<p>Thermochromic microcapsules have attracted attention due to their wide applicability in functional materials and smart sensing. Incorporating these microcapsules into water-based inks not only utilizes the environmental advantages of aqueous formulations but also imparts a temperature-responsive function to the printed materials. In this study, a series of thermochromic water-based inks was prepared by varying the relative ratios of two types of thermochromic microcapsules. These inks were subsequently applied to paper substrates via gravure printing to fabricate thermochromic paper-based labels. The rheological behavior, printability, and chromatic responses of the inks and printed labels were systematically evaluated. The results showed that the microcapsules exhibited excellent compatibility with the aqueous matrix, ensuring stable and homogeneous dispersion. The inks exhibited a viscosity of approximately 60 mPa·s at a high-shear rate and an adequate self-leveling ability, which are ideal for high-speed printing. The labels exhibited outstanding abrasion resistance, maintaining their structural and functional integrity after 5 min of heavy rubbing. The labels also exhibited reversible, sensitive, and stable thermochromic responses with a controllable color-transition temperature ranging from 28 to 42 °C by adjusting the microcapsule ratio. Moreover, by integrating deep learning algorithms with thermochromic labels in a mobile application, the temperature of the labels can be rapidly and accurately quantified, achieving an image classification accuracy of 99.4% using the MobileNetV3 model. The combination of thermochromic microcapsules and water-based ink, as intelligent, eco-friendly materials, shows great potential in next-generation labeling, packaging, and sensing applications.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>