How to do mail merge from excel for labels

Mail merge from Excel to labels! That's a great task. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you achieve it:

Prerequisites:

  1. Microsoft Excel 2010 or later version
  2. Microsoft Word 2010 or later version
  3. Label template (you can create one or use an existing one)

Step 1: Prepare your data in Excel

  1. Open your Excel file and create a table with the following columns:
    • Column A: First name
    • Column B: Last name
    • Column C: Address
    • Column D: City
    • Column E: State
    • Column F: ZIP
    • Column G: Phone number (optional)
  2. Enter your data in the table. Make sure to format the columns correctly (e.g., text for names, numbers for phone numbers).

Step 2: Create a label template in Word

  1. Open Microsoft Word and create a new document.
  2. Go to the "Mailings" tab in the ribbon.
  3. Click on "Labels" and select "Label Options" from the drop-down menu.
  4. Choose your label template or create a new one. You can choose from various label sizes and shapes.
  5. Click "OK" to close the Label Options dialog box.

Step 3: Set up the mail merge

  1. Go back to your Excel file and select all the data in the table (Ctrl+A).
  2. Copy the selected data (Ctrl+C).
  3. Open Microsoft Word and create a new document.
  4. Go to the "Mailings" tab in the ribbon.
  5. Click on "Start Mail Merge" and select "Step-by-Step Mail Merge Wizard".
  6. Follow the wizard's prompts to set up the mail merge:
    • Choose "Labels" as the document type.
    • Select the label template you created earlier.
    • Choose "Use an existing list" and select the Excel file you copied the data from.
    • Click "Next" to proceed.

Step 4: Map the fields

  1. In the "Select recipients" window, click on "Edit recipient list" and then "Edit" to open the "Mail Merge Recipients" window.
  2. In the "Mail Merge Recipients" window, click on "Match Fields" to map the Excel columns to the label fields:
    • First name: Map to "First Name" in the label template.
    • Last name: Map to "Last Name" in the label template.
    • Address: Map to "Address" in the label template.
    • City: Map to "City" in the label template.
    • State: Map to "State" in the label template.
    • ZIP: Map to "ZIP" in the label template.
    • Phone number: Map to "Phone Number" in the label template (if applicable).
  3. Click "OK" to close the "Mail Merge Recipients" window.

Step 5: Merge the data

  1. Click "Next" in the mail merge wizard to proceed.
  2. In the "Preview your letters" window, you'll see a preview of the merged labels. Review the data to ensure it's correct.
  3. Click "Finish & Merge" to merge the data.
  4. Choose "Print" to print the labels or "Save to File" to save them as a PDF or other file format.

That's it! You've successfully performed a mail merge from Excel to labels using Microsoft Word.