When moving, where to put labels on boxes?

[GyroKat]

My boyfriend usually writes on all 4 sides of boxes to make sure they can be read when stacked. And when he sent in his laptop for repairs, he printed out an entire page of the RMA number and put the number on all sides, top and bottom... But he works with that stuff, so he's rather anal about it

[bean]

As someone who used to work for UPS loading 18 wheelers...

It doesn't matter where the label is - believe me, it'll be loaded so that the label is facing the loader anyway, regardless of "This side up" labels or any of that nonsense. Pack it properly and it won't matter. The "fragile" labels usually earned a kick or two to the box if it didn't flat out get run over - not from me, but from other people (I treated most packages as if they were my own). Has a lot to do with why I won't ever use UPS again.

Personally though, I've always moved myself (my upcoming move will be the first time I've considered paying a moving service, and still may do it myself over the course of a couple of weeks) - my habit of labeling boxes came from U-Haul's printed boxes... they had checkboxes on the TOP of the boxes for rooms.

[Midnight12]

as most others said. labels on top and bottom
WHY? because people packing the box need to know whats in the box BEFORE stacking them. and the side label is shown so that it makes it that much EASIER for the movers.

[Bliss]

Personally I apply three labels, one on top, one on short side, one on long side, since pickup person can pick the box either from the top (looking down on it) or from the side (looking at it on the front.) and if it's labeled on the side, depending on truck size it can be stacked paralelly or transversally to the truck's length, thus one label in the short side and one in the long side.

[karma_gypsy]

I just got done with a move (well, in between moves really). It doesn't matter how many times (or what) I write on those boxes, it never seems to be enough. I try and write what's in the box and I write it on all sides. Pain in the ass and time consuming, I know, but usually it helps in the end. Husband, who also did some of the packing, only wrote on the top and one side. And when you have all your things boxed up in a garage, it's not easy going through it all to find that one bit of paperwork you absolutely need (I'm one of those who will have it all spread out through several boxes . . . )

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I go easy on the movers and put a lable on all four sides.
That way, they can see it in a stack no matter how it's faced.

[dispatch]

I do mine on the top mostly because my style of moving is grab and go, I'll sort it out once it gets there. while carrying the box I, or any of my friends and family, can look down and see what's there. If there's something breakable or important, I label the crap out of the box so as not to set a box of hardcover books on top of my balsa-wood bridge collection (I don't really have a balsa-wood bridge collection, I just couldn't think of anything rediculously fragile that I own off the top of my head). this also makes it easier to read them when they're in the backseat and on the floorboards of your car.
I did work in a shipping warehouse so I understand the need for side labels in large truckloads, but the question you asked was a horse of a different color IMHO

[gregmaddux17]

Does anybody remember the first few minutes of Ace Ventura where Jim Carrey is working as a delivery person and is kicking a box down the street instead of carrying it? This thread made me think of that scene.