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Print Shopify shipping labels automatically

Updated · 3 min read

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Buy a shipping label in Shopify and have it come out of your label printer by itself. No print dialog, no choosing a printer, no downloading a PDF. This guide sets that up from scratch.

What you need#

  • A label printer installed on a Windows or macOS computer. Any brand works, as long as the computer can already print a test page to it. Most shops use a 4 × 6 inch thermal printer.
  • Google Chrome on the computer where you buy labels.
  • About ten minutes. Every Autoprinter plan includes label printing, including Free.

The computer where you buy labels and the computer connected to the printer can be the same machine or two different ones.

1. Set up the computer that prints#

  1. In Autoprinter, open Printer Setup → Print Stations and add a station. Name it after the spot it sits in, such as "Shipping Desk".
  2. On the computer connected to your label printer, install the Desktop Utility.
  3. Click Pair on the station to get a code, and enter the code in the Desktop Utility.
  4. In the Desktop Utility's Printers card, choose your label printer under Label printer.
Example interface
Desktop Utility · printer assignments
This screen is in the Desktop Utility on your computer. Assign the label printer, document printer, and receipt printer slots you use. Each row has a Fit to page switch.Scroll across the illustration to see the full view.

2. Set up the browser where you buy labels#

  1. Install the Autoprinter Chrome Extension. The listing is unlisted, so use this link instead of searching the store.
  2. In Autoprinter, open Printer Setup → Label Sources and add one. Click Pair and enter the code in the extension's popup.
  3. In the popup, make sure Auto-print labels is on. If you have more than one Print Station, choose the right one under Print shipping labels on.
Example interface
Printer Setup · pairing code
An example of the code dialog. Generate your own code in Printer Setup and enter it in the matching companion app; the code shown here is illustrative.Scroll across the illustration to see the full view.

3. Buy a label#

Open an order in Shopify, buy the shipping label as you normally do, and click Print shipping label. The extension captures the label and sends it to your Print Station, and the label printer prints it within a few seconds.

Bought several labels at once? They all print, in order.

Good to know#

  • Autoprinter prints labels. It does not buy them. You keep buying labels in Shopify with Shopify Shipping rates.
  • Packing slips can print with the label. Add a packing slip to your Print Chain and turn on Automatic Printing with the When the order is fulfilled (prints per shipment) trigger. Buying a label fulfills the order, so the slip prints alongside it.
  • One order counts once. An order's label and its documents together use one order from your monthly allowance. See the Billing FAQ.
  • Keep the printer computer awake. Labels wait in Print History while the computer sleeps and print when it wakes.
  • Label size comes from Shopify. Set your label format in Shopify's shipping settings to match the labels loaded in your printer. If the print is cut off or too small, turn on Fit to page for the Label printer in the Desktop Utility. See Printer Troubleshooting.

If a label does not print#

Open the extension popup first. It shows whether it is paired, whether Auto-print labels is on, and which station it sends to. Then check Print History: a label that reached the queue appears there as a job. The full checklist is in Printer Troubleshooting.