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Free · All 50 states + DC

Cottage food label generator

Everything your state requires on one label: ingredients auto-ordered by weight, Big-9 allergen detection, net weight, an optional UPC barcode, and your state's exact home-kitchen disclosure. Free, unlimited, no signup.

Start your label

This is your statement of identity, so use the common name of the food (“Strawberry Rhubarb Jam”). A brand name alone only works when it is obvious what the food is (21 CFR 101.3(b)).

Auto-ordered by weight

Using a packaged product? Tap on its row to pull the sub-ingredients off the label automatically. Or type them yourself in parentheses, like “Chocolate Chips (Sugar, Cocoa, Cocoa Butter)”.

Auto-detected from your ingredients. Tap to add or remove. Always double-check.

This reads your ingredient list only. It cannot know what else your kitchen handles — a shared mixer, flour in the air, one fryer for two products. If an allergen you do not use could still reach this food, that is a “may contain” decision only you can make; it is voluntary, and it never substitutes for declaring an allergen you actually use.

Optional, but it sets how large the net weight has to print. 21 CFR 101.1 measures the principal display panel differently for each shape.

Live preview

Free
Your Product Name
INGREDIENTS: List your ingredients to auto-order them by weight.
Made in a home kitchen.
Label made with Panelry · getpanelry.com/label

Add product name, business name, business address, at least one ingredient, your state, net weight to export a complete label.

Need a Nutrition Facts panel too?

Most home makers are exempt from nutrition labeling under the FDA's small-seller exemption, but it holds only while the label, the listing and your ads carry no nutrition claim or nutrition information at all. One “low sugar” or “high protein” anywhere, including an online listing, and the food needs a full panel (21 CFR 101.9(j)(1)). Panelry builds one from this same recipe: your ingredients and weights carry over, and you match each to a USDA food.

Build your Nutrition Facts panel

Where this goes on the package

The name of the food and the net weight belong on the principal display panel — the face a shopper sees (21 CFR 101.3(a), 101.7(a)). The net weight goes in the bottom 30 percent of that face, unless the face is 5 square inches or smaller (21 CFR 101.7(f)).The ingredient list, allergen statement, your name and address and any nutrition panel may go on that same face or on the information panel — the part of the label immediately to the right of it as the buyer faces the package. If that part is unusable, such as a folded flap or a can end, use the next panel to the right; if the lid is the face, any adjacent panel works (21 CFR 101.2(a), (b)).Wherever they go, they have to appear in one place with nothing in between — no artwork, marketing copy or barcode running between the ingredient list and the address (21 CFR 101.2(e)).

Verify before selling

Cottage-food rules vary by state and change often. Confirm your label against your state's current requirements. Panelry is not legal advice.

Built on your state's actual rules

Cottage food labeling is state law, not federal. The required disclosure in Texas is different from California's, and a template that ignores that is a template that fails inspection. This generator carries researched requirements for all 50 states + DC, each linked to its official source, and re-verified against current guidance.

The rest of the label follows federal conventions every state expects: ingredients in descending order by weight, Big-9 allergen declaration, and a dual-unit net weight.

FAQ

Common questions

Is this cottage food label generator really free?
Yes. Unlimited cottage labels with PNG and PDF export, no account required. Free exports include a small footer credit; Pro removes it. The $9 Label Pass is only for FDA Nutrition Facts panels, which most cottage sellers don't need yet.
Does it include my state's required wording?
Yes. Pick your state and the generator inserts the exact “made in a home kitchen” disclosure your state requires (or a conservative version where the statute doesn't fix exact wording), for all 50 states + DC.
What goes on a cottage food label?
Typically: product name, your business name and address, an ingredient list in descending order by weight, Big-9 allergen declaration, net weight in US and metric units, and your state's home-kitchen disclosure. Some states add registration numbers or dates. Check your state page.
Do I need a Nutrition Facts panel for cottage food?
Usually not for direct-to-consumer cottage sales, unless you make a nutrient claim like “low sugar” or sell into retail. When you scale, the same recipe builds an FDA panel in the nutrition label maker for $9.
Can I put a UPC barcode on the label?
Yes. Enter an 11- or 12-digit UPC-A code (licensed through GS1 US for retail) and the generator validates the check digit and prints a scannable barcode on your label.
Find your state's requirements