Amazon, eBay and Etsy: Marketplace Shipping Label Requirements Explained

If you sell on more than one UK marketplace, you've probably noticed each one has its own opinions about tracking, label format and dispatch confirmation. The underlying physical label is the same 4×6 format everywhere — the differences are mostly about what data has to reach the platform, and by when.

Amazon

Amazon is the strictest of the three on tracking compliance, particularly for Seller Fulfilled Prime, where valid tracking numbers uploaded promptly are a performance metric that affects account standing. Labels generated through Amazon's own Buy Shipping tool or a connected courier integration are pre-formatted correctly; the main risk is delayed tracking uploads if your label printing and dispatch process has any lag built in.

eBay

eBay integrates directly with Royal Mail Click & Drop for UK sellers, which means labels generated through that integration follow the same 100 × 150mm format and setup covered in our Click & Drop guide. eBay is generally more forgiving than Amazon on tracking upload timing, though providing it promptly still protects your seller metrics.

Etsy

Etsy's built-in label purchasing (Etsy Shipping Labels) also generates standard 4×6 labels for UK sellers, with QR-code returns support increasingly standard. Etsy's seller base skews toward lower volume and handmade goods, so its label tooling is generally the least demanding of the three on batch-printing performance, though the underlying printer setup requirements are identical.

Keeping labels consistent across platforms

The genuinely good news: because Amazon, eBay and Etsy (and Royal Mail, DPD and Evri underneath them — see our courier comparison) all converge on the same 100 × 150mm format, one thermal printer and one consistent label stock handles all of them. The complexity is entirely in account and software setup, not in hardware or label purchasing.

Working out how many labels you actually need

Selling across three marketplaces means your total label usage is the sum of all three channels, which is easy to underestimate if you're tracking order volume per-platform rather than in aggregate. Our guide to working out your monthly label usage covers how to calculate this properly, including seasonal spikes.