If you’re printing product labels, barcodes*, or packaging labels in-house, you’ve probably come across two main types of thermal printing: Thermal Direct and Thermal Transfer. Here at Flexi Labels, we are proud to say that we have both material types available as pre-coloured roll labels, saving you money on printing costs and keeping our lead time to a minimum. Whilst we have been offering coloured thermal labels for a while now, we have recently refined the colours that we have on offer based on customer popularity and current label trends.
Before purchasing, it is important to note that both thermal print methods work very differently and suit certain applications for various reasons. We have a guide further down the page to help, but first, let's show you the colours from our core range!
*Please order samples before buying from the Thermal Colour range with the intention of printing barcodes, these labels are not widely suitable for this purpose.
Thermal Roll Colours - The Core Range
Red
Red thermal labels grab attention fast! They’re perfect for flagging urgent information such as expiry dates, safety warnings, or priority shipments. Businesses may also use red for colour-coding in warehouses, highlighting sale prices in retail, and marking hazards or special handling to cut errors. Plus, they keep your branding sharp!
Fuchsia Pink
Fuchsia Pink thermal labels combine standout visibility with brand personality. They’re perfect for product launches, gift packaging, and VIP orders where you want attention without the “warning” feel of red. You could use fuchsia pink to colour-code special fulfilment, match bold brand colours, and boost shelf appeal for cosmetics, gifts, or limited editions. No fuss, maximum impact.
Pastel Peach
Pastel peach thermal labels bring warmth and a handmade feel to your packaging. They’re perfect for wellness, bakery, beauty, and boutique brands that encourage gentle standout and a friendly unboxing experience. Use peach to softly colour-code gift or special orders, match warm, natural branding, or add seasonal charm to spring and summer lines. Keep your labels feeling fresh and personal.
Pastel Orange
Pastel orange thermal labels add a warm, cheerful pop to packaging without overwhelming it. They’re perfect for food, wellness, kids’ brands, and seasonal lines that want friendly visibility and better shelf appeal. Use them to gently colour-code orders, match sunny, artisanal branding, or bring seasonal energy to autumn and summer campaigns.
Yellow
Yellow thermal labels are built for visibility. They’re the top pick for warehouse safety, urgent notices, price promos, and colour-coding as yellow is the first colour the eye spots. Use yellow to flag priority or fragile items, highlight sales and clearance, and meet compliance needs for warnings or allergens.
Pastel Yellow
Pastel Yellow thermal labels add a sunny, upbeat touch without being loud. They’re great for wellness, baby, food, and lifestyle brands that want gentle shelf appeal and a positive unboxing experience. Use pastel yellow to softly highlight new lines or fragile items, match light, happy branding, or bring seasonal freshness to spring and summer packaging. Just pure feel-good colour.
Sky Blue
Sky Blue thermal labels bring calm, clear visibility to your packaging. They’re ideal for cold-chain food, healthcare, tech, and brands that want a trusted, fresh look. Use sky blue to flag chilled or checked items, colour-code without alarm, and match cool, professional branding. Choose sky blue for a colour that feels clean and credible.
Pastel Blue
Pastel Blue thermal labels add a calm, premium feel to packaging. They’re perfect for baby, wellness, beauty, and boutique brands that want gentle standout and a trustworthy unboxing experience. Use pastel blue to gently flag delicate or special orders, match cool, clean branding, or add a serene touch to winter and baby ranges.
Pastel Mint
Pastel Mint thermal labels bring a fresh, modern touch to packaging. They’re ideal for wellness, beauty, food, and eco-brands that want soft shelf appeal and a clean, calming vibe. Use pastel mint to flag organic, fragile, or special items, match fresh, natural branding, or add a spring-like feel to new launches. Mint, the freshest colour there is.
Green
Green thermal labels deliver clear, positive visibility. They’re the top choice for quality control passes, ready-to-ship, organic foods, and eco-brands due to the universal connotations of “go” and “safe.” Use green to flag approved or fresh items, highlight vegan/eco lines, and speed up warehouse colour-coding with a colour everyone understands.
Grass Green
Grass Green thermal labels bring bold, fresh energy to your packaging. They’re ideal for organic food, garden, wellness, and eco-brands that want strong shelf appeal and a natural “just picked” feeling. Use grass green to flag fresh or approved stock, highlight eco and plant-based lines, and add vibrant spring energy to your labels. You can't go wrong with a punchy, vivid colour.
Pastel Green
Pastel Green thermal labels add a calm, natural touch to packaging. They’re perfect for eco, wellness, beauty, and boutique food brands that want subtle shelf appeal and a fresh, trustworthy vibe. Use pastel green to sign-post organic or delicate items, match earthy, sustainable branding, or bring a spring-like feel to new lines. Pure serene colour.
Neutral Kraft
Neutral Kraft thermal labels bring instant rustic, eco-charm to your packaging. They’re perfect for artisan, organic, handmade, and sustainable brands that want an authentic, natural look without the cost of custom print. Use kraft to reinforce eco credentials, match rustic or farm-shop branding, and make small-batch products feel premium with natural character.
Pastel Purple
Pastel Purple thermal labels add a calm, creative touch to packaging. They’re ideal for beauty, wellness, gifting, and boutique brands that want gentle standout and a premium, caring feel. Use pastel purple to softly flag VIP, gift, or limited items, match dreamy, spa-like branding, or bring a luxurious calm to seasonal lines. Perfect, quiet elegance.
Pastel Pink
Pastel pink thermal labels add a soft, premium touch to packaging. They’re ideal for gifts, beauty brands, baby products, and boutique e-commerce where you want gentle shelf appeal and a better unboxing experience. Use them to colour-code delicate or special orders, match pastel branding, or highlight seasonal promos without looking harsh. Certainly a colour that feels personal and thoughtful.
Thermal Direct vs Thermal Transfer - A Buyers Guide
As mentioned previously, it's important to know the difference between the two thermal printing methods for a number of reasons. You will need to make sure that the material you select is suitable for the application type, desired longevity and is compatible with your printer should you be printing on the labels yourself. Below is a guide to highlight the key differences between Thermal Direct and Thermal Transfer printing before ordering our thermal coloured roll labels:
Thermal Direct
Thermal Direct printing works by applying heat directly to a heat-sensitive material, which turns black to form your text, design or barcode. With no ink, toner, or printer ribbons needed, it’s fast, cost-effective, and low-maintenance, Perfect for shipping labels, receipts, and warehouse picking where labels only need to last in the short-term.
Our coloured thermal labels are available in the following Thermal Direct materials:
Thermal Direct Paper with Permanent Adhesive
Thermal Direct Paper with Removable Adhesive
Thermal Direct Paper with Freezer Adhesive
Thermal Direct Top Coated Paper with Permanent Adhesive
Thermal Direct Matt Polypropylene with Permanent Adhesive
Thermal Transfer
Thermal Transfer printing uses heat to melt ink from a printer ribbon directly onto your label. This creates durable, long-lasting prints that resist fading, moisture, and scratches — ideal for barcodes, product labels, and outdoor use where print needs to survive for longer.
Our coloured thermal labels are available in the following Thermal Transfer materials:
Thermal Transfer Paper with Permanent Adhesive
Thermal Transfer Gloss Polypropylene with Permanent Adhesive
Whist this page has hopefully provided an insight on the thermal print technologies and has demonstrated the thermal roll colours that we have on offer, we would always encourage customers to take advantage of our free material sample service where possible. Colours can certainly look different on a screen when compared to real life examples so this is always best to make sure you receive the colour that you were expecting.
Not only this, but samples also provide the opportunity to test the material and adhesive in the intended environment and double check compatibility with your printer before placing an order.
Lastly, if you are still unsure what material is right for your requirement, our team are always on hand to assist.
Happy Shopping!
