Why does a Shopify shipping label print at the wrong size?

How do you change the shipping label size in Shopify?

Start with the cause Shopify names itself, on its troubleshooting page for shipping labels:

In the admin, you pick that format when you print. Shopify's guide to printing shipping documents has you select the printer, then a paper size that matches the printer you're using: Thermal (4 x 6 inch / 100 x 150 mm / A6) for label printers, or Letter (8.5 x 11 inch) or A4 (8.3 x 11.7 inch) for desktop printers.

Your label format selection is saved and used as the default for future label purchases, and staff members without Settings permissions can't change the label format.

Do you have to buy a new Shopify label to fix the size?

Not while you're still on the Print shipping label page. Shopify's label format and printing steps let you reprint in the correct label format there:

1. Close the initial label popup.
2. Select the correct label size from the dropdown.
3. Click Print shipping labels.

The same troubleshooting page treats a misprinted label as a separate case. If a label printed incorrectly for a package that hasn't been shipped yet, you can reprint it from the Shipping labels page or the order's page, and "You don't need to purchase a new label."

Once you've left the Print shipping label page, the troubleshooting page says "you must void the label and repurchase it to change the size." How Shopify bills and credits label purchases is covered in what a Shopify Shipping label costs.

So if the size in Shopify was right and the fault was in the printing, fix the printer and reprint the label before the package ships. If the format itself was wrong and you've left the print page, void the label and buy it again.

What if your printer settings use a different paper size?

Brother and Rollo, two of the brands among the label printers Shopify has tested, document a paper size set in the printer's own settings, separate from Shopify's format.

For the Brother QL-1110NWB printing 4-inch shipping labels from applications, Brother describes the symptom as "the print result is different from the preview image. Some information is cut off from the label." Its fix, in the printer driver settings: on the Other tab, clear Adjust to 4" (101.6 mm) shipping label; on the Basic tab, under Paper Size, select 4.07" x 6.4" (103 mm x 164 mm) or 4.07" (103 mm).

For a Rollo on a Mac, Rollo puts the fix in macOS: in the print window, under Paper Size, choose Manage Custom Sizes and add a 4" x 6" size, then set the Rollo's default size to 4x6 in System Preferences → Printers & Scanners. On Windows, Shopify's own Rollo printer page has you select your label size from the Paper Size drop-down in the printer's Advanced dialog. For other models, look in the printer maker's own support pages.

No page we read on September 23, 2026 in Shopify's shipping labels help — the section's pages and index, plus its label printer lists for shipping and for POS — mentions print scaling, "fit to page", "actual size" or margins in a browser or PDF print dialog.

Why are my thermal labels distorted or shifting?

Zebra documents the third cause for its ZD421 and ZD621 desktop printers, on a page titled "Labels Are Distorted in Size or Print Area Start Position Varies". Among the causes it lists are media that "has been loaded incorrectly", a movable media sensor that is not set properly, and sensors "not calibrated for your media length, physical properties, or sensing type". For uncalibrated sensors, it points to a SmartCal media calibration.

Once the labels print correctly, reprint the one you bought as described in the reprint section.