Label stock
76.2 × 50.8 mm labels
Three inches by two. The first size where a label can carry a complete hazard communication rather than a reference to one.
The size where the label stops being a summary
Nineteen lines of seventy-three characters at 6 pt is about 1,400 characters — a page of text on a label, if you wanted one. Nobody wants one, and the point of the capacity is not to use it. It is that at this size, nothing has to be left off for want of room, so every decision about what the label says is a decision rather than a compromise.
On a 500 mL or 1 L media bottle with a 70 to 95 mm barrel, a 76.2 mm label covers a quarter to a third of the circumference. That is enough to read the whole label from one angle, which matters on a bottle that lives in a water bath or on a shelf where it cannot be turned freely.
What this size is
- In inches
- 3 × 2 in. An inch size by origin: 76.2 × 50.8 mm is the exact conversion of it, with nothing rounded.
- Vessels it wraps
- Anything from a 50 mL conical tube upwards, so also a GL45 reagent bottle. The tightest of those has a usable band of about 88 × 55 mm, which this label fits inside.
- Die-cut sheets
- No stock sheet in the editor is cut to this size. On plain paper it packs 10 per A4, 10 per Letter, cut by hand along printed marks.
- Roll stock that carries it
- 76.2 mm, 101.6 mm. The narrowest that takes it is 76.2 mm, and a roll narrower than the label is reported as an error rather than trimmed.
What fits on a 76.2 × 50.8 mm label
| Type size | Lines | Plex Sans | Barlow Condensed | Atkinson Hyperlegible | Plex Mono | Space Mono | Courier Prime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.5 pt | 26 | 97 | 134 | 98 | 77 | 76 | 77 |
| 5 pt | 23 | 87 | 120 | 88 | 70 | 68 | 70 |
| 6 pt | 19 | 73 | 100 | 73 | 58 | 57 | 58 |
| 7 pt | 16 | 62 | 86 | 63 | 50 | 49 | 50 |
| 8 pt | 14 | 54 | 75 | 55 | 43 | 42 | 43 |
| 10 pt | 11 | 43 | 60 | 44 | 35 | 34 | 35 |
What the extra room is actually for
- Pictograms at a size that works
- Three GHS diamonds across the top at 15 mm each, with the identifier below them, and both still readable at arm's length. On smaller stock one of those has to give.
- A signal word set large
- DANGER or WARNING at 12 pt or more, which is what makes the difference between a hazard label and a label that mentions a hazard.
- Full precautionary statements
- Precautionary text runs long, and abbreviating it changes its meaning. This is the first size where the statements fit as written.
- White space
- The most underused feature of a large label. A band of nothing between the identifier and the detail does more for readability than any type choice.
Common questions
- Is 3 × 2 inches enough for a CLP or HCS supplier label?
- It holds the content, but check the dimensions against the rule before assuming it qualifies. CLP sets minimum label sizes by package volume rather than by how much text there is: packages up to three litres ask for at least 52 × 74 mm, and at 50.8 × 76.2 mm this size is about a millimetre short on one side. Larger containers ask for more again. Whether that matters is a question for whoever signs off the labelling, not for this editor, which lays out what you give it and checks nothing about compliance.
- How many fit on a sheet?
- Ten on plain A4 and ten on Letter, packed by the editor with cut marks. Die-cut sheets at this exact size are uncommon; it is far more often bought on rolls, where 76.2 mm is a standard width.
Open it in the editor
The editor loads at 76.2 × 50.8 mm with a worked example in place. It runs entirely in your browser: nothing you type is uploaded, and there is no account to make.
Last reviewed 2026-09-13.