Whether you need to print industrial labels from your desktop PC, at a job site, or both, the $169 Epson LabelWorks LW-PX400 could be the label maker you're looking for. It lets you create labels from any application that will work with a standard printer driver, including Epson's own Windows and macOS label editors, or use the company's Android or iPhone apps to print labels on site as you need them. It also works with a wide enough range of media types and sizes that you're likely to find whatever kind of industrial label you need. Add a lifetime warranty, and the LW-PX400 wins our Editors' Choice award for medium-duty industrial labeling.

Print From PCs, Phones, or Tablets

The LW-PX400 is basically a stylized black box that measures 5.6 by 2 by 5.6 inches (HWD) and weighs 1.3 pounds. Beveled edges on the top and bottom of the front panel make it less boxy-looking than it might be, while the red front panel and lime green output slot add visual appeal. The left side offers a door that opens to let you load or remove a tape cartridge, while the printer's power and USB Type-B connectors join a button for turning Bluetooth on or off at the back. Physical setup requires little more than inserting a tape cartridge.

Unlike competitors including the Brady BMP21-Plus and Epson LabelWorks LW-PX750PCD and the industrial and light-duty, respectively, Editors' Choice winners the Brady BMP41 and Epson LabelWorks LW-PX300, the LW-PX400 doesn't have a keyboard or keypad, so it can't be used as a standalone printing system. However, it's light enough to be easily portable and can run on six AA batteries as an alternative to the included AC adapter, so you can print labels from your mobile device via Bluetooth. You can also use the provided USB Type-A to Type-B cable to connect to a Windows PC or, with an adapter, a Mac. With either OS, you can use Epson's label printing programs or any other program that works with the printer driver.

Note also that the LW-PX400 comes with a removable rubber drop guard that covers three sides and all the edges of the printer to help protect it from damage. For a different kind of protection, the price also includes a lifetime warranty that even covers accidental damage.

What Type of Tape Do You Need?

Epson offers no fewer than 117 tape cartridges to choose from. They include standard plastic (polyester) tapes, with or without removable adhesive; silver matte tapes; tapes with industrial-strength adhesive; vinyl tapes; magnetic tapes; heat-shrink tube tapes for cable marking; fluorescent or reflective tapes, and self-laminating overwrap tapes for cables with a clear, unprintable area to overlap the printed text.

Roughly half of the tape cartridges fall in the standard category, with 30-foot rolls in widths of 4mm (0.16 inch), 6mm (0.24 inch), 9mm (0.35 inch), 12mm (0.47 inch), 18mm (0.71 inch), or 24mm (0.94 inch). The tapes come in a variety of colors, with the number of color choices ranging from one for the 4mm width to 16 for the 12mm width. Prices are $20.85 per cartridge for 12mm and smaller widths or $24.85 for the two widest. All are continuous rolls, so your cost per label will vary with label size.

The number of choices for specialty tapes varies with the category. You can pick from 15 magnetic tapes, for example, with five colors in each of three widths, while reflective tape is available only with black print on 24mm white tape. Many of the specialty tapes offer the same 30-foot length and pricing as standard tapes, but some are shorter and priced differently. Magnetic tapes, for example, are 4.9 feet and cost $10.15 to $11.18 depending on width, while the largest heat shrink tube tapes (14mm) are 96 inches and $43.90.

Use Epson's Label App or Not

Epson gives you maximum flexibility for creating and printing labels from a PC and two choices for printing from mobile devices. For PCs, the latest Windows app at this writing and the one I used in testing is Label Editor 2.04, which is easy to learn and one of the more capable labeling programs I've seen.

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The Epson downloads page also offers Label Editor Professional 1.03 for Windows for those who are already familiar with it, while macOS users can try Label Editor Lite. All three downloads come with drivers so you can print from any app that works with a standard driver, from a database program to a Word mail-merge using data from an Excel spreadsheet. In short, you can print any format label you like from virtually any program.

For mobile use, the choices are Epson iLabel and Epson Datacom, each available in both Android and iPhone versions. The iLabel app is designed for general text labeling plus printing logos, safety labels, and bar codes, and has built-in features for connecting to Dropbox and Google Drive for sharing or storing label files. Epson Datacom is similarly suitable for general text labels but focuses on printing labels for cables, patch panels, faceplates, and the like. It even links to LinkWare Live, which will interest professional installers who use Fluke Networks' Versiv cable testing equipment.

Epson rates the LX-PX400's print speed at 15mm per second or 0.59 inch per second (ips) on AC power. That's a bit faster than the Brady BMP21-Plus (0.4ips), but only half of the Epson LW-PX750PCD's 1.18ips and well behind the 1.3ips of the Brady BMP41. However, note that unlike those three printers, the LW-PX400 was a bit slower than its rated speed in our hands-on tests, averaging 16.6 seconds for a 4.4-inch label (0.27ips), though that climbed to 0.48ips when printing four copies with automatic cutting inactive.

Keep in mind that speed can vary with the type of tape. Epson doesn't specify which tape the 0.59ips rating is based on. It's also true that the faster printers mentioned above are more expensive. In any case, the LabelWorks' 180dpi resolution, which is typical for this class of printer, delivers sharp edges and highly legible text.

A Top-Tier Pick

The one notable feature the LW-PX400 lacks is a keypad. If you need standalone printing with a keypad, consider the Epson LW-PX300 if you prefer a QWERTY keyboard or the Brady BMP21-Plus for an ABC layout.

If you need to print from a PC as well as standalone, and print enough labels to need more speed than the LW-PX400 offers, consider the Epson LabelWorks LW-PX750PCD Kit or the Editors' Choice-winning Brady BMP4. Your choice will depend on which one has the best match of tape types for your needs and which form factor you prefer for entering label text—the Brady is a handheld printer, while the Epson can be used as one but works better for two- or four-finger typing on a flat surface.

If you don't need a keypad, however, the LabelWorks LW-PX400 belongs on your short list. Given its wide range of media types and sizes, it's likely to support the labels you need, and its ability to print from either a desktop PC or a mobile device in the field makes it useful for almost any application. That combination, plus its lifetime warranty earns it our latest Editors' Choice award for moderate-duty industrial labeling.