Hi all, I am returning a product on Amazon and the only option is UPS Label Free Pickup.

It says you don't need a printer as the UPS driver will stick the return label on the outside of the package when they arrive to pick it up (see here).

But then on the return instructions page it still shows that I need to print the Return Authorisation Label and place it inside the package before taping it up (see here).

So I am confused now as to whether I need to print this return authorisation label or not? It seems like I would need to print this or else Amazon has no way of confirming my return? But then why does it say 'no printer required'?

Hi all, I am returning a product on Amazon and the only option is UPS Label Free Pickup.

It says you don't need a printer as the UPS driver will stick the return label on the outside of the package when they arrive to pick it up (see here).

But then on the return instructions page it still shows that I need to print the Return Authorisation Label and place it inside the package before taping it up (see here).

So I am confused now as to whether I need to print this return authorisation label or not? It seems like I would need to print this or else Amazon has no way of confirming my return? But then why does it say 'no printer required'?

Went to return something yesterday. I’ve returned things plenty of times. Even just a few weeks ago. I print out my label myself, put it on the box, give it to my UPS guy at my office. Easy.

Now as of yesterday I no longer have a “print label” option. Just a drop-off at Amazon hub or UPS store. The nearest one is 1.5 hours from me!

We have a UPS truck that’s stays parked at our loading dock all day! I put a label on it and set it on truck. Now they want me to drive all over to different stores with a QR code and wait in line?! No thanks.

So I get in a chat, that person has someone call me. They said it’s only for certain sellers. Bull. I just went through all my recent xmas orders and EVERY order only has option for QR code drop off. Even items shipped BY Amazon. All of them no longer allow me to simply print a label.

Is this a very recent change?

As if I needed another reason to ditch Amazon.

I told them I’ll be cancelling all Amazon accounts if returning is made to be inconvenient.

I just really don't understand why some require me to print a label and others don't. I don't have a printer and really don't want to deal with it.

Amazon didnt give me the qr code to scan at ups and my printer is broken. I don't have access to printer.

Hey Reddit,

I have had a really frustrating experience with printing return labels with amazon. Namely that I didn't have a printer, print shops would either turn me away or charge me a 'minimum job price' no matter what I needed - all in all just kind of a bummer. I know that amazon has the option to return sometimes with a QR code, but the locations for that are really out of the way and Canada post is super convenient (aside from the aforementioned printer issue - not having one).

So I kind of took a stab in the dark here, thinking that maybe there might be some other people like me that were experiencing a similar frustration, so I got a printer, and a domain and founded Print Kitty.

"We Print Your Return Label & Mail it to Your Home - No Printer, No Problem!"

I'm here to get the opinion of the community. I made a short survey to get feedback on if this service is useful / priced appropriately / needed at all.

https://printkitty.co/survey

It's 8 questions, should only take 3-5 minutes.

I really appreciate your help / opinions / support.

Thanks everyone.

[EDIT 1]

After hearing from a number of people sharing their own experiences I've gotten a lot of clarity. Which I deeply appreciate.

Obviously this is not a service for the majority, in the majority of cases people would rather just have the printer or they can use a label free return process with a QR code and a dropoff.

A note on return time window:

So in my experience and looking at amazon's official return policy, the window to return an item is 30 days after receiving it. For me after receiving the label to print that 30 days from date of receipt still applies. I want to acknowledge that some users have shared that from receiving the label they only have 3 days to drop it off. I wanted to mention that, although I have not experienced myself.

Use cases:

No Printer-Free Return Location Nearby

Personal Preference to prepackage and label to save time at drop off location (like my case)

Larger or heavier items do not have the printer free label option available.

Ultimately the outlier cases - in most cases this service isn't needed - but in the few that it is, it's really frustrating not having the option.

Who would use it?

The person who is willing to pay a small fee to have a label shipped to them so they don't have to think about doing it themselves, going to a print shop, buying a printer etc. Someone who would rather save the time they would spend printing it themselves opting for a done for you option.

Safe to say this isn't the majority of people, but there's a few, I just need to figure out how to find them.

Outreach / Discoverability:

Even when I was having this frustration, seeking out a service like this, I searched on google for "shipping label printing online" or "single page mail a ship document" that sort of thing, and couldn't find anything in the ideal range for me which would have been around $3 MAX for the convenience. No more than that though.

So my focus is going to be on the slow build of SEO around those types of search terms.

If there are any other rare birds out there that would use this service like me, I'd love to hear where you would look for it, if at all. 🙏

First time returning something in over 2 years. When I try returning something, it's either a UPS driver drops off a label, or I take it to a store in person and they print the label with a QR code. I was going to just take it to my job where we have a shipping area, and have it get picked up there. But it seems like this isn't an option anymore if I can't make the label, or at least I think I can't.

Am I missing something? Is there a way to turn the QR code into a useable label? Because all in all this is kind of annoying.