Will a Shipping Label Still Work If It Gets Crinkled?

Yes and no, depends on how badly it’s crinkled. Some carriers have structured their barcodes to endure damage up to 30% while others are incredibly strict about keeping the barcode in mint condition.

The two we’ll look at in this post will be FedEx® and USPS®. FedEx® barcodes will work only if very little damage is done to them while USPS®’s barcodes aren’t quite as strict. Most carriers refer to an ANSI grade when talking about the quality the printed barcodes must be.

Here’s a quick run down on how an ANSI grade is calculated:

Eight parameters that are graded:

• Decode
• Minimum Reflectance (Rmin)
• Edge Contrast Minimum (ECmin)
• Edge Determination Symbol Contrast (SC)
• Modulation (MOD)
• Defects
• Decodablity

There’s a lot that goes into a barcode grade, but we’ll focus Defects for the time being. Defects are defined by ANSI as being voids (or in the case of crinkling, lines) found on the black bars, spots in the spaces between the bars, or an outside element getting too close to a barcode.

If you’re a business that sends out a lot of packages for which you print your own bar code, it might not be a bad idea to invest in a barcode verifier to make sure your barcodes are meeting the ANSI grade requirements. However, if you’re a small business or a part time online seller, just use common sense.

Barcode torn? Void and print a new one.

One or two small lines in the barcode? Probably okay, ask your carrier to scan it while you’re there to make sure it works.

Shipping label stuffed in your bag causing some of the bars of the barcode to almost disappear? Void and print a new one.

The amount of damage a barcode can withstand varies between carriers. Let’s now look at FedEx® and USPS®’s barcode specifications.

FedEx®

Defects (max.): 15%

ANSI Grade (min.): A

Label Specifications (PDF)

There’s little room for error when it comes to FedEx® shipping labels. If the barcode gets damaged your safest option is to void the label and print out a new one.

USPS®

Defects (max.): 30%

ANSI Grade (min.): 70% of the barcode must be A or B, none of the remaining barcode can be graded lower than C

Label Specifications (PDF)

There’s greater room for error with USPS® shipping labels. These barcodes could endure a bit of roughing up before they would be bad enough to need to be voided and re-printed.

When it comes to quality of printable shipping labels, it’s best for you, the customer, and the carrier to try to keep the label in mint condition. This also means to avoid taping the shipping label to the package.

How do you keep your shipping label barcodes defect free?

Image: virtualsugar
Not affiliated or endorsed by any of the following:FEDEX is a registered trademark of FEDEX. USPS is a registered trademark of the United States Postal Service.

Related posts:

Q&A: Can Shipping Carriers Scan a Shipping Label Barcode on Color Labels? Do you offer an 8 1/2″ X 14″ pre-printed sheet with a pull out label with perf, that could work as a UPS ship label and return label? Anatomy of a Shipping Label: What Makes Up a Shipping Label? Can You Print Your Own FedEx Shipping Label?