When it comes to labeling boxes, you may think that there’s nothing more to it than busting out your trusty black permanent marker and making a few scribbles.  But there’s actually a science to labeling moving boxes.  Label your moving boxes in an organized way, and you can make moving to a new apartment an easy and efficient endeavor — not to mention make unpacking easier!

These easy-to-use moving box label ideas will make moving to a new apartment much easier.

Colored markers
One of the easiest — and cheapest — ways to label moving boxes is to use colored permanent markers.  Designate a different color for every room in your house and use the corresponding marker to label boxes from that room.

On moving day, all you have to do is let your movers know the color code.  You can take care of that by making color signs to hang above the doorways in your new apartment.  That way, no one will forget the code.

For plastic bags, use the same color system, but try using ribbon.  If all the bedroom boxes are purple, dig up some purple ribbon from your sewing stash or your present-wrapping supplies to tie around the top of a bag.  The eye-catching ribbon will be easily visible for movers and stay securely fixed on your belongings.

Printable packing box labels
Another option for moving box labels is printable labels.  Many moving companies — both local and national — offer free, downloadable labels that you can print with your ink or laser jet printer.  There are labels to designate boxes for every room in your house as well as labels to mark items that are fragile or perishable.

To find printable packing box labels, open your internet browser and search for “printable moving box labels.”

The advantage of using printable labels is that many of these designs are easy to read.  Some also include helpful visuals like arrows and fragile symbols.

Just be careful when you apply these labels to your packing boxes.  If you print the labels out on sticker paper, the stickers could potentially fall off your boxes during transit.  It’s best to reinforce printable paper labels by taping over them with transparent packing tape.

Color-coded moving box tape
If printing labels sounds like too much work, then color-coded moving box tape might be the best solution for you.  For around $20 to $30 you can buy a package of several colored label tapes that indicate “kitchen,” “fragile,” “master,” etc.  Available at any large moving store or home improvement store, packing box labeling tape provides a quick solution to marking your boxes clearly.  Simply finish packing a box, tape the top closed, and then surround the entire box with color-coded moving tape.  It doesn’t get any easier than that.

What to write on moving boxes
Whatever you choose to write on your moving boxes, it’s best to avoid labeling boxes with the words “stuff” or “misc.”  Moving can get pretty chaotic, and chances are you won’t remember what “misc.” means when moving day rolls around.

You might also want to number your boxes.  Conventional packing wisdom dictates that you should always start by packing the items you’ll need to get to last.  So if you label those boxes starting with number one and label the last few boxes you pack with successive higher numbers, you’ll know to unpack higher numbers first at the new apartment.  (If you’re feeling super organized, you can also create a corresponding spreadsheet to give you a breakdown of the content of each box.)

When it comes down to it, good moving box labels are one of the most important organizational tools for moving day.  As long as everyone knows your system, the labels can save you a lot of headaches.