Extract text from Label files (LAO)
To convert LAO labels to another format, you need HERMA Label Assistant or other Page Layout software.
To convert other file formats to the "Label Design File" file type, you need software like HERMA Label Assistant or a similar tool.
The .lao file format is a proprietary label design template primarily utilized by HERMA Label Assistant Online and Labeljoy. Underneath the extension, the file functions as a standard ZIP container that bundles XML layout instructions, text formatting data, and embedded image assets required to print physical labels.
The main disadvantage of the .lao format is strict vendor lock-in. Because the internal coordinate system, print margins, and text rendering engines are proprietary to HERMA and Labeljoy, standard image viewers and web browsers cannot open or display the layout. This makes sharing label drafts with clients or commercial printers highly frustrating, as the recipient must install the exact same software to view the file. It also creates a dependency on specific commercial tools just to access your own label designs.
To share label designs reliably, you must convert the .lao file to a universal format like PDF for high-resolution, scale-accurate printing, or JPG and PNG for quick digital proofing. However, because the rendering engine is a closed ecosystem, most standard online converters fail to process the XML layout accurately and will return an error. Our platform inspects the container and can extract supported underlying assets, such as embedded company logos, barcodes, and text, allowing you to recover your raw data even if you no longer have access to the original label software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your LAO file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted LBE, FPB and ZDP files.
If you want to convert LAO file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use HERMA Label Assistant or similar software from the "Printable Label Design Template" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to LAO, try HERMA Label Assistant or another comparable tool in the "Printable Label Design Template" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our LAO converter.