Swingline 747 Business Stapler Review

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Bottom line: The most recognizable stapler in the history of the American office, introduced in 1968, made immortal by a 1999 film about a man named Milton, and still the best answer to the question “what stapler should I buy” more than half a century later. It staples paper. It does it every time. This is the whole review…yet we still found more to say!

Scribbright rating: 5 out of 5

Get the Swingline 747 on Amazon →

Not the Boeing

In 1968-69, two things were launched that would transform American life. Swingline introduced a rugged business stapler in 1968, promising nothing in particular except to fasten sheets of paper together reliably. Then, on February 9, 1969, the Boeing 747 made its first flight at Paine Field in Everett, Washington, promising to massively democratize air travel and shrink the world.

The Boeing gets more historic recognition. This is understandable but not entirely fair. Not least because the Swingline is still being made today, and the Boeing isn’t.

The stapler from 1968 was revamped and renamed by Swingline in 1970 and quickly became its flagship offering. Swingline was founded by Jack Linsky in 1925 as the Parrot Speed Fastener Company in New York City, later renamed Speed Products in 1939, and became Swingline in 1956. By the time the 747 launched, Swingline had spent decades competing with Hotchkiss and ACME for dominance of a market that most people don’t think about until their stapler jams. The 747’s clean, modern design and reliable mechanism settled the competition in Swingline’s favor with a decisiveness that could have left Boeing with market share envy.

Jack Linsky’s Swingline Speed Stapler was revolutionary because a row of staples could be easily inserted into the machine. Past staplers required much more manual effort, with some descriptions stating that a screwdriver and a hammer were necessary to make older staplers work. This design was so revolutionary, in fact, that it hasn’t really been improved upon since 1937.

The 747 refined that revolution into an object that appeared on every desk in every office in America and stayed there. For most people in most workplaces, the Swingline 747 is simply what a stapler looks like.

If you’re building out a writing setup, the Scribbright reviews section covers everything from mechanical keyboards to fountain pens to desk lighting.

The Milton metaphor

In 1999, Mike Judge released Office Space, a film about the specific misery of cubicle life in the late 20th century. One of its characters, Milton Waddams, owned a red Swingline stapler that his manager repeatedly relocated without permission. The stapler became the film’s most famous prop and Milton’s most eloquent character statement: a man reduced to caring deeply about an object because the object was the one thing in his professional life he felt entitled to.

Ironically, Swingline did not have a red stapler at the time. A prop department employee painted a standard Swingline candy apple red. The popularity of the stapler in the movie and customer interest led Swingline to offer a limited edition red 747 model stapler in 2002.

A film created demand for a product that didn’t exist, so the company made it. The Rio Red 747 remains a strong seller. Milton, reportedly, has since relocated to Acapulco and is having issues with the salt in his margaritas, but is otherwise living well.

The point is that the 747 had enough cultural resonance to anchor a film’s emotional core without any design adjustments. It was already the Platonic ideal of a stapler. The red paint just made it iconic.

What it does

The Swingline 747 is a manual desktop stapler with a die-cast metal base, an all-metal body, and a rubber-padded bottom that keeps it from sliding across the desk during use. It staples up to 30 sheets cleanly with S.F. 4 Premium Staples, has an inner rail that prevents jams, and a positive locking latch that keeps the staple position precise before you press.

The rotating anvil lets you choose between standard mode, where staples fold flat for permanent fastening, and tacking mode, where staple ends point outward for temporary attachment to bulletin boards or soft surfaces. The staple window shows remaining supply without opening the stapler. The button latch releases the top for refilling in one motion.

None of this is complicated. None of it needs to be. They seem like obvious ideas, but that realization only comes after somebody’s done them first.

The genius of the 747 is that it accomplishes a task requiring approximately four design decisions and makes all four correctly. The jaw opens the right amount. The plunger requires the right force. The base is heavy enough to stay put. The staple loads from the top without tools. Every office stapler made since 1968 has been trying to match these four decisions, and most of them fall short on at least one.

For writers specifically

Writers produce paper. Manuscripts, drafts, research, marked-up pages, printed emails, contracts, submissions. The physical output of a writing life is considerable, and at some point most of it needs to be fastened together. A stapler that jams mid-document is not a minor inconvenience when you’re assembling a 200-page manuscript for a first reader. A stapler that misfeeds on the 30th sheet is unacceptable after you’ve just printed a client deliverable.

The 747 doesn’t jam. It doesn’t misfeed. It doesn’t require the specific thumb pressure that cheaper staplers demand before they’ll fire. You press it, it staples, you move on. For a tool you use every day without thinking about it, this is the whole specification.

At $18 to $25, the 747 costs more than the generic stapler at the drugstore checkout line. It costs less than approximately one hour of your professional time. Believe me, one is worth the other.

The red one

If you want the Rio Red version, buy it without apology. It’s the same stapler. The red paint costs a dollar or two more and comes with enough cultural freight to make it the most identifiable object on your desk. Anyone who has seen Office Space will notice it. Anyone who hasn’t will still notice it. Either way, the conversation that follows is more interesting than the one you’d have about a gray stapler.

Milton would have wanted you to have it.

Pros

• Die-cast metal base and all-metal body; built to outlast most of the furniture around it
• Jam-resistant inner rail works as advertised; no mid-document drama
• Rotating anvil handles both permanent and tacking applications
• Staple window shows remaining supply without opening
• 30-sheet capacity covers the overwhelming majority of writing-related stapling tasks
• Limited lifetime warranty
• Available in Rio Red for writers who want their desk to have a personality

Cons

• Requires S.F. 4 Premium Staples for best performance; generic staples increase jam risk
• 30-sheet capacity is the ceiling; heavy-duty stapling requires a different tool
• No longer made in the USA; manufactured in China since ACCO Brands acquisition
• Gray version is aggressively unremarkable to look at

The verdict

The Swingline 747 has been the correct answer to the question “What stapler should I buy?” since 1968. It requires no configuration, no adjustment period, no software, and no opinion about switch actuation. You load it with staples, you press it, it works. For a tool that exists to do one thing reliably in the background of your work life, this is a complete success.

The Boeing 747 changed air travel. The Swingline 747 has stapled paper since 1968 with rock-solid reliability. One of these is considered the huger achievement. The other is on everybody’s desk. Your call.

Get the Swingline 747 on Amazon →

Michael Semer is a writer and editor who has definite opinions about staplers, which is a sentence he did not expect to be writing but stands behind completely.

Before you go: Scribbright reviews the full range of tools serious writers use, from mechanical keyboards to paper tablets to the marker Lyndon Johnson used.

Frequently asked questions

Why is the Swingline 747 considered the best stapler? It’s been the benchmark desktop stapler since its introduction in 1968 because it gets four basic design decisions right: the jaw opens the correct amount, the plunger requires the right force, the base is heavy enough to stay put, and the staple loads from the top without tools. The inner rail prevents jams. The rotating anvil handles both permanent and temporary stapling. Most competing staplers fail on at least one of these criteria.

What staples does the Swingline 747 use? Swingline S.F. 4 Premium Staples are recommended for best performance, including the 30-sheet capacity claim. Generic staples will work but increase the risk of jamming and may reduce the effective capacity. If you’re buying the stapler, buying the matched staples costs very little extra and is worth it.

Is the Swingline 747 made in the USA? Not anymore. Swingline became a division of ACCO Brands in 1987 and manufacturing has since moved to China. Earlier models made in Long Island City, New York are available used and are collectors’ items in the stapler enthusiast community, which exists and is exactly what you’d expect it to be.

Why is there a red Swingline 747? The Rio Red Swingline 747 was introduced in 2002 in response to demand generated by the 1999 film Office Space. The film’s Milton Waddams owned a red Swingline, but the red version didn’t exist at the time. The prop department painted a standard gray model. Swingline created the Rio Red after customer requests following the film’s cult success.

How many sheets can the Swingline 747 staple at once? Up to 30 sheets with Swingline S.F. 4 Premium Staples. With generic staples, the practical capacity is lower. For stapling more than 30 sheets at once, a heavy-duty stapler is the correct tool.

Does the Swingline 747 have a lifetime warranty? Yes. The 747 comes with a limited lifetime warranty from Swingline. Given the die-cast metal construction and the age of the design, the warranty is somewhat academic — these staplers routinely outlast the people who own them — but it’s there.

What is the difference between the Swingline 747 and cheaper staplers? Construction and consistency. The 747’s die-cast metal base and all-metal body are more durable than the plastic-bodied alternatives. The inner rail prevents jams that cheaper mechanisms can’t avoid. The rotating anvil adds functionality most budget staplers omit. At $18 to $25 versus $5 to $8 for a generic stapler, the premium buys a tool that works every time rather than most of the time.