CPCL to ZPL

Convert Zebra CPCL to ZPL. CPCL is the space-separated, session-based language of Zebra's mobile printers; ZPL is the caret-command language every Zebra reads. Paste a CPCL job here and LabelZoom reads each field, works out where it prints, and writes native ZPL II that produces the same label on a desktop, industrial or mobile Zebra.

Want to see the original first? CPCL viewer. Need a document? CPCL to PDF. Other migrations: TSPL to ZPL, EPL to ZPL.

Preview: LabelZoom’s CPCL reader is the newest in our engine and still improving. Compare the converted ZPL against a known-good print before rolling a template out. If something doesn’t match, let us know — reports go straight into what we fix next.

Paste your CPCL code

Render Settings

Label Size

Preview

ZPL • 4 × 6 in

Note on Watermarks: Free online conversions include a LabelZoom watermark. Need to remove watermarks for production, or process thousands of labels per minute? Check out our REST API subscriptions

Every text, barcode, QR, line and box field comes out as ZPL you can edit.

The session's PAGE-WIDTH and height become ^PW and ^LL.

One template for mobile and desktop Zebras alike.

How to convert CPCL to ZPL

  1. 1

    Paste the CPCL job above, or upload it. Keep the ! header line: it carries the resolution and height the job was written for.

  2. 2

    Set the density to the resolution of the Zebra that will print the label, 203 or 300 dpi.

  3. 3

    Click Quick Convert, then copy or download the ZPL, or send it to a connected Zebra. Fine-tune fonts in the ZPL editor.

How CPCL commands map to ZPL

CPCL positions count in dots at the resolution its header names, or in inches, centimeters or millimeters after an IN- units command. The converter turns all of them into ZPL dots at the density you choose.

CPCLBecomes ZPLNotes
! 0 200 200 h 1 … PRINT^XA … ^XZOne ZPL label per session; the height becomes ^LL
PAGE-WIDTH / PW^PWLabel width
TEXT / T, T90, T180, T270^FO + ^A + ^FDResident font and SETMAG size to the nearest ZPL font
BARCODE / VBARCODE^BC, ^B3, ^BU, ^BE …Narrow bar, ratio and height carried across
B QR … ENDQR^BQModule size and error correction kept
BOX / LINE / INVERSE-LINE^GBAn inverted area becomes a reversed box

Other Supported Formats

CPCL ViewerCPCL to PDFTSPL to ZPLEPL to ZPLDPL to ZPLIPL to ZPLSBPL to ZPLZPL EditorZPL Viewer
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Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about converting Zebra CPCL jobs to ZPL.

Who needs CPCL to ZPL?
Teams moving a label off a mobile printer and onto a desktop or industrial Zebra, which doesn't read CPCL, and fleets that want one ZPL template for every printer they run. Most current Zebra mobile printers also accept ZPL, so converting the CPCL that drives them today lets the same label print across the whole fleet.
Is the result editable ZPL?
Yes. Each CPCL field is read as an object and written as the ZPL that means the same thing: a TEXT field becomes ^FO, ^A and ^FD, a BARCODE becomes the matching ^B command, B QR becomes ^BQ, and BOX and LINE become ^GB. You can open the output in a ZPL editor and change it like any hand-written label.
Does the label size carry over?
Yes. Each CPCL session declares its height in the ! header line and its width with PAGE-WIDTH, and the converter writes them as ZPL's ^LL and ^PW, in dots at the density you choose. A job written for a 300 dpi mobile printer converts to the same physical size at 203 dpi.
Which ZPL fonts replace the CPCL fonts?
CPCL's resident fonts 0 to 7 have no exact match in ZPL. Font 0 and the other fixed-pitch fonts become ZPL font A at the same cell size, and the proportional fonts 4, 5 and 7 become ZPL font 0 at the same height. Check line lengths on a test print, since proportional text can run slightly wider or narrower.
What won't convert?
PCX images, formats stored on the printer with ! DF, and text sent in line-print mode with ! U1. SETBOLD and SETSP don't carry over, because ZPL has no direct equivalent.
Can I convert the other way, or a whole library?
Both. The label converter also writes CPCL, from ZPL, PDF, images and the other printer languages, for when a desktop label has to print on a mobile printer. For a template library, post each job to the CPCL to ZPL conversion through the REST API and save the results; paid API plans have no watermark.