Often, life is about choices. Whether we’re choosing which ice cream flavour to have for dessert, or which suburb to buy your first home, we want to make the right decision – even if these two hypotheticals are not quite of equal weight.
If you’re looking at updating your inventory system or purely your barcodes, you’ve probably come to the question of whether paper or plastic barcode labels are best for your business. Let’s go through the benefits of each type of barcode to determine the best option.
Paper barcodes
Paper barcodes are used by millions of businesses across the world. Here are some of the key benefits of using paper barcodes:
- Cost effective
One of the best things about paper barcodes is that they’re super cost-effective and work out to be great value if you only need a short-term barcode, say, for temporary use. If you’re ordering a high volume of barcodes, you’ll save a lot of money by choosing paper barcode labels – should they be an appropriate choice. - Suitable for short life purposes
Paper barcodes have a shorter lifespan and, while this is a negative thing if you’re needing a long life barcode, it actually works in your favour if this isn’t the case. The short lifespan of paper barcodes contributes to the low cost, saving your business a heap of money in the long run. Paper barcodes are suitable for things like temporary shelving solutions or short term uses like on a piece of fruit. - Available with a top laminate coat
You can actually increase the lifespan of a paper barcode by applying a top laminate coat, so if you need a slightly more weather- or UV-resistant barcode but still want a cost-effective option, this could be a great solution.
Plastic barcodes
There are a number of plastic barcodes such as polyester, polypropylene, vinyl and polyimide and they all have their different qualities. In general, however, plastic barcodes have benefits such as:
- Longer lifespan
Plastic is the ideal material for barcodes that need to go the extra mile. These barcodes are perfect for long-distance shipping, permanent shelving or outdoor applications. - Weather-resistant
Plastic barcodes are far more weather-resistant than paper barcodes. Polyester, for example, has a high UV, temperature and chemical resistance. Polypropylene labels are well suited to cold environments like freezer products. - Available with tamper-evident qualities
Plastic barcodes are also available with tamper-evident qualities, showing you when a barcode has been deliberately tampered with. Barcode Labels offer ‘VOID’ tamper-evident material for plastic barcodes.
If you’re still unsure of which barcode material suits your business model the bets, get in touch with the team at Barcode Labels. They supply high quality paper and plastic barcodes and have helped warehouses across Australia to establish better, more efficient inventory processes. They help you choose the best solution for your type of business and implement it with the utmost diligence and care. Get in touch with the team at Barcode Labels today.