Supplies & equipment
In short
Best overall: Brother QL-800 label printer Direct thermal Colour 300 x 600 DPI 148 mm/sec Wired DK, £106.99 at Back to the Office. Best value: Bixolon XD3-40d label printer Direct thermal 127 mm/sec Wired, £61.99. Premium pick: Star Micronics SM-T300i label printer Direct thermal 203 x 203 DPI 75 mm/sec Wireless Bluetooth, £343.99.
Across the 275 matching listings we screened from 4 UK suppliers, most cost £53–£284 and the middle price is £140. Prices checked 27 October 2026.
Label printer guides tend to lump every machine together. In practice an office buys one for one of three jobs: filing and shelf labels, parcel labels for couriers, or durable asset and stock tags. The right printer depends on which.
This shortlist runs from desk label makers to direct thermal and thermal transfer printers from UK trade catalogues. The notes below explain the print method, the running costs and what to check before ordering.
| # | Product | From | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Best overall Brother QL-800 label printer Direct thermal Colour 300 x 600 DPI 148… | £106.99 | Details |
| 2 | DYMO LabelManager 210D+ Label Maker | Desktop Label Printer |… | £74.99 | Details |
| 3 | Premium pick Star Micronics SM-T300i label printer Direct thermal 203 x 203 DPI 75… | £343.99 | Details |
| 4 | Bixolon SLP-DX220 label printer Direct thermal 203 x 203 DPI 152… | £226.99 | Details |
| 5 | Zebra ZD220 Label Printer EPLII ZPLII USB Black ZD22042-T0EG00EZ | £165.50 | Details |
| 6 | Citizen CL-S521 label printer Direct thermal 203 150 mm/sec Wired | £64.99 | Details |
| 7 | Best value Bixolon XD3-40d label printer Direct thermal 127 mm/sec Wired | £61.99 | Details |
| 8 | Honeywell PC42E-T label printer Direct thermal / Thermal transfer 203… | £200.99 | Details |
1 · Best overall
Brother · Sold by Back to the Office
Choose from pre-sized labels or Brother’s continuous roll option which allows you to print labels to the size you need up to 1 metre in length.
2
Dymo · Sold by Back to the Office
All Purpose Portable Label Maker: Easy to use at home or in the office. Type Quickly and Easily: Label maker lets you quickly type text on the familiar computer style keyboard, edit with one-touch fast-formatting keys and print professional labels every time.
3 · Premium pick
Star Micronics · Sold by Back to the Office
3-Inch ultra-rugged mobile printer. Long battery life. 1.2m drop-resistance with card reader. LCD display. Optional magnetic stripe reader. Apple MFi-certified (SM-T300i). Bluetooth (2.1:SPP and iOS) and Serial (SM-T300i).
4
Bixolon · Sold by Back to the Office
Direct thermal. 203 x 203 DPI. Printing colours: Black. Maximum printing width: 5.4 cm Print speed: 152 mm/sec. Built-in barcodes: 1D, 2D, AZTECCODE, CODABAR (NW-7), Code 11, Code 39, Code 93, Code-128 Codabar Library, Data Matrix, EAN13, EAN8, GS1 DataBar,…
5
Zebra · Sold by UK Office Direct Limited
Thermal transfer 4 inch desktop printer. Prints up to 102mm per second with a print resolution of 203 dpi. Dual-wall construction and all-metal printheads. Memory: 128 MB flash and 128 MB SDRAM.
6
Citizen · Sold by Back to the Office
Direct thermal. 203. Maximum printing width: 18.1 cm Print speed: 150 mm/sec. Connectivity technology: Wired. 3.6 kg. Durable all-metal mechanism. - Citizen's Hi-Lift™ design. - Easy media loading, durable design and long-life printing. Cross-Emulation.
7 · Best value
Bixolon · Sold by Back to the Office
Direct thermal. Maximum printing width: 10.4 cm Print speed: 127 mm/sec. Built-in barcodes: 1D, 2D, AZTECCODE, CODABAR (NW-7), Code 11, Code 39, EAN13, EAN8, GS1-128, Industrial 2/5, Interleaved 2/5, MaxiCode, MicroPDF417, QR Code, TLC39, UPC-A, UPC-E.
8
Honeywell · Sold by Back to the Office
Direct thermal / Thermal transfer. 203 x 203 DPI. Maximum printing width: 10.8 cm Print speed: 100 mm/sec. Built-in barcodes: 1D, 2D, AZTECCODE, Code 49, Data Matrix, EAN13, EAN8, MSI, MaxiCode, MicroPDF417, PDF417, Planet, POSTNET, Plessey, QR Code.
Brother describes direct thermal printers as using heat to create the image on heat-sensitive labels, and says they suit labels that will not be exposed to moisture or extreme temperatures. Thermal transfer printers use heat to transfer ink from a ribbon to the label, cost more, and suit labels that will face moisture or extreme temperatures.
Some printers do both. Zebra's ZD200 series is sold in direct thermal and thermal transfer versions, and several printers on this shortlist list both methods in their specification.
Check whether a printer takes only its maker's own labels or tape, or standard rolls from other suppliers. Before buying, price a year of labels or tape, plus ribbons for thermal transfer, and divide by the number of labels you will print. Over a few years, that cost per label can outweigh the price of the printer.
Check the maximum label width too. A desk label maker that is ideal for files cannot print a full-size parcel label.
On our shortlist, the Brother QL-800 label printer Direct thermal Colour 300 x 600 DPI 148 mm/sec Wired DK is the best overall pick at £106.99 from Back to the Office. For a tighter budget, the Bixolon XD3-40d label printer Direct thermal 127 mm/sec Wired (£61.99) is our best-value choice.
Most of the 275 UK listings we screened sit between £53 and £284, with a middle price of £140. Trade suppliers often show prices before VAT, so add 20% if you can't reclaim it.
A VAT-registered business can usually reclaim the VAT on equipment bought for business use, as long as it holds a valid VAT invoice from the supplier. Ask the seller for one at checkout.
The picks here come from Back to the Office, UK Office Direct Limited. Most UK trade suppliers offer next-day delivery and VAT invoices; some offer credit accounts for regular orders.
They can, because the image is made by heat on sensitive paper. Brother recommends direct thermal for labels that will not face moisture or extreme temperatures, and thermal transfer for those that will.
Often, yes, on A4 sticky label sheets, depending on the courier's label settings. A direct thermal printer prints with heat alone, so it uses no ink or toner, which suits regular parcel volumes.
Thermal transfer models do, as they transfer ink from a ribbon to the label. Direct thermal printers do not, because they create the image with heat on heat-sensitive labels.