Monochrome black ribbons are great for printing simple cards with barcodes or text, but do you know the difference between Zebra’s KrO and KdO ribbons? Both ribbons are used for printing monochrome black and feature an overlay panel to protect the card from basic wear and tear, but the difference lies in the printing technology.

In KrO ribbons, the “r” stands for resin. With these ribbons, a printing process called thermal transfer is used, which creates crisp lines and clear text without any shadows. KrO ribbons are ideal for printing barcodes, because they can be easily read by barcode readers.

In KdO ribbons, the “d” stands for dye sublimation. Two different printing processes are used with KdO ribbons—dye sublimation for the black panel, and then the thermal transfer process for the clear overlay. The dye sublimation process allows you to print on a grey scale, creating shading and shadows. KdO ribbons are great for printing black and white images or logos.