Mail merge address labels from excel

The classic task of creating address labels from Excel using mail merge!

Here's a step-by-step guide to help you achieve this:

Prerequisites:

1. Microsoft Excel 2010 or later version
2. Microsoft Word 2010 or later version
3. A list of addresses in Excel, with each column representing a field (e.g., First Name, Last Name, Address, City, State, ZIP)

Step 1: Prepare your Excel data

1. Open your Excel file and select the range of cells containing your address data.
2. Make sure each column has a header row with a descriptive name (e.g., "First Name", "Last Name", etc.).
3. Ensure that the data is organized in a table format, with each row representing a single address.

Step 2: Create a mail merge document in Word

1. Open Microsoft Word and create a new document.
2. Go to the "Mailings" tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on "Start Mail Merge" and select "Step-by-Step Mail Merge Wizard".
4. Choose "Labels" as the document type and click "Next".
5. Select the label template you want to use (e.g., Avery 5160) and click "Next".
6. Choose the label layout and click "Next".
7. Click "Finish" to create the mail merge document.

Step 3: Link your Excel data to the Word document

1. In the Word document, go to the "Mailings" tab and click on "Select Recipients".
2. Choose "Use an existing list" and select the Excel file containing your address data.
3. Click "OK" to link the Excel data to the Word document.

Step 4: Map the Excel fields to the Word document

1. In the Word document, go to the "Mailings" tab and click on "Match Fields".
2. Select the Excel fields (e.g., "First Name", "Last Name", etc.) and map them to the corresponding fields in the Word document (e.g., "Label 1", "Label 2", etc.).
3. Click "OK" to save the field mappings.

Step 5: Preview and print your address labels

1. Go to the "Mailings" tab and click on "Preview Results".
2. Review the address labels to ensure they are formatted correctly.
3. Click "Print" to print your address labels.

Tips and Variations:

• To create a more customized label layout, you can use Word's built-in label templates or create your own using the "Label Options" dialog box.
• If you need to merge data from multiple Excel files, you can use the "Combine Files" feature in Word to merge the data into a single file.
• To save time, you can use Excel's built-in "Text to Columns" feature to quickly format your address data into a table format.

By following these steps, you should be able to create professional-looking address labels from your Excel data using mail merge. Happy merging!