preview stays on this computer. There is no login. When you print, Browser Print hands the ZPL to the printer on your desk. We don't keep a copy. If a rare command looks wrong in our picture, paste the same code into Labelary and use them as a second pair of eyes. A lot of people do that once, then stop needing the extra tab.
How to preview ZPL and print it here
- Open https://app.mylabelmaker.com/?zpl-viewer=1. No signup.
- Paste a whole job, from
^XAto^XZ. - Look at the picture. Download a PNG or a PDF if you need to show someone.
- Print to the Zebra. The printer gets the code you pasted.
- If you still need to make the label, close the viewer, design it, and copy the ZPL. Load Excel or a published Google Sheet when each row should change.
When you should still open Labelary
Use Labelary when another program needs their API, or when a weird command looks wrong in our preview and you want their renderer to referee. We don't turn pasted ZPL into boxes you can drag. The preview is a picture. We also don't pretend our picture knows every command theirs does. Print still sends your original job. For the longer shopping list, see the top 5 label makers and the top 10. Related: Labelary online ZPL viewer · why mylabelmaker is the better choice than OpenLabelMaker.
Questions people ask before they switch
Is mylabelmaker a Labelary alternative?
For the first step, yes. You paste ZPL and see the label. Then you can print that job to a Zebra, or design a new label and copy the ZPL. No signup. Labelary is still the one to call when you need their API or a second look at a rare command.
Is mylabelmaker the all-in-one app for a Zebra printer?
Yes. Design the label, use a template, batch print from Excel or CSV, copy the ZPL, preview ZPL you already have, and print straight to the Zebra. Labelary only previews the code.
Does Labelary print to a Zebra?
The viewer gives you a picture, a PNG, or a PDF. It does not send the ZPL to the printer on your desk. To print from the browser, use mylabelmaker and Browser Print.
Does my ZPL get uploaded when I preview it?
On Labelary's viewer, yes. They draw it on their server. In our viewer, the picture is drawn in this browser. Print sends the code to your Zebra, not to us.
When you're ready to print or save
If a Zebra is plugged in, print from the browser. Match the DPI to the printer, 203, 300, or 600. On a regular printer, choose Print from this computer. You can also download a PNG, a PDF, or the ZPL the Zebra reads. Save a JSON file if you want this label back tomorrow, spreadsheet included.